Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Kitchen Magic


Okay, this may be the lamest post I've ever done ... but if you were at my house, I'd be pulling you into the kitchen to see what happens when you put a pat of butter in a pan of heating olive oil.

I love the pattern that develops . . .

I know a physics teacher could explain the process but I don't especially care . . .
I just like looking at it. 

Yes, I'm easily amused.
 
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13 comments:

Ms. A said...

That's cool!!!

Thérèse said...

Pretty neat and an excellent start for fried potatoes with garlic and parley... :-)

Brian Miller said...

ha not lame at all...a little everyday magic...smiles.

Kath said...

Label me easily fascinated too! Love the way you see the world!

KarenB said...

Not lame - finding enjoyment in even the smallest things is the sign of a happy person with a great zest for life.

It made me start thinking about all the things I like about cooking - the smells, the textures, watching the patterns when I stir something like chocolate into something else, and then, of course, the eating!

Vicki Lane said...

Yes, Therese, that's where this was going...

Exactly, KarenB!

Frances said...

Vicki, I'm also often spellbound by the visual elements that unexpected come together during cooking activities.

(I could probably do a week's worth of blogs featuring photographs of such phenomena...but my photos would not be a fine as yours are!)

xo

NCmountainwoman said...

We're easily amused as well.

Sue McC said...

With help from my husband who studied physics……

This is an example of surface tension and the reaction of two oils with different viscosities.

The surface tension of the solid butter (along with the solids and water) react with the different surface tension of the hot oil. They do not mix and the butter keeps together enough to make the pattern. But then, the heat melts the butter and that changes the butter to give it a different viscosity and a different surface tension. It mixes with the oil enough to allow the butter to move and the oil to make contact with another surface of solid butter. And on and on and on.

Isn’t science wonderful!

jennyfreckles said...

It's good to be able to appreciate the small everyday pleasures of life. And yes, it has a certain beauty.

Martin said...

The eye of a true photographer!

Victoria said...

Vicki, I love those photos! The magic of everyday things never fails to enchant me.

Merisi said...

Fascinating! :-)

Somewhere in the back drawer of my brain there are a few cells remembering something about mixing butter and olive oil not only for taste, but also to keep the butter from burning too quickly, what with the higher melting point of olive oil. Bon appetit! ;-)