What Is Umami?
Umami is the fifth basic taste, alongside sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. It is a savory, meaty, brothy flavor caused by glutamates and certain nucleotides. Foods high in umami include aged cheeses, tomatoes, mushrooms, soy sauce, fish sauce, and cured meats. Umami was scientifically identified in 1908 but only widely accepted as a basic taste in the 1980s-2000s.
Key Takeaways
- Umami comes from the Japanese word meaning 'pleasant savory taste.
- MSG is the pure form of umami and is safe despite persistent myths about 'Chinese Restaurant Syndrome.
- Breast [milk](/can-you-freeze-milk) contains glutamate, so umami is one of the first flavors humans experience.
Explanation
Umami comes from the Japanese word meaning 'pleasant savory taste.' It was discovered by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda in 1908 when he isolated glutamate from seaweed broth (dashi). He created MSG (monosodium glutamate) as a flavor enhancer based on this discovery.
We have dedicated taste receptors for glutamate, confirming umami as a true basic taste. It signals the presence of proteins, making foods taste satisfying and 'complete.' Umami often makes people describe food as 'rich,' 'savory,' 'meaty,' or 'deep.' It is harder to identify than other tastes but easy to recognize once you know it.
High-umami foods include parmesan cheese, anchovies, aged and fermented foods, mushrooms (especially dried), tomatoes (especially cooked/dried), miso, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and meat broths. Combining umami sources (like tomato and cheese on pizza) creates synergistic flavor enhancement.
Things to Know
- MSG is the pure form of umami and is safe despite persistent myths about 'Chinese Restaurant Syndrome.'
- Breast milk contains glutamate, so umami is one of the first flavors humans experience.
- Some researchers propose additional basic tastes like fat (oleogustus) and starch, but these are not yet widely accepted.