As 2005 Emerges as the Year of the Asian Cuisine; Umami Emerges as the “Fifth Taste” (1/3)

What is Umami? Once relegated to supporting roles, flavors and ingredients have moved center stage in an increasingly sophisticated and diverse food industry, according to, "Market Trends: Food Flavors & Ingredients Outlook 2005," a new report from market research publisher Packaged Facts. One of the fastest-growing and most diverse segments of the U.S. population, Asian-Americans are both driving the growth of Asian and Indian foods through their own spending power and, at the same time, changing the palates of their fellow Americans. While the Pan-Asian trend of blending diverse Asian cuisines to create new tastes is still popular, there is also an increased focus on distinct authentic flavors and regional cuisines, according to this report. "Creating flavors that ‘wow’ will be more than just adding heat in 2005, it will include layering flavors, considering umami, and creating sensation -- a sense of intensity and tingling," said Don Montuori, Acquisitions Editor for Packaged Facts. It’s usually said that the human tongue can detect only four basic tastes: sweet, sour, bitter and salty, and that all tastes are combinations of these. Many taste specialists now believe that taste is actually more complicated than this, with the taste buds being helped along by sense of smell, by the feel of substances in the mouth and even by the noise that food makes when we chew it. They also believe that there is a fifth basic taste called umami that is defined as “deliciousness.” Expect to hear more about umami in 2005. Umami was discovered more than a thousand years ago in Asia, but nonetheless "new" to western chefs. Umami taste receptors were identified by scientific researchers in 2002. These umami taste receptors are stimulated by certain specific amino acids that are the core building blocks of proteins, especially glutamate and the flavor-enhancing substance monosodium glutamate. The umami taste receptor is often called the "protein tooth” because high protein foods are often high in glutamate. Umami is hard to translate, to judge by the number of English words that have been suggested as equivalents, such as savoury, essence, pungent, deliciousness, and meaty. In fact, umami embodies the quality of being savory. It is sometimes associated with a feeling of perfect quality in a taste, or of some special emotional circumstance in which a taste is experienced. It is also said to involve all the senses, not just that of taste. Umami Goes to Class Recently some of the world's leaders in the field of molecular gastronomy* gathered for a ground breaking Master Class designed to illuminate the concept of umami and explore future opportunities which foster the interplay of umami and taste. The Master Class sessions were given by chefs Yoshihiro Murata (Kikunoi Restaurant, Kyoto, Japan) and Heston Blumenthal (The Fat Duck Restaurant, Bray, Berkshire) along with reknowned scientists and specialists. The event, a first for Japan, drew an international audience of specialists in the science of taste perception, dietary, culture, taste and flavor chemistry, sensory analysis and food technology, together with Japanese chefs, including internationally renowned Nobu (Nobuyuki Matsuhisa). It highlighted the importance of umami and its role in imparting food, especially the cuisine of Japan, with its unique character. Commenting on the growing awareness of the umami taste experience, Nobu said, "as people come to appreciate umami, both the taste and the quality of food will advance and people will become more healthy." Umami is Both Old/New Lesson in Taste