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Writer's pictureLillion Hunt

Discovering STEAM in Familiar Dishes


Cooking with STEAM

The Mission Society is cooking up STEAM lessons with our second annual Mission Nutrition series. All summer long, we’re sharing delicious dishes and kitchen experiments that will transform young people into seasoned scientists, artists, mathematicians, and more. In this piece, we’re heading into the culinary classroom to uncover how STEAM is the secret ingredient in many of our favorite dishes.



Familiar foods tell a story of innovation in every bite! The kitchen provides students with hands-on opportunities to learn practical STEAM concepts by preparing their favorite dishes. From understanding the chemistry behind cheese melting in mac and cheese to the geometry of slicing a pizza into equal portions, these dishes not only fill our bellies but also make learning deliciously fun for the junior chefs in our programs. These beloved dishes demonstrate how science and creativity collaborate in the kitchen, turning it into a place of discovery and innovation. 


Join us as we dig into the many ways cooking can become a delicious and educational tool for inspiring future scientists, technologists, engineers, artists, and mathematicians. 


Making mac & cheese is like conducting your own science experiment! First, you’ll boil water for your macaroni shells. When water reaches its boiling point of 100 degrees Celsius, it undergoes a phase change from liquid to gas, turning our hard noodles perfectly tender. Next, you create a roux—a mix of butter and flour—that transforms into a thick, bubbling base, much like a potion found in a science lab. Lastly, you use a liquid like milk to emulsify your cheese—this means combining two ingredients that normally don't mix to create a smooth and creamy texture for our gooey, cheesy sauce.

If you’ve ever wondered about the high-tech gizmo behind everyone's favorite carnival treat, we’ve got you covered! A cotton candy machine operates by loading granulated sugar into its center. Inside, heating elements rapidly raise the sugar's temperature above its melting point, typically around 190 degrees Celsius. As the sugar melts, a spinning head uses centrifugal force to push the liquid sugar through the tiny holes in the cotton candy machine. As soon as it hits the cooler air, it solidifies almost instantly into those cloud-like threads we all love.


Making a cake starts with a concept, much like an engineering project. Through research and strategic planning, you’ll need to identify the materials and tools that best serve your project’s needs and plan your approach, like determining the types of icing or fondant, piping tip sizes, and number of cake tiers necessary to bring your vision to life. During the assembly phase, ensuring your cake has a solid foundation to support its weight, especially for multi-tiered cakes, shares similar principles to constructing a building. If things don’t go as planned, problem-solving and finding creative solutions, like ingredient substitutions or troubleshooting equipment, are key to ensuring your final product is a success.


Sushi is considered a true art form, where aesthetics are just as important as flavor. Sushi rolls are crafted with intricate designs, patterns, and clean lines that are revealed when sliced. Their vibrant colors like the deep red of tuna, rich green of avocado, and bright orange of carrot, come entirely from the natural pigments of the ingredients. Texture is also carefully considered, like the sticky white rice, tender raw fish, and subtle crunch of dried seaweed. This attention to detail transforms sushi into edible masterpieces that captivate both your eyes and taste buds.


Making pizza is a great way to practice math concepts. From the moment you start, you’re measuring ingredients using cups, teaspoons, and ounces to ensure you follow your recipe precisely. Practicing our time management skills is crucial to determine how long our dough needs to rise. Proper rising allows yeast to ferment dough, creating a light, airy crust essential for a delicious pizza. Before it’s time to pop in the oven, we must determine how long it needs to bake and the right temperature to achieve that perfect golden crust. During our final step, geometry comes into play when evenly cutting your pizza into triangular slices so that everyone gets a fair share.


Cooking isn't just a treat for your taste buds; it's a delicious way to practice STEAM concepts. Through experimenting, measuring, and exploring, each spoonful becomes a lesson that ignites curiosity and creativity in young minds, introducing them to these important subjects in a hands-on, practical way. The kitchen is filled with tools and ingredients that bring science, technology, engineering, art, and math to life, offering learning experiences that textbooks often can't match. So, let's fire up the stove and ignite their passion for learning!


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