| Title:
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UMAMI
UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF THE FIFTH TASTE |
| By: |
Ole G. Mouritsen, Klavs Styrbaek, Mariela Johansen (Trans) |
| Format: |
Hardback |
| List price:
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£40.00 |
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| ISBN 10: |
023116890X |
| ISBN 13: |
9780231168908 |
| Publisher: |
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS |
| Pub. date: |
3 June, 2014 |
| Series: |
Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History |
| Pages: |
280 |
| Description: |
In the West, we have identified four basic tastes--sour, sweet, salty, and bitter--that, through skillful combination and technique, create delicious foods. Yet in many parts of East Asia over the past century, a fifth taste--umami--has entered the culinary lexicon. Umami is savory, complex, and wholly distinct. Combining culinary history with research into the chemistry, preparation, nutrition, and culture of food, this book encapsulates what we know to date about the concept of umami, which when harnessed enables us to become more intimate with the subtleties of human taste and to make better food choices for ourselves and our families. The product of an ongoing collaboration between a chef and a scientist, this book has won the Danish national Mad+Medier-Prisen (Food and Media Award) for academic food communication and the Gourmand World Cookbook Award for Best Translation Cookbook for the United States. |
| Synopsis: |
In the West, we have identified only four basic tastes-sour, sweet, salty, and bitter-that, through skillful combination and technique, create delicious foods. Yet in many parts of East Asia over the past century, an additional flavor has entered the culinary lexicon: umami, a fifth taste impression that is savory, complex, and wholly distinct.Combining culinary history with recent research into the chemistry, preparation, nutrition, and culture of food, Mouritsen and StyrbA|k encapsulate what we know to date about the concept of umami, from ancient times to today. Umami can be found in soup stocks, meat dishes, air-dried ham, shellfish, aged cheeses, mushrooms, and ripe tomatoes, and it can enhance other taste substances to produce a transformative gustatory experience. Researchers have also discovered which substances in foodstuffs bring out umami, a breakthrough that allows any casual cook to prepare delicious and more nutritious meals with less fat, salt, and sugar. The implications of harnessing umami are both sensuous and social, enabling us to become more intimate with the subtleties of human taste while making better food choices for ourselves and our families. This volume, the product of an ongoing collaboration between a chef and a scientist, won the Danish national Mad+Medier-Prisen (Food and Media Award) in the category of academic food communication. |
| Illustrations: |
84 color illustrations |
| Publication: |
US |
| Imprint: |
Columbia University Press |
| Returns: |
Returnable |
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