Umami, the fifth fundamental taste

Umami is one of the five basic tastes , along with sweet, salty, sour , and bitter. The term comes from Japanese and roughly means "tasty" or "delicious taste . "

It was identified in 1908 by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda, who discovered that the characteristic flavor of kombu seaweed broth was due to glutamate , an amino acid naturally present in many foods.

Biologically, umami is perceived by specific receptors on the tongue that recognize glutamate and certain nucleotides (such as inosinate and guanylate). When these compounds are present together, the umami flavor is intensified: this is why, for example, a tomato sauce with Parmesan cheese or a meat broth with mushrooms tastes particularly savory. Compared to other tastes, umami is unique because it doesn't simply provide a taste quality, but tends to give food a sensation of depth, fullness, and "substance," and is greatly enhanced by the combination of different compounds.

How it was discovered

Ikeda was eating a soup made with kombu , a seaweed widely used in Japanese cuisine. He noticed that the broth had a distinctive flavor, different from the four recognized tastes of the time (sweet, salty, sour, and bitter).

He then asked himself: where does that "savory" taste come from? He analyzed the kombu and isolated a substance responsible for that flavor, discovering that it was primarily glutamate , an amino acid, which had to be distinguished from other flavors. He called it "umami ," from the Japanese umai (うまい), meaning "good," "tasty," or "savory."

Subsequently, it was discovered that substances such as inosinate and guanylate , found for example in meat and mushrooms, can also strongly enhance umami.

The taste of umami

Umami is the flavor that we might describe as “savory, full, and deep.” It is neither salty nor sweet.

Umami tends to create a smooth, lingering, and "meaty" sensation in the mouth. It increases the perception of depth and fullness in a food. A simple example: think of a very rich broth . Salt makes it salty, but there's another component that makes it seem intense, full-bodied, and satisfying . That component is largely umami. Unlike, say, sweet or sour, umami tends to leave a long, lingering sensation in the mouth , contributing to the perception of a food as "full-bodied" and satisfying.

Foods rich in umami

Among the foods richest in umami are:

• Aged cheeses, such as Parmigiano Reggiano.
• Ripe tomatoes and tomato paste.
• Mushrooms (especially shiitake and porcini mushrooms).
• Soy sauce and miso.
• Seaweed, especially kombu.
• Meat, fish and broths.
• Anchovies and cured ham.

In diets, umami is recommended because it signals the body to the presence of proteins and essential nutrients.

Read also

• Bitter taste in the mouth in the morning: causes and remedies
• Bitterness doesn't help digestion