Discovering Umami: Exploring the Fifth Taste and Its Connection with Black Garlic
Once upon a time, there was our tongue and the sense of “taste,” for which it is the ultimate sensory organ.
In recent years, a new taste has been identified among those perceived by our tongue, the so-called “umami” taste. An exotic-sounding word that takes us to distant places, and indeed it was discovered in Japan by Kikunae Ikeda, a chemistry professor at the Imperial University of Tokyo’s School of Science.
In 1899, Kikunae moved to Germany after winning a scholarship. During his stay in Germany, he studied the German lifestyle and, in particular, their diet.
It was an opportunity for him to taste new foods he had never seen before in his life, and he realized that in addition to sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, there was another nuance of taste that needed to be defined. Kikunae returned to Japan, bringing with him his newly acquired knowledge from Europe. Then one day, thanks to a seaweed-based dish cooked by his wife, he was struck by a sudden memory of the flavors he had experienced in Germany: aged meat, cheeses so different from Eastern dishes.
This event was revelatory: there really was another taste beyond the four known ones! Driven by his scientific curiosity, Kikunae immediately set to work and managed to isolate glutamic acid, the fundamental component of the seaweed’s flavor.
However, Kikunae wanted to make the valuable nutrients in this umami seasoning accessible to all Japanese people. After various attempts, he finally developed a method to produce monosodium glutamate, a seasoning based on glutamate.
On July 25, 1908, the patent was approved: umami was officially born. However, official recognition by the scientific community only came in 1997, during the International Symposium on Olfaction and Taste in San Diego, a full 61 years after Ikeda’s death.
Foods Rich in Umami
Where can we find the “umami” taste? What other foods come close to this flavor?
A classic example is the bouillon cube, a preparation based on monosodium glutamate. Additionally, seafood, shellfish, dried mushrooms, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, and aged Parmigiano Reggiano are all perfect examples for appreciating umami.
Among all these exceptional products is naturally black garlic.
Black Garlic: A Concentrate of Flavor
Discovering Umami and black garlic, which perfectly falls into the group of foods and ingredients defined as “umami.” Black garlic has long been widely used in Korean, Thai, and Japanese cuisines, and can be added to dishes like ramen, pad thai, or red curry, but it is also appreciated in Western recipes to add an extra touch of flavor.
You can find black garlic HERE.
You can find our Olive oil HERE.
Thank you for reading the article: “Discovering Umami!” by Vulcino
