The mystery of browning
Date: 29.3.2013
When we eat a toast or a roasted steak, we usually do not realise that the same kind of a chemical reaction, which is responsible for the specific taste and brown colour of these foods, takes place after the contact of skin with a self-tanning cream. The process, which is common in these two apparently completely distinct cases, is called the Maillard reaction and is of significant importance in many branches of technology, especially in the food industry.
The prerequisite for the Maillard reaction is the simultaneous presence of an amino acid and a reducing sugar. The reaction, however, does not take place at room temperature; the usually essential factor...
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