Q 01/05

Which Nordic Christmas dish of dried cod is soaked in lye, such as sodium hydroxide, to give a jelly-like texture?

A) Gravlax

B) Rakfisk

C) Lutefisk

D) Surströmming

Answer · why

C) Lutefisk

Lutefisk literally means lye fish, and the cured cod is so caustic that it needs several more days in fresh cold water before anyone can eat it.

Q 02/05

Which German bakery classic gets its glossy brown crust from a dip in sodium hydroxide solution before baking?

A) Pretzel

B) Stollen

C) Pumpernickel

D) Strudel

Answer · why

A) Pretzel

Pretzel dough gets its dark skin and flavor from the lye dip, which drives Maillard browning as it bakes, and German bakers treat rolls and croissants...

Q 03/05

In which Brad Pitt film does a soap maker pour lye on another man's hand to cause a chemical burn?

A) Seven

B) Fight Club

C) Snatch

D) Twelve Monkeys

Answer · why

B) Fight Club

Fight Club has Tyler Durden kiss the narrator's hand before pouring on the lye, and the cast took soapmaking lessons to prepare for their roles.

Q 04/05

Which bitter Mediterranean fruit is often soaked in sodium hydroxide so that curing takes days instead of months?

A) Figs

B) Dates

C) Lemons

D) Olives

Answer · why

D) Olives

Olives straight from the tree are too bitter to eat because of a compound called oleuropein, and lye strips it out in a few days where other cures tak...

Q 05/05

Which American household product, invented in 1923, combines sodium hydroxide crystals with shards of aluminum?

A) Drano

B) Liquid-Plumr

C) Lysol

D) Windex

Answer · why

A) Drano

Drano fizzes in a wet pipe because the metal reacts with the lye, and the bubbling stirs the mix while the lye turns greasy clogs into soap.