The latest food chemistry graphic looks at garlic and a couple of its well known effects. Garlic is frequently used in cooking, but its use comes with the unwanted accompaniment of ‘garlic breath’. On the more beneficial side of things, it can also have antibacterial properties. This post examines the chemical compounds behind these two phenomena.
Good news! It’s been a while, due the wait on Etsy approving the printers for this second batch, but the chemical compound…
The latest in the series of food chemistry graphics looks at the chemistry of onions – specifically, what causes their odour, and why chopping onions will make your eyes water. Interestingly, none of the compounds that cause these effects are present in the intact onion; rather, when the cell walls of the onion are damaged by chopping, an enzyme released produces a range of compounds as a defence mechanism, which act as irritants.
The idea for this graphic came to me whilst saving the chilli peppers from a forlorn looking, aphid-infested chilli plant that’s probably on its metaphorical last legs. I thought it would be quite interesting to look at the origin of the heat in chilli peppers, and how this can be quantified.
