I love the fact that cooking is science! The above is next on my list of books to read!!
I was reminded of kitchen science yesterday when I made an extra-healthy vegan vegetable stew. It was inexplicably sour.
I fixed it by adding a little honey and a little salt .”Just the scientific facts, Ma’am!”
Here is a handy guide to scientifically “correcting for taste.”
The four (five??) senses of taste are sour, sweet, salty and bitter and way too hot and spicy.
When you increase one taste to counter another, it changes the way your taste buds perceive the flavor.
If you alter one of the tastes, it will affect the others.
If it is too sour, add something sweet or add a little salt (or both!), depending on what you’re preparing.
If it’s too sweet, add something sour, like lemon juice or vinegar.
If it is too salty, increase the amounts of sweet and sour and it will reduce the saltiness.
If it tastes bitter, increasing the sweet, sour and salty tastes will reduce the bitter taste.
If it is too hot, adding a dairy product (such as sour cream) will help calm the heat.
Related articles
- What Makes Sugar and Salt So Delicious Together? (io9.com)
- What Does Salt Add to a Margarita? (mentalfloss.com)
- Love Really Does Make Food Taste Sweeter (realclearscience.com)
- How the Brain Reacts to Taste (danapress.typepad.com)
