All About The Fifth Taste, Umami, Added To Four Basic Tastes (Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter)
Scientists have debated whether umami was a basic taste since Kikunae Ikeda first proposed its
existence in 1908.
In 1985, the term umami was recognized as the scientific term to describe the taste of glutamates
and nucleotides at the first Umami International Symposium in Hawaii.
Umami represents the taste of the amino acid L-glutamate and 5’-ribonucleotides such as guanosine
monophosphate (GMP) and inosine monophosphate (IMP).
It can be described as a pleasant "brothy" or "meaty" taste with a long lasting, mouthwatering and
coating sensation over the tongue.
The sensation of umami is due to the detection of the carboxylate anion of glutamate in specialized
receptor cells present on the human and other animal tongues.
Some 52 peptides may be responsible for detecting umami taste. Its effect is to balance taste and
round out the overall flavour of a dish.
Umami enhances the palatability of a wide variety of foods. Glutamate in acid form (glutamic acid)
imparts little umami taste, whereas the salts of glutamic acid, known as glutamates, give the
characteristic umami taste due to their ionized state.
GMP and IMP amplify the taste intensity of glutamate. Adding salt to the free acids also enhances
the umami taste.
Monosodium L-aspartate has an umami taste about four times less intense than MSG whereas
ibotenic acid and tricholomic acid (likely as their salts or with salt) are claimed to be many times
more intense.
DISCOVERING UMAMI
Our predilection for umami – the only recently recognised (by western scientists) "fifth taste", after
salt, sweet, sour and bitter -is a fascinating piece in the jigsaw of our gastronomic evolution.
Since studies confirmed just a few years ago that our mouths contain taste receptors for this
moreish savoury taste (the other four "basic tastes" had been widely accepted for, ooh, a few
thousand years), so much in the history of recipes suddenly makes sense.
Umami is why the Romans loved liquamen, the fermented anchovy sauce that they sloshed as
liberally as we do ketchup today. It is key to the bone-warming joy of gravy made from good stock,
meat juices and caramelised meat and veg.
PUTTING A NAME TO THE TASTE
Umami has been variously translated from Japanese as yummy, deliciousness or a pleasant savoury
taste, and was coined in 1908 by a chemist at Tokyo University called Kikunae Ikeda. He had noticed
this particular taste in asparagus, tomatoes, cheese and meat, but it was strongest in dashi – that
rich stock made from kombu (kelp) which is widely used as a flavour base in Japanese cooking.
So he homed in on kombu, eventually pinpointing glutamate, an amino acid, as the source of
savoury wonder. He then learned how to produce it in industrial quantities and patented the
notorious flavour enhancer MSG.
existence in 1908.
In 1985, the term umami was recognized as the scientific term to describe the taste of glutamates
and nucleotides at the first Umami International Symposium in Hawaii.
Umami represents the taste of the amino acid L-glutamate and 5’-ribonucleotides such as guanosine
monophosphate (GMP) and inosine monophosphate (IMP).
It can be described as a pleasant "brothy" or "meaty" taste with a long lasting, mouthwatering and
coating sensation over the tongue.
The sensation of umami is due to the detection of the carboxylate anion of glutamate in specialized
receptor cells present on the human and other animal tongues.
Some 52 peptides may be responsible for detecting umami taste. Its effect is to balance taste and
round out the overall flavour of a dish.
Umami enhances the palatability of a wide variety of foods. Glutamate in acid form (glutamic acid)
imparts little umami taste, whereas the salts of glutamic acid, known as glutamates, give the
characteristic umami taste due to their ionized state.
GMP and IMP amplify the taste intensity of glutamate. Adding salt to the free acids also enhances
the umami taste.
Monosodium L-aspartate has an umami taste about four times less intense than MSG whereas
ibotenic acid and tricholomic acid (likely as their salts or with salt) are claimed to be many times
more intense.
DISCOVERING UMAMI
Our predilection for umami – the only recently recognised (by western scientists) "fifth taste", after
salt, sweet, sour and bitter -is a fascinating piece in the jigsaw of our gastronomic evolution.
Since studies confirmed just a few years ago that our mouths contain taste receptors for this
moreish savoury taste (the other four "basic tastes" had been widely accepted for, ooh, a few
thousand years), so much in the history of recipes suddenly makes sense.
Umami is why the Romans loved liquamen, the fermented anchovy sauce that they sloshed as
liberally as we do ketchup today. It is key to the bone-warming joy of gravy made from good stock,
meat juices and caramelised meat and veg.
PUTTING A NAME TO THE TASTE
Umami has been variously translated from Japanese as yummy, deliciousness or a pleasant savoury
taste, and was coined in 1908 by a chemist at Tokyo University called Kikunae Ikeda. He had noticed
this particular taste in asparagus, tomatoes, cheese and meat, but it was strongest in dashi – that
rich stock made from kombu (kelp) which is widely used as a flavour base in Japanese cooking.
So he homed in on kombu, eventually pinpointing glutamate, an amino acid, as the source of
savoury wonder. He then learned how to produce it in industrial quantities and patented the
notorious flavour enhancer MSG.
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