Umami from the Oceans: Seaweeds, Fish, and Shellfish

It is likely that many cuisines in all parts of the world originally depended on fermented fish and shellfish, cooked and cured meat, and seaweeds to add umami to avariety of dishes. In both Asia and Europe, preserved fish, together with the condiments made from them, have been used for at least two and a half millennia, and probably since long before then, as a simple, nutritious way to improve the taste of other foods. One might say that the history of using ingredients to prepare food that is rich in umami runs parallel to and reflects the overall evolution of the culinary arts. The heart of the matter is handling the ingredients in such a way that the proteins and nucleic acids are converted to free amino acids and free nucleotides by the skilful use of cooking, brewing, enzymatic fermentation, salting, drying, smoking, and curing, alone or in combination. In the past, these methods were also of great importance to prevent spoilage of the foodstuffs that come from the sea.