You've tried sweet, sour, bitter and salty... now tubes of the 'fifth taste' to be sold in supermarkets

By Neil Millard
10th February 2010

Many an amateur chef has tasted a dish only to declare that something is missing.

What follows is the inevitable excursion through the larder looking for that magic ingredient.

But the days of this culinary lottery appear to be numbered as a substance first known only to science - bottled 'deliciousness' - is coming to the High Street.

Umami was discovered 102 years ago by a Japanese scientist but until now has only graced the shelves of Michelin-starred restaurants.

It is the secret to making anything taste fantastic, so much so it is known as the 'fifth taste'.

And pretty soon you will be able to add it to absolute everything as tubes of the wonder stuff go on sale in 197 branches of Waitrose for £2.99 a tube.

Named Taste No 5, evoking the added allure of a high-class perfume, it triggers the sensation of delight in the brain when at least one of the primary tastes of sweet, sour, bitter and salty is also present.

Food writer Laura Santtini, who developed the purée, said: 'I wanted to get away from the notion that umami is something of interest to scientists that no one else can really understand.

'The truth is that umami should be of interest to anyone who has a tongue.

'Umami is part of our everyday eating lives, it is just that many of us don't know what to call it. It is what gives depth of flavour to food.

'Every food culture has its umami-rich ingredients, whether it is seaweed in Japan or Parmesan in Italy.'

The ingredients in her recipe for umami, literally meaning 'taste', include pulped anchovy and porcini mushrooms.

The umami revolution began in 1908 when Tokyo chemist Kikunae Ikeda identified it as a flavour present in foods high in glutamate.

He had first been alerted by the distinctive taste of seaweed, or kombu, which itself is high in the chemical.

His work led him to crystallise monosodium glutamate (MSG), the controversial flavour enhancer which has since become famous all over the world.

Then in 2000 researchers at the University of Miami discovered the tongue had taste receptors dedicated to sensing glutamate, which signals the presence of proteins in food that the body needs.

The opportunities presented by umami have since been exploited by the restaurant world and celebrity chefs including Heston Blumenthal who purposefully plates up dishes brimming with umami at his Fat Duck restaurant in Bray, Berkshire.

Far from being a Japanese phenomenon there are examples of foods high in umami in every culture.

Worcestershire Sauce and Marmite are two British standard bearers. Human breast milk is also high in umami.

Taste No 5 will be stocked in 197 branches of Waitrose from next week and will go on sale at the Booths supermarket chain in northern England next month.

HOW TO USE IT

Taste No 5 can be used in pasta sauce, risotto, soup, stew, burger patties, salad dressing and gravy. Or try using it as Laura Santtini does, in her delicious chicken recipe:

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 4 skinless chicken breasts
• 8 slices of prosciutto crudo
• 4 small sprigs of fresh rosemary, plus one more sprig chopped
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Marsala or white wine
• Taste No.5™
• Generous grinding of black pepper   
  

METHOD

Remove the chicken from the fridge half an hour before cooking. Preheat the oven to 200°C/ gas mark 6.

Roll each piece in a mixture of the Taste No.5, chopped rosemary and pepper until well coated.

Wrap each chicken breast in two overlapping slices of prosciutto, tucking a rosemary sprig inside each parcel.

Place in a roasting pan and splash with some oil. Add more black pepper and a sprinkling of salt flakes.

Pop in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Three quarters of the way through, splash the wraps with some more olive oil and Marsala (if the chicken starts looking dry at any point during cooking, add an extra splash of olive oil and Marsala).

Remove from the oven when the prosciutto looks dark and delicious, and the chicken is firm to the touch.

For a glossy sauce, whisk a large knob of butter into the pan juices. Adjust the seasoning, pour over the chicken and serve.

TOP TIP: For a deliciously quick crust, simply mix Taste No.5 with breadcrumbs, chopped fresh herbs and some grated Parmesan cheese and pack on top of meat, fish or vegetables. Drizzle with oil and bake at 180 degrees.

This is just MSG and it's associates (glutamate forms) dressed up as a new fad. MSG is being put in more and more of our processed foods in ever increasing amounts (typically 10 times that which was used in the 70's - it's called overdosing). MSG and is a neuro-toxin. It is responsible for tachycardia and heart rhythm disturbances and elevated levels of anxiety. It is responsible for what used to be called "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome". Farmers are now spraying this onto vegetables and fruit, some even prepare the earth with it - sheesh. It is sold to farmers as "auxigrow" among other names. Mad, they are completely mad. Along with GMO's, animal antibiotics (many residues are highly cardio-toxic in humans), ractopamine (Paylean - highly cardio-toxic) and now chemical castration in pigs with it's concomitant effect in humans - given to animals just before slaughter.

- Annie Linux, Sheffield, 11/2/2010 10:05