Sorry Chef, but you're flat wrong on this one.
First of all, it appears as if we all have a different definition of "pure". So, let me get to my second of all and let me explain something for you - something that's very basic in the culinary world - something that is very misunderstood by the common public...
Almost everything that happens in the world of cooking is
scientific, not mechanical. Examples? Here you go...
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Cooking food isn't mechanical; it's scientific.
Adding heat to protein changes both it's chemical and physical composition, which changes the entire structure of the protein itself, which is why cooked protein changes color, firmness, opacity, tenderness, taste and even aroma. The reason that a seared piece of halibut tastes different, feels different, smells different (etc) then a raw piece of halibut does isn't because of some mechanical change - it's because of science.
The same goes for adding coldness to certain foods.
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Combining various ingredients isn't mechanical; it's scientific.
Adding lemon juice to milk changes both the chemical and physical composition of the milk. It isn't simply "the lemon juice" in all of it's purity that causes the changes in the milk; it's the acid contained within the juice of the lemon itself. Adding extra acidity to milk causes chemical changes within it's structure, which thickens and "curdles" the milk, allowing further chemical reactions to take place;
chemical reactions which cause curd and whey to be formed. Technically, when you add lemon juice (or vinegar) to milk, you are
cooking it (just as the process of making ceviche). And,
as I have just explained to you, cooking something isn’t mechanical; it’s
scientific, as both chemical and physical changes occur.
Milk doesn't naturally curdle under it's own natural acidity. In it's
pure form, milk will remain milk. Curd and whey only occur when chemical changes have occured within the milk. Chemical changes alter an item's "purity", which is clearly shown in the transformation of milk into curd and whey.
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Methods of preparing food aren't always mechnical; they are often scientific.
If you put a 3 lb chuck roast into a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes, your roast will end up being a nice medium rare. But, your roast will also be tough to chew, leathery in texture and extremely flavorless. Now, put that same roast into the same 350 degree oven, but leave it in there for 4 hours and you'll end up with a completely different roast. Why?
The roast (and the protein contained within it) go through biological changes as it is exposed to heat for longer and longer periods of time. The roast is tough when you only cook it for 45 minutes, because the protein strands contained within the meat are naturally tough and fibrous. Sure, you could eat it like that if you want (as there's nothing 'wrong' with it), but if you use a little science, you could make that roast end up tasting sooooo much better.
Leave that roast in the oven for 4 hours and the meat will literally fall apart because it will be so tender. There's nothing mechanical about that at all. That's all science. Exposing the proteins to slow and steady heat for an extended period of time will cause the protein fibers,
and all other connective tissue, to literally disintegrate and fall apart. You literally destroy the muscle's integrity,
which ends up making it fork tender, as you are changing both it's physical and chemical composition.
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Ingredients, as pure as they may be, can still effect the purity of other foods and/or ingredients they comes in contact with.
Case in point? Brines. Dry rubs. Cures. Etc.
When you put chicken breasts into a bucket filled with brine, the changes that occur are purely scientific. Yes, the act of throwing chicken into a bucket of brine is mechanical, but the process that happens within that brine is purely scientific. The same applies for using dry rubs, cures, smoking, etc.
For those of you who don't know, a basic brine is nothing more than a mixture of water, sugar and salt. In most cases, people add spices and/or herbs in order to flavor the brine, which,
as I'm about to tell you why, will,
in turn, flavor the protein contained within the brine itself.
The salt in the brine extracts the moisture contained within the protein and, at the same time, the sugar in the brine is absorbed by the protein. In essence, moisture is being sucked out of and pumped right back into the protein that's contained within a brine. As the salt extracts the moisture within, the sugar simultaneously draws the moisture back in, along with all of the flavor contained within. If it wasn't for science, you wouldn't be able to make a pork chop's flavor have a hint of cinnamon or brown sugar. I don't know about you, but I've never tasted a piece of pork that naturally tastes like cinnamon or brown sugar. Pure pork tastes like pork; not like Christmas.
FYI - Similar changes occur when using dry rubs, cures, etc.
So, even though each and every ingredient contained with a brine, dry rub or cure could be in all of it's purest form, the changes that occur when those certain ingredients are put together can severely alter the purity of the food it comes in contact with. That's not mechanical;
that's all science.
And, just as I said in the very first part of this post, I think we have different definitions of "pure". Am I biased because I understand the science behind food and the scientific changes that take place during cooking, handling, processing (etc) of said food? Maybe. But, there's no need to act as if my definition of "pure" is ludricous. There just so happens to be millions upon millions upon millions of people who would 100% agree with me. What's so ludicrious about that?
Uh? Huh?
Add vinegar and you get the same result. Oh wait. I suppose you consider vinegar processed and not "pure". Ok, add lemon juice and you get the same result. Or is lemon juice not "pure" because you've "processed" it by squeezing it out of the lemon?
I'm flat out gobsmacked at your point of view here. It's the most ludicrous definition of "pure" I've ever heard.
By your definition, unless I grind my wheat by hand using a stone mortar and pestle, it's not "pure". God forbid I should use the grinder attachment on my "scientifically engineered machine" (i.e. Kitchenaid food processor). I guess that makes me a "food scientist" as well ... and not just a cook.
Who knew.
Wow, you're certainly grasping at Straw Men here in order to support your point of view. It's not the tool you use to grind the wheat which makes it unpure (in that sense); it's the transformations that take place when you use those tools. I gave you some examples of scientific/chemical transformations that take place in the previous portion of this post, so I hope you understand what I'm saying.
