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REVEALING UMAMI'S SECRETS
 At BIG, we understand the importance of great flavor. Umami, described as meaty and savory or delicious, provides a pleasant eating experience and consumers are taking notice. Until umami came along, it was generally accepted that the tongue perceives four taste sensations: salt, sweet, sour and bitter. Umami was discovered as the fifth taste in 1908, when Japanese scientist Kikunae Ikeda isolated the amino acid glutamate from the seaweed that Asian cooks used in their soup stock.
The broth’s strong flavor profile revealed high levels of glutamate, which is one of the most common building blocks of protein and plays a vital role in the foods’ appeal. Best put, umami is the presence, or taste, of protein broken down into its amino acids. This breakdown of amino acids creates an umami effect of mouth-watering satiety, a sensation that involves the whole mouth. Beef contains all three natural sources of umami: glutamic acid (an amino acid), salts of glutamic acid (glutamates) and nucleotides.
Foods that have a high umami quotient include:
• Beef
• Cheese
• Mushrooms
• Peas
• Soy sauce
• Walnuts
• Worcestershire sauce
 Techniques like aging, drying, fermenting, ripening and slow-cooking foods serve to control or concentrate umami levels. Slow, long cooking at low temperatures (like one-pot meals or braised meats) breaks down the proteins in beef and changes the flavor profile of the dish, which provides a filling sensation to the diner.
Research by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) supports the idea the umami’s great flavor comes from the synergism of two foods. A 50-50 mixture of two umami compounds can produce eight times as much flavor as either one of the compounds alone. This synergy explains the appeal of classic pairings like mushrooms and steak, tomato sauce with beef and teriyaki-grilled steak.
Foodservice professionals’ increased awareness of umami implies infinitely exciting menu and product-development opportunities, including improved dietary concerns and better-tasting, more-satisfying foods. Just think about all of those umami-craving taste buds in the mouths of consumers.
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