Everybody is talking about molecular cooking, the chemistry of cooking, El Bulli, The Fat Duck, Hibiscus…  Spherification, bacon and egg ice cream, fantastic foams and ingredients that sound as though they ought to be kept in a lab.  Here in France, this sort of food is enjoying huge popularity – olive caviar and mousse of red wine are in stiff competition with classic bistrot recipes like steak frites and pommes dauphinoise.
But if it all remains a bit of a mystery for you, let us reassure you that this sort of cooking is not just for posh restaurants and celebrity chefs.  Ferran Adrià’s Texturas range of ingredients and tools allows anyone to create extraordinary gastronomic effects and delicious new textures.  Our friend Laurent is a big fan of this sort of cooking and his blog dedicated to molecular gastronomy includes step by step photos to show the processes involved in creating a wide range of recipes.  Have a look at www.blog-moleculaire.com.