The fifth taste

This, from NPR, is very interesting and I thought I'd share.

When people wrinkle their noses when I eat anchovies and ask why I eat them, I can now say confidently, "They're glutamate speedballs. Pure umami."

excellent article... i wonder if there is even more to discover?

umami...pardon me as I roll my eyes(w/o having listened to the NPR link):

um...duh

how 'bout that dastardly MSG?

mother's milk
parmesano reggiano
um...any glutamate crystal encrusted hard cheese
mushrooms
cheetos
doritos

etc...frickin' cetra

na und?

This past Sunday, I had some tomatoes from my mom's garden that I had picked before they froze but weren't yet ripe. I decided to make some fried green tomatoes because I had quite a few and was getting impatient waiting for them to ripen (I also pickled a few, ala Stein's in Lyons or Superdawg).

After slicing, breading and pan frying I tried a bite. The tomatoes were still raw . The breading fried before the tomatoes could cook. I threw them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 375. When they came out I shaved a bit of parmigiano reggiano on top. What a treat! I had never had fried green tomatoes and now lament the fact that it took me so long to get involved. The combination of tart and savory provided by the tomatoes and the sprinkle of aged cheese on top provided a wonderful umami burst that I cannot wait to try again this weekend.

I didn't set out to create the umami flavor that I experienced but now that I think of the ingredients I should have seen it coming. Has anyone experimented with umami in their own kitchen?

Edited for spelling

According to the wikipedia article at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roquefort_cheese
Roquefort cheese contains more glutamate than any other food, at 1280mg per 100g of cheese!

That's not pure umami, but I bet it ranks up there with umami concentrates such as worcestershire, anchovy, bonito flakes, dried mushrooms...

Christopher Gordon wrote:umami...pardon me as I roll my eyes(w/o having listened to the NPR link):

um...duh

how 'bout that dastardly MSG?

mother's milk
parmesano reggiano
um...any glutamate crystal encrusted hard cheese
mushrooms
cheetos
doritos

etc...frickin' cetra

na und?

????????????????????????????????
What are you on about?

imsscott wrote:

Christopher Gordon wrote:umami...pardon me as I roll my eyes(w/o having listened to the NPR link):

um...duh

how 'bout that dastardly MSG?

mother's milk
parmesano reggiano
um...any glutamate crystal encrusted hard cheese
mushrooms
cheetos
doritos

etc...frickin' cetra

na und?

????????????????????????????????
What are you on about?

well, imsscott, umami is hardly an obscure topic and MSG is well known to provide that "fifth taste" and is found in the products listed above

na und?

Christopher Gordon wrote:

imsscott wrote:

Christopher Gordon wrote:umami...pardon me as I roll my eyes(w/o having listened to the NPR link):

um...duh

how 'bout that dastardly MSG?

mother's milk
parmesano reggiano
um...any glutamate crystal encrusted hard cheese
mushrooms
cheetos
doritos

etc...frickin' cetra

na und?

????????????????????????????????
What are you on about?

well, imsscott, umami is hardly an obscure topic and MSG is well known to provide that "fifth taste" and is found in the products listed above

na und?

My interpretation of the article was that the author was giving us a history of the discovery of umami by artisan chefs, in the face of scientists who had already declared that there were only 4 tastes and the chef's subsequent vindication a hundred years later.

I also did not see one mention of MSG. Did you feel this was a pro-MSG propaganda piece?

I can't figure out why it deserved such criticism on your part.

Christopher Gordon wrote:well, imsscott, umami is hardly an obscure topic...

Not to you, maybe. Several of my co-workers asked me if I had that story, and stated that it was the first time they had heard of such a thing.

Also, since when did it become the law that NPR only cover "obscure" topics?

Thought it was a nice, entertaining summary of the topic, personally. The kind of thing that Krulwich does well.

LionRock wrote:Thought it was a nice, entertaining summary of the topic, personally. The kind of thing that Krulwich does well.

I agree. I also appreciated the story behind the discovery, even if I have known about even before it wasn't widely accepted. I always associated umami with Japanese scientists, but had no idea how Escoffier fit in the story.

West Town Tavern tavern recently had an Umami dinner, with wine pairings. It sounded great but I couldn't attend--did anyone here go?

C. Gordon: "na und?"

Na und nichts. Naturlich.

Bis dann,

Geo