By Jacob Webster-Jones Microwave ovens – or for short they are called microwaves – are one of my favorite kitchen appliances to use. When you need to heat up last night’s leftovers or that cup of coffee you...
By Alexander J. Taylor Being at the University of Illinois (UIUC) is a strange feeling right now. On one hand, I have had people yell at me for their March Madness bracket being a complete flop. On the...
By Aishwarya Badiger Ever wished you knew what food at a restaurant tasted like before choosing a place to eat on a Friday evening? If you are like me, you probably spend about an hour trying to make sense...
By Mary-Ann Chen What comes to mind when you think of alternative proteins? With the growing amount of options on the market, you might think of the soy-based Impossible Burger, tofu scrambled “eggs,” or the no-longer-so-far-fetched idea of...
By Emanueli Backes I am sure at some point in your life you have heard someone give their – unscientific – opinion on how eating margarine or butter is good or bad for your health. In fact, there...
By Emanueli Backes The problem with enzymatic browning Think back to a time when you ate an appetizing apple. After a few moments of eating the first bite, the exposed area you just bit begins to darken. You’re...
By Mary-Ann Chen If you’ve ever ordered a side of French fries with your burger, munched on a corn dog while roaming through a theme park, or dug your teeth into the craggly skin on a fried chicken sandwich,...
By Jacob Webster-Jones What do pancakes, mushrooms, and biofuel have in common? This may seem like a setup to a bad joke but actually they can all be produced by using a waste product of the brewing industry. You...
By Abbie Sommer In my house growing up we always had a well-stocked pantry of staple ingredients. Of course, there were the standard baking ingredients needed to make my mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies. There was dried pasta, beans,...
By: Karin Cho Koji is a beloved fungus in Japanese cuisine because of its role in producing sake, miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and many more umami-packed ingredients. Koji belongs to the Aspergillus genus, but unlike some of its...