NCERT Solutions for Class 5 EVS Chapter 3: The Mystery of Food – Free PDF Download

Chapter 3 of Class 5 EVS, Our Wondrous World, The Mystery of Food, follows Detective Disha as she investigates why food spoils, and explores preservation methods old and new.

Last Updated: August 26, 2026

NCERT Solutions for Class 5 EVS Chapter 3: The Mystery of Food

What this chapter teaches.
Why food spoils — microbes need moisture, air, and the right temperature to grow and multiply; how cooking makes some raw foods safer and easier to digest, while other foods (like fruit) are safe to eat raw; traditional preservation methods — drying, salting, smoking, fermenting; and modern preservation methods — freezing, canning, pasteurisation.

Think & Write (Textbook Questions)

Have you ever had an upset stomach? Do you know what could have caused it? What could happen if spoiled food is eaten by mistake?
(Open-ended.) An upset stomach can be caused by eating spoiled, stale, or contaminated food. Eating spoiled food by mistake can cause stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, or more serious food poisoning, because microbes growing in the food produce substances that are harmful to the body.

Why do you think food gets spoiled?
Food gets spoiled when microbes (bacteria, fungi/mould) grow on it, using its moisture and nutrients — warmth, air, and moisture speed up this growth, changing the food’s smell, taste, and texture, and sometimes making it unsafe to eat.

What other things are dried so that they remain unspoilt throughout the year?
Examples include papad, pickles (using salt and oil), dried fish, raisins (dried grapes), dried chillies, dal (lentils), and various spices — drying removes the moisture microbes need to grow.

What would happen to this pickle if no oil had been added?
Without oil (or enough salt), the pickle would be more exposed to air and moisture, allowing microbes to grow more easily — so it would spoil faster instead of staying preserved for months.

How can you avoid choking?
Eat slowly, chew food well before swallowing, avoid talking or laughing with food in the mouth, sit properly while eating, and avoid running or playing while eating.

Activities

Activity 1 — What can be made from mangoes?
Mango pickle, mango papad (aam papad), mango jam, mango pulp/juice, dried mango slices, and mango chutney are all ways to preserve and enjoy mangoes beyond their short fresh season.

Activity 2 — Observing a cut tomato over time.
A cut tomato left uncovered gradually softens, changes colour, and may grow mould as microbes act on it. To preserve a tomato-like item for longer, it can be dried, turned into a puree and refrigerated/frozen, or made into a preserve like ketchup or chutney with salt, sugar, and vinegar, which slow microbial growth.

Activity 3 — Family food-preservation practices.
(Open-ended, family-interview task.) Common answers include sun-drying vegetables, making pickles, storing grains with neem leaves, or preparing papad and vadi in advance for the year.

Activity 5 — Teeth used for cutting and chewing.
Incisors (front teeth) are used to bite and cut food; canines tear food; and molars and premolars (back teeth) grind and chew food into smaller pieces before swallowing.

Let Us Reflect (End-of-Chapter Questions)

1. Why do some food items last for weeks and others spoil in just a few days? Items with low moisture (grains, dried foods) or natural preservatives (salt, oil, sugar) resist microbial growth and last longer, while moist, fresh foods like cooked rice, milk, or cut fruit provide ideal conditions for microbes and spoil within a day or two.
2. You are going on a field trip for two days. List five food items you will carry. How will you keep them from getting spoiled? Sample items: dry chapati/paratha, roasted chana or nuts, biscuits, a sealed jar of pickle, and packaged juice or dry fruits. Keeping food dry, in airtight containers, away from direct heat, and avoiding foods with a lot of moisture helps prevent spoilage during travel.
3. What if food cannot be preserved? Imagine a world without food preservation and discuss the consequences. Without preservation, food would spoil quickly, leading to frequent food shortages, more illness from eating spoiled food, wastage of seasonal harvests, and difficulty storing food for travel, famine, or off-season use — people would need to eat only what is freshly available each day.
4. Match the following: which method is used to preserve which food item, and what is the final product? Answer guide (typical pairs): Drying grapes → raisins; Drying/salting mangoes → pickle or aam papad; Boiling milk with sugar and reducing it → khoya/sweets; Fermenting milk → curd/yoghurt; Salting and sun-drying fish → dried fish; Boiling fruit with sugar → jam.

Why This Chapter Matters

Understanding why food spoils and how to preserve it safely builds practical food-safety awareness children will use throughout life.

How to Use These Solutions

Check your own kitchen for examples of dried, salted, or frozen foods, and discuss why each method works. Download the full chapter from our Class 5 EVS NCERT book page, or browse the Class 5 hub.

More on This Chapter

See also the Extra Questions and Revision Notes for this chapter.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do microbes need to grow?
Moisture, air, and the right temperature.

Name one traditional way to preserve food.
Drying, salting, smoking, or fermenting.

What does the “Let Us Reflect” section of this chapter ask students to do?
It is the textbook’s own set of four end-of-chapter reflection questions — on why foods spoil at different rates, packing food for a trip, imagining a world without preservation, and matching preservation methods to their final products — answered in full above.

Written by Satish

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