Cooking with STEAM!

An integrated and educational approach to learning the art - and science! - of cooking.

Steam stands for:

• Science
• Technology
• Engineering
• Art
• Mathematics

Together they form a hands-on approach to learning which helps children creatively find solutions to real world problems. Your kitchen is the perfect STEAM environment.

Not only does it provide a space to cook and create, but a place to comfortably make, embrace, and learn from mistakes.

With each delicious Raddish recipe and activity, children (and adults!) are exposed to integrated hands-on learning that encourages chefs to think outside the box.

• Explore STEAM learning through cooking

• AND put it into practice using Raddish!

S - Science

At its most fundamental level, cooking is a science. The simple act of heating water to its boiling point changes the consistency of a food. Think about uncooked pasta or raw potatoes -- without science, these staples would be inedible. Baking bread, whipping egg whites, and resting meat before slicing are all scientific reactions. Your kitchen is your very own laboratory!

WHILE YOU COOK: Explore scientific reactions together! Identify changes in taste, texture, and volume with your ingredients. What caused these reactions to happen?

T - Technology

From baking sheets to mixing bowls, whisks to rolling pins, and hand mixers to food processors, technology is an integral part of today's kitchen. As technology advances -- think the Instant Pot and Sous Vide machine -- so does the way we cook and consume our food. Yet some kitchen technologies have withstood the test of time. Can you name the simple machine (a basic mechanical device that applies a force) used daily in billions of kitchens across the word? Hint: it's a wedge.... it's shiny... it has a blade... that's right, it's a knife!

WHILE YOU COOK: Ask your child to dream up a kitchen innovation! What would they create to make your cooking session easier? Safe? More fun?

E - Engineering

A chef is a natural engineer who designs recipes and creates meals by weaving together Science, Technology, Art, and Mathematics..... When plating dishes, chefs engineer beautiful presentations by combining colors while also considering height and texture. In baking, a chef engineers entirely new foods out of different ingredients. Imagine all of the ingredients that go into a cake batter - if you left just one of them out, the structure wouldn't come together!

WHILE YOU COOK: Review the sequence of your recipe together. What would happen if you skipped a step? Mis-measured an ingredient?

A - Art

A true artform of its own, cooking directly engages all our senses. From the sound of a sizzling steak, to the smell of fresh basil, to the velvety texture of a chocolate mousse, we rely heavily on our senses to help us cook and create in the kitchen. Experimenting with flavor combinations, finding new ways to combine familiar ingredients, and the presentation and plating of a final dish are all unique ways that chefs apply art in the kitchen.

WHILE YOU COOK: Challenge your child to make their dish unique! Try swapping out an ingredient or assembling the dish like a work of art.

M - Mathematics

Whether budgeting for groceries, measuring ingredients, or adjusting quantities within a recipe, math finds its way into the kitchen in a multitude of ways. Baking specifically requires math to achieve accurate results - allowing your cake to bake and your biscuits to rise! Cooking at different altitudes along with converting temperatures and weight are even more ways that chefs utilize math in the kitchen.

WHILE YOU COOK: Explore your measuring cups and spoons. How many times does ¼ cup fill 1 cup? How many teaspoons make a tablespoon?

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN!

Making butter is a perfect STEAM activity for Rad Kids. Shake cream inside a simple tool - a mason jar - to watch technology at work as you engineer a new substance - butter! Use math to measure your ingredients and see science in action as liquid transforms into a solid. Finally, explore creativity and art by designing your own unique flavors with custom mix-ins! Get the recipe!

“Cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music. And cooking draws upon your every talent - science, mathematics, energy, history, experience. The more you know, the more you can create.” - Julia Child