A Metter of Taste

Both the creation and the enjoyment of food centers around the palate. The four basic flavors that can be perceived on the tongue are sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. As Mark Miller points out, “In China, there are five—there’s also ‘hot.’ In southeast Asia, there’s also ‘aromatic.’ There’s also ‘pungent’—something like fish paste which is not sour or bitter, but its sour, bitter, sweet, and salty.”

Gary Danko mentions yet another “fifth flavor”: “It’s called umami. The best way to illustrate it would be the taste of the combination MSG and water. Those are amino acid-like proteins. Or another example would be to put a raw oyster in your mouth. The feel or taste is of the sort of numbness in your mouth. It’s hard to describe.