The "Umami" Hype - Real Or Fluff?

[OhioTom76]

This article is a few years old, but it's still rather interesting in that it puts some of the hype over "umami" in foods into perspective.

http://www.alternet.org/story/14718...aste_what_is_the_umami_fad_all_about?page=0,0

Admittedly, I've been toying around with this lately - mainly because I have a bottle of fish sauce collecting dust in my fridge, and I was trying to use it up in recipes and see if I came up with anything exciting.

I tried out a recipe for "umami" burgers that called for a generous amount of fish sauce, along with some fresh garlic, black pepper and a little sugar. They were interesting at first, I would describe the flavor of the meat as having a "processed" taste to it. It was fun for a burger or two, but I quickly found myself wanting my usual style burgers instead.

I've never been much of a fan of anything loaded with MSG, mainly because it tends to drown out all the natural flavors and blanket everything with a saltiness. I know that it occurs naturally in some foods, but what little "umami" I was getting in what I would normally eat was in smaller amounts and on occasion - I wasn't making a concerted effort to drown everything in it.

 

[Alex H]

Never heard of it, but having read that link - I have enough trouble with the first 4 tastes, never mind adding more

I don't season food with salt to 'bring out the flavour', any wine over about 10€ a bottle is wasted on me - they just taste the same

Don't misunderstand me - it's not that I like bland food, it's just that these things don't work for me - after all EVERYONE is different

 

[Lostvalleyguy]

We have a lot of taste buds and admittedly we don't know how exactly they convert chemicals into flavours but in spite of the lack of knowledge I think this is more fluff than reality. I suspect that there are nuances in the way the taste buds pick up flavours in the same way that the ears can pick up a range of frequencies. It is not difficult to believe that some of the taste buds are not triggered by the usual fare we place on the dining table. Chemicals like MSG are probably triggering those taste buds and we interpret this perhaps as a different taste. I think it is more perception than reality.