In my effort to approach previously maligned foods, I took a second look at umami, aka monosodium glutamate, aka MSG.
MSG was invented in 1908 by a Kikunae Ikeda, a Japanese food scientist who wanted to find out why certain vegetarian broths had a meaty flavor but contained no meat. He found a seaweed (Kombu) loaded with glutamate and made a fine salt that captured the flavor. He named it umami, the Japanese word for delicious, which is fitting because it has also been identified as the fifth flavor savory.
MSG has been used in Asian cooking for well over a century. For all of you guys that lust over Chinese street food, this is what makes it so good.
It made its American debut in the 1940s. Industrial food manufacturers and the government liked it because it made those otherwise unpalatable WW2 rations taste ok.
MSG got a bad wrap in the 70s when a doctor wrote a letter in a medical journal describing a strange headache he was having after eating Chinese food. A health hysteria surfaced as people came out of the woodwork to describe