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Umami
Umami ( from ja, 旨味 ), or savoriness, is one of the five basic tastes. It has been described as savory and is characteristic of broths and cooked meats. People taste umami through taste receptors that typically respond to glutamates and nucleotides, which are widely present in meat broths and fermented products. Glutamates are commonly added to some foods in the form of monosodium glutamate (MSG), and nucleotides are commonly added in the form of disodium guanylate, inosine monophosphate (IMP) or guanosine monophosphate (GMP). Since umami has its own receptors rather than arising out of a combination of the traditionally recognized taste receptors, scientists now consider umami to be a distinct taste. Foods that have a strong umami flavor include meats, shellfish, fish (including fish sauce and preserved fish such as maldive fish, ''Katsuobushi'', sardines, and anchovies), tomatoes, mushrooms, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, meat extract, yeast extract, cheeses, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor cells located on taste buds in the oral cavity, mostly on the tongue. Taste, along with olfaction and trigeminal nerve stimulation (registering texture, pain, and temperature), determines flavors of food and other substances. Humans have taste receptors on taste buds and other areas, including the upper surface of the tongue and the epiglottis. The gustatory cortex is responsible for the perception of taste. The tongue is covered with thousands of small bumps called papillae, which are visible to the naked eye. Within each papilla are hundreds of taste buds. The exception to this is the filiform papillae that do not contain taste buds. There are between 2000 and 5000Boron, W.F., E.L. Boulpaep. 2003. Medical Physiology. 1st ed. Elsevi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor cells located on taste buds in the oral cavity, mostly on the tongue. Taste, along with olfaction and trigeminal nerve stimulation (registering texture, pain, and temperature), determines flavors of food and other substances. Humans have taste receptors on taste buds and other areas, including the upper surface of the tongue and the epiglottis. The gustatory cortex is responsible for the perception of taste. The tongue is covered with thousands of small bumps called papillae, which are visible to the naked eye. Within each papilla are hundreds of taste buds. The exception to this is the filiform papillae that do not contain taste buds. There are between 2000 and 5000Boron, W.F., E.L. Boulpaep. 2003. Medical Physiology. 1st ed. Elsevi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monosodium Glutamate
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), also known as sodium glutamate, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. MSG is found naturally in some foods including tomatoes and cheese in this glutamic acid form. MSG is used in cooking as a flavor enhancer with an umami taste that intensifies the meaty, savory flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups. MSG was first prepared in 1908 by Japanese biochemist Kikunae Ikeda, who was trying to isolate and duplicate the savory taste of '' kombu'', an edible seaweed used as a base for many Japanese soups. MSG balances, blends, and rounds the perception of other tastes. MSG is commonly used and found in stock (bouillon) cubes, soups, ramen, gravy, stews, condiments, savory snacks, etc. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given MSG its generally recognized as safe (GRAS) designation. It is a popular belief that MSG can cause headaches and other feelings of discomfort, known as " Chine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fish Sauce
Fish sauce is a liquid condiment made from fish or krill that have been coated in salt and fermented for up to two years. It is used as a staple seasoning in East Asian cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine, particularly Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Some garum-related fish sauces have been used in the West since the Roman times. Due to its ability to add a savory umami flavor to dishes, it has been embraced globally by chefs and home cooks. The umami flavor in fish sauce is due to its glutamate content. Fish sauce is used as a seasoning during or after cooking, and as a base in dipping sauces. Soy sauce is regarded by some in the West as a vegetarian alternative to fish sauce though they are very different in flavor. History Asia Sauces that included fermented fish parts with other ingredients such as meat and soy bean were recorded in China, 2300 years ago. During the Zhou dynasty of ancient China, fish fermented with soybeans and salt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kikunae Ikeda
was a Japanese chemist and Tokyo Imperial University professor of chemistry who, in 1908, uncovered the chemical basis of a taste he named umami. It is one of the five basic tastes along with sweet, bitter, sour and salty. Ikeda graduated in 1889 from Tokyo Imperial University in chemistry. In 1891, he became a professor at the Higher Normal School of Tokyo, in 1896 he became an associate professor at Tokyo Imperial University. From 1899, Prof. Ikeda studied in Germany for two years at the laboratory of Prof. Friedrich Wilhelm Ostwald at the University of Leipzig, which was then the center of physical chemistry. After a brief stay in London, he returned to Tokyo in 1901 and became a full professor in chemistry at Tokyo Imperial University. In 1907 at the Tokyo Imperial University in Japan, Ikeda was eating dinner with his family when he suddenly stopped. That day the dashi broth in his soup was more delicious than normal; after stirring a few times he realized the difference ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yeast Extract
