What Can Go Wrong During Cooking

Question 1

What is an emulsion?

Answer 1

An emulsion is the combination of two ingredients that don’t easily blend together, like oil and vinegar or water.

Question 2

Why do emulsions break?

Answer 2

Temperature is too high
Oil is added too quickly
Left to stand too long before use
Insufficient mixing time
Incorrect proportions of ingredients

Question 3

How can you tell if an emulsion has separated?

Answer 3

The mixture looks grainy or curdled when adding fat, indicating it is about to break or separate.

Question 4

What causes choux pastry to sink?

Answer 4

Undercooked
Not enough liquid
Oven door opened
Oven temperature too low
Not enough beating to add air

Question 5

What can cause bread not to rise?

Answer 5

Old dead yeast
Yeast being too hot
Room temperature being too cold
Not enough time to rise
Using the wrong size pan
Over or under proving (yeast development)
Not enough or too much kneading

Question 6

What is the roux method?

Answer 6

Melt fat in pan
Add flour and stir continuously
Remove from the heat
Gradually add milk
Return to the heat and bring to the boil
When the sauce has thickened turn down the heat until it has turned glossy

Question 7

What are the stages of whipped egg whites?

Answer 7

Foamy
Soft Peaks
Firm Peaks
Over Beaten Egg Whites

Question 8

What happens if egg whites are over beaten?

Answer 8

They become grainy, watery, and flat, and cannot be salvaged.

Question 9

What should be done to stabilize egg whites before whipping?

Answer 9

Add a pinch of salt or cream of tartar to help stabilize the protein matrix and increase volume.

Question 10

What can cause a pastry crust to shrink?

Answer 10

Over mixing
Excessive rolling
Ingredients being too warm

Question 11

Why might a pie crust be soggy?

Answer 11

Incorrect dish material
A leak from the filling
Low oven temperature
Too much fat when shortening
Ingredients too warm
Overworking the crust

Question 12

What is the correct way to add sugar to egg whites when making meringue?

Answer 12

Sugar must be added gradually, starting with a small amount once the egg whites are foamy.

Question 13

What are the reasons a cake might sink?

Answer 13

Undercooking
Incorrect oven temperature
Wrong ratio of ingredients

Question 14

What is the effect of using fresh eggs for meringue?

Answer 14

Fresh eggs help achieve fuller volume because they are slightly acidic, stabilizing the proteins.

Question 15

What is a common mistake when making a roux sauce?

Answer 15

Adding milk too quickly while whisking can cause lumps.

Question 16

What are the two methodes of making sauce?

Answer 16

Roux sauce
All in one sauce

Question 17

What may cause whipped cream to look like cottage cheese?

Answer 17

Over whipping the cream can cause it to separate into butter and buttermilk.

Question 18

What happens if you don’t continuously whisk a sauce?

Answer 18

The starch molecules will sink to the bottom and create lumps in the sauce as they gelatinise

Question 19

True or False: Chilling pastry before baking can help prevent shrinking.

Answer 19

True.

Question 20

What is a colloid in relation to cream?

Answer 20

A colloid is a mixture where tiny particles of one substance are dispersed evenly throughout another.

Question 21

What is the all in one method?

Answer 21

Place fat flour and milk in pan
Whisk continuously until thickened
Turn down and simmer until it becomes glossy

Question 22

What causes a crust to lose shape?

Answer 22

The crust wasn’t cold enough going into the oven
The oven wasn’t hot enough

Question 23

What are some other potential problems with flaky and shortcrust pastry and how to fix them?

Answer 23

The pastry is crumbly and had to roll which means the ingredient ratio is wrong add more water

Pie crust can burn around the edge to prevent this you can place some foil over the pie

Tough pastry can be prevented by using less flour when rolling the pastry and making sure pastry is well mixed/shortened