The article by Assoc. Prof. Murat Doğan, Deputy Dean of Istanbul Gelişim University (IGU), Faculty of Fine Arts (FFA) and academic member of the Department of Gastronomy and Culinary Arts, was published in Hotel Restaurant & Hi-Tech Magazine. The article appeared in the June issue of the magazine with the title "The Mystery Of Taste". The text of the relevant article is given below.
THE MYSTERY OF TASTE
Dear readers, as we all know, we began our journey of flavors in the womb, continued with breast milk, and will carry on throughout our lives. By titling my article "The Mystery of Flavor," I wanted to reference a problem that modern science has yet to solve despite all its efforts. I will touch on a few points regarding this mystery that scientists have not been able to unravel.
The foremost priority in the food and beverage industry is guest satisfaction. The way to achieve this is by offering foods that taste delicious to them. In the kitchen, we prepare dishes according to standard recipes and subject them to taste tests. In these taste tests, or sensory evaluations, as referred to in the literature, we consider four basic tastes: salty, sour, sweet, and bitter. Despite the dizzying advancements in modern science, we haven't been able to add much to these four basic tastes over the last century. This is where the problem begins, and this is why we can't fully define and solve the concept of flavor. To raise some awareness, I will talk about umami, fatty, and kokumi tastes, which are not yet fully explained. Additionally, there are flavors that haven't even been named yet. For example, the astringent taste provided by cranberries, which is both sour and bitter at the same time, the metallic taste we get when consuming molasses, and the alkaline taste we experience when dipping a green plum in salt and similar flavors. There are many more...
Umami Taste
A Japanese scientist, Kikunae Ikeda, noticed a pleasant taste in seaweed and meat products that was distinct from the four basic tastes. He named this taste "umami," meaning "pleasant savory taste." He discovered that glutamate was responsible for this flavor and managed to isolate this chemical from seaweed. Thanks to Ikeda, an industry centered around MSG (monosodium glutamate), also known as Chinese salt, was born. Today, MSG is heavily criticized for its potential health issues, a topic that warrants a separate discussion and will not be addressed here. However, it is worth noting that monosodium glutamate is the salt of glutamic acid. It naturally occurs in many foods such as tomatoes, mushrooms, and cheese. Additionally, our bodies also produce this substance.
Fatty Taste
Richard David Mattes, an American scientist, conducted studies on perceptual mappings of taste in 2015 and proposed the existence of flavors that could lead to different taste sensations beyond the basic tastes. In his research, he first mentioned the fatty taste. Combining the Latin words "olea" (oil, fatty) and "gustus" (taste, flavor), he coined the term "Oleogustus" to describe the fatty taste. Mattes emphasized that the fatty taste creates a sense of dissatisfaction when consumed alone, similar to umami. Researchers have found that the oleogustus taste has a slight salty and sweet taste, but leaves a sensation of oiliness in the mouth. They discovered that there are receptors on the tongue that perceive the oily sensation and contribute to the long-lasting continuity of the taste. Studies on this taste are ongoing.
Kokumi Taste
In the 1990s, flavor development experts at the Ajinomoto company in Japan developed a taste they termed "kokumi," which translates to "rich taste" in English. To simplify the story of their research, researchers pureed garlic and treated it with activated charcoal to retain its aroma. They created a tasteless powder as a result. They then added a small amount of this substance to vegetable soup, resulting in a very flavorful dish. As a result, compounds were discovered that enhance, enrich, and alter the taste and aroma of foods without having a distinct taste or aroma of their own. These compounds typically consist of amino acids such as glutamine, valine, and glycine. Today, kokumi is used as a flavor enhancer in foods and is planned to be used with different flavor components in the future.
"Stay healthy"
Assoc. Prof. Murat Doğan
