The Best Popover Recipe Ever
In this video I show my popover recipe that I created for a friend of mine and adapted for conventional, convection, and Rational iCombi ovens. This recipe is super easy to make with almost no tools needed, other than a popover pan (see below), and they are amazing. Your friends will think you’re a genius. […]
Harold McGee on “Flavor”
Chef Michael and Harold had an extemporaneous discussion on what the meaning of the word “flavor” should be, prompted by different meanings in the scientific community. This is a somewhat technical discussion, but it’s a fascinating and important topic.
Umami, Kokumi, and Taste
This is the recording of a talk Chef Silver gave at the Research Chefs Association national convention in Denver (2026). The talk covers: what umami is, how taste receptors work, umami and kokumi in foods, and how to best select and combine foods to enhance umami taste. The audience was primarily food scientists, university professors, […]
Culinology Certification Course
This is a 40-hour, self-paced course on Culinology (restaurant and commercial food production) that was created for the Research Chefs Association and the American Culinary Federation. It is designed for people who work with food professionallly, but home cooks and others interested in learning the science behind commercial food production will find it interesting and […]
The Secret World of Proteins
This is the recording of a talk Chef Silver gave at the American Culinary Federation’s national convention in Las Vegas. The talk covers three mains areas: what proteins are and examples of types of proteins; MSG, I+G, and umami; and finally, proteins in nutrition, including the Protein Leverage Theory. The talk was designed for non-scientists, […]
Chocolate Ice Cream and Creami vs Pacojet Shootout
In this tutorial you’ll learn to make delicious, creamy chocolate ice cream and we’ll compare two blade-driven ice cream machines: the Ninja Creami and the Pacojet. Recipe Formula (Ingredients): 125g sugar20g malt powder37g Dutch-process cocoa powder (natural cocoa powder will also work)1.5g salt (anywhere between 1 – 2 grams is fine)1/8 tsp espresso powder 160g […]
Sushi-Making Class in Tokyo, Japan
My wife and I went with other culinary instructors to Japan with a group of students, and we all attended a sushi-making class. This class taught the basics of making sushi rice, nigiri sushi, and maki sushi.
ACF Food Science Course
This is a 40-hour, self-paced course on food science for food professionals, home cooks, scientists, non-scientists, or anyone who works with food and wants to understand what’s going on under the hood. The ACF food science course is available here. Overview This online course represents over a thousand hours of curriculum development, including many improvements […]
Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream and Perfect Custards
In this video you’ll learn to make Crème Anglaise, the custard that is frozen into ice cream. A custard is basically just a mixture of a liquid — typically milk and cream — that’s thickened by mixing it with eggs and gently cooking it. Recipe using 36% Heavy Cream (see video) 120g sugar60g corn syrup510g […]
Food Molecules Lecture
This is a recording of one of the introductory lectures in my food science class. It’s a high-level overview of all the food molecules and some basics about how they function. This lecture gives a basic introduction to organic chemistry specifically related to food molecules and also covers redox reactions, free radicals and antioxidants, sugars […]
Ceviche
Ceviche is a raw seafood dish that relies on the chemical reaction between fresh fish (or shellfish) and an acidic marinade (commonly citrus juice) to “cook” (denature) the proteins. Thanks to its bright flavor, vivid appearance, and simplicity, it has become a beloved staple in many coastal regions of Latin America, most famously Peru. Archaeological […]
Food Science Lectures
Note: This is a new class, and the lectures will be posted here as they are created. They should all be available by the end of June 2026. There are also two talks, an interview, and a lecture I gave at a college in Seattle (food molecules). 1: Intro & Heat 2: Water — (coming […]