What is the three essence of cooking?

Answer 1

Well I suppose we can start with the most Basic, being emulsions, starches as thickeners and the maillard reaction.

Emulsions are pretty simple, it's a mixture of a water based ingredient (Most often an acid of some kind) and oil. There are two parts to an emulsion, the continuous phase, most often the water phase, and the dispersal phase, most often the oil phase. The continuous phase surrounds the dispersal phase which is a series of millions of droplets trapped within. An emulsion breaks or separates when the continuous phase becomes too thin, either by adding too much oil or the oil coming together to form larger droplets. There are three types of emulsion: a basic emulsion, like a simple vinaigrette that contains no emulsifiers and is brought together entirely by the force exerted on mixing the two ingredients, these will quickly separate into oil and water. the next is semi-permanent which uses a light emulsifier such as mustard to create a stronger barrier between the continuous and dispersal phases, these can stay emulsified for quite sometime, but will eventually separate at least partially, but can be brought back together by force. The final is the permanent phase, these use lecithin, such as that found in eggs, soy and butter. These will last nigh indefinitely, like mayonaise or hollaindaise. All emulsions are sensitive to very high and very low temperatures.

The second is using starch as a thickener such as a roux, this is accomplished by something called gelatinization, which strangely has nothing to do with Gelatin at all. What actually occurs is the loosening of starch molecules in the presence of heat and water. Starch molecules are long strands of sugar molecules, which some may remember as being hydroscopic from their high school chemistry class. This essentially means that these molecules are extremely attracted to water, but in the form of bunched up starch granules they cannot allow much water into their structure, so as they break down they can absorb more water effectively thickening the sauce. Interesting to note is that in the three stages of a roux a white roux, one that has barely been cooked is twice as powerful a thickener as a brown roux, one allowed to become very deeply caramelized. This is because of the conversion of some of the starch molecules to more simple sugars. (this is a highly simplified version of a relatively complicated chemical process)

Finally is the Maillard reaction, this is what occurs when you sear or grill a piece of meat. It also occurs in the crust formation of bread, coffee and dulce de leche among other places. Essentially what's happening is that as protein in these items break down at high heat, this temperature is not well defined for all food items, but for most meat items it's agreed at around 154 degrees C. As the amino acids break down sugars (also being broken down) in the items combine with amino acids making various flavor compounds, these further breakdown creating more and more unique flavorings. All food items have a unique set of chemicals created via the maillard reaction. This is actually the basis of much of the food flavoring industry, the process is used to make many artificial flavors.

Answer 2

In cooking essence means a liquid obtained from a plant with a very strong taste or smell that is used for cooking. Three essences used in cooking are vanilla, peppermint, and cinnamon. Essence in regard to cooking can be the most important ingredient.