What is Umami Flavor? How Does it Work and How Do We Perceive It?

Since we were very young, we have all learned to recognize four basic tastes that we perceive from food: sweet, salty, bitter and sour. Well, in recent years a fifth element has been introduced, which in reality has been studied since the early twentieth century: it is umami, a taste unknown to most and once the preserve of chefs, but which we actually perceive every day.

According to the Umami Information Center, the umami taste corresponds to savory, not to be confused with salty: an intense, pleasant, satisfying flavor, deriving from a particular element present above all in meat, fish and dairy products, as well as in many vegetables. This is why umami is often identified with the “taste of proteins”.

The History of Umami: A 1908 Discovery Based on The Study of Dashi

Although it has only recently been recognized, umami was discovered a long time ago, in 1908, by the Japanese Kikunae Ikeda, a professor of chemistry at Tokyo Imperial University. During some of his studies, the scientist focused on the analysis of dashi, a fish paste that is one of the gastronomic foundations of Japanese cuisine, strongly flavored even when prepared with only three ingredients.

This is how Ikeda discovered umami, a “savory” taste (the literal meaning of the Japanese word) due to the presence of monosodium glutamate, which the scientist found in katsuobushi (a tuna bottarga that is used in flakes) and in kombu seaweed, the very ingredients of dashi. Later, when the study of umami expanded, it was discovered to be present in other fundamentals of Japanese cuisine, including dried shitake mushrooms and miso.

Despite the great discovery, it took years before umami was scientifically recognized as the fifth taste: just think that only in 2012 were we able to study and identify the receptors that allow us to perceive umami. And if someone tried to argue that umami is not so good for you, researchers at Tohoku University in Japan have shown how insensitivity to glutamate leads to loss of appetite, weight loss, and physical weakness.

How Do We Perceive Umami Taste

According to the official definition, umami is a “pleasant savory taste that comes from glutamate and several ribonucleotides, including inosinate and guanylate, which are naturally found in meat, fish, vegetables and dairy products”. It is, therefore, a very pleasant flavor for our perception, capable of stimulating appetite and salivation, rich in flavor but without being salty or fatty. It is no coincidence that umami is a component of breast milk, the food that weans us and that is fundamental for us.

Unlike bitter and sour tastes, which are danger signals for our brain, and sweet, which is a source of energy, umami is perceived as a useful food, a bit like salty , and therefore becomes pleasant for our palate as well as perceived as fundamental by the body for its functioning.

Being found in foods with another concentration of proteins, essential to our organism, umami is perceived as highly desirable, so much so that according to studies its perception does not only occur on the tongue, but also through receptors present in the stomach. And when the various components of umami coexist in one or more associated foods, the perception of taste multiplies up to eight times the normal, creating a process known as the "synergistic effect of umami", as occurs in the case of the aforementioned dashi.

Where do We Find The Umami Taste? Here Are The Foods in Which it is Most Concentrated

Dashi, made from seaweed, dried fish chips or dried mushrooms, is a true concentrate of umami, as are many components of Japanese cuisine. Yet, contrary to what it may seem, the fifth taste is not an exclusive prerogative of Japan, in fact: there are many local foods in which another concentration of it can be found.

The most striking example is aged cheddar, especially when matured for a long time, or perfectly ripe heirloom tomatoes, or the rich Worcestershire sauce, a classic American staple. You’ll also find umami in foods like smoked ham, salmon, beef, turkey, and pork, as well as in peas, onions, asparagus, broccoli, collard greens, corn, dried mushrooms, and many other everyday ingredients in the American diet.