Yeast extracts consist of the cell contents of yeast without the cell walls; they are used as food additives or flavorings, or as nutrients for bacterial culture media. They are often used to create savory flavors and umami taste sensations, and can be found in a large variety of packaged food, including frozen meals, crackers, snack foods, gravy, stock and more. They are rich in B vitamins (but not B12). Yeast extracts and fermented foods contain glutamic acid (free glutamates), an amino acid which adds an umami flavor. Glutamic acid is found in meat, cheese, fungi (mushrooms and yeast), and vegetables—such as broccoli, and tomatoes. The heat-autolytic process to make yeast extract of the autolysate type was invented in the 19th century by Justus von Liebig. Yeast cells are heated until they rupture, then the cells' own digestive enzymes break their proteins down into simpler compounds ( amino acids and peptides), a process called autolysis. The insoluble cell walls ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soy Sauce
Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' Aspergillus sojae'' molds. It is considered to contain a strong umami taste. Soy sauce in its current form was created about 2,200 years ago during the Western Han dynasty of ancient China, and it has spread throughout East and Southeast Asia where it is used in cooking and as a condiment. Use and storage Soy sauce can be added directly to food, and is used as a dip or salt flavor in cooking. It is often eaten with rice, noodles, and sushi or sashimi, or can also be mixed with ground wasabi for dipping. Bottles of soy sauce for salty seasoning of various foods are common on restaurant tables in many countries. Soy sauce can be stored at room temperature. History East Asia China Soy sauce (, ) is considered almost as old as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taste Receptor
A taste receptor or tastant is a type of cellular receptor which facilitates the sensation of taste. When food or other substances enter the mouth, molecules interact with saliva and are bound to taste receptors in the oral cavity and other locations. Molecules which give a sensation of taste are considered "sapid". Vertebrate taste receptors are divided into two families: * Type 1, sweet, first characterized in 2001: – * Type 2, bitter, first characterized in 2000: In humans there are 25 known different bitter receptors, in cats there are 12, in chickens there are three, and in mice there are 35 known different bitter receptors. Visual, olfactive, "sapictive" (the perception of tastes), trigeminal (hot, cool), mechanical, all contribute to the perception of ''taste''. Of these, transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1 ( TRPV1) vanilloid receptors are responsible for the perception of heat from some molecules such as capsaicin, and a CMR1 receptor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soy Sauce
Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' Aspergillus sojae'' molds. It is considered to contain a strong umami taste. Soy sauce in its current form was created about 2,200 years ago during the Western Han dynasty of ancient China, and it has spread throughout East and Southeast Asia where it is used in cooking and as a condiment. Use and storage Soy sauce can be added directly to food, and is used as a dip or salt flavor in cooking. It is often eaten with rice, noodles, and sushi or sashimi, or can also be mixed with ground wasabi for dipping. Bottles of soy sauce for salty seasoning of various foods are common on restaurant tables in many countries. Soy sauce can be stored at room temperature. History East Asia China Soy sauce (, ) is considered almost as old as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glutamate
Glutamic acid (symbol Glu or E; the ionic form is known as glutamate) is an α-amino acid that is used by almost all living beings in the biosynthesis of proteins. It is a non-essential nutrient for humans, meaning that the human body can synthesize enough for its use. It is also the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate nervous system. It serves as the precursor for the synthesis of the inhibitory gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in GABA-ergic neurons. Its molecular formula is . Glutamic acid exists in three optically isomeric forms; the dextrorotatory -form is usually obtained by hydrolysis of gluten or from the waste waters of beet-sugar manufacture or by fermentation.Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged, Third Edition, 1971. Its molecular structure could be idealized as HOOC−CH()−()2−COOH, with two carboxyl groups −COOH and one amino group −. However, in the solid state and mildly acidic water solut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meat Extract
Meat extract is highly concentrated meat stock, usually made from beef or chicken. It is used to add meat flavour in cooking, and to make broth for soups and other liquid-based foods. Meat extract was invented by Baron Justus von Liebig, a German 19th-century organic chemist. Liebig specialised in chemistry and the classification of food and wrote a paper on how the nutritional value of a meat is lost by boiling. Liebig's view was that meat juices, as well as the fibres, contained much important nutritional value and that these were lost by boiling or cooking in unenclosed vessels. Fuelled by a desire to help feed the undernourished, in 1840 he developed a concentrated beef extract, ''Extractum carnis Liebig'', to provide a nutritious meat substitute for those unable to afford the real thing. However, it took 30 kg of meat to produce 1 kg of extract, making the extract too expensive. Commercialisation Liebig's Extract of Meat Company Liebig went on to co-found the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tomatoes
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word , from which the English word ''tomato'' derived. Its domestication and use as a cultivated food may have originated with the indigenous peoples of Mexico. The Aztecs used tomatoes in their cooking at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, and after the Spanish encountered the tomato for the first time after their contact with the Aztecs, they brought the plant to Europe, in a widespread transfer of plants known as the Columbian exchange. From there, the tomato was introduced to other parts of the European-colonized world during the 16th century. Tomatoes are a significant source of umami flavor. They are consumed in diverse ways: raw or cooked, and in many dishes, sauces, salads, and drinks. While tomatoes are fruits— bo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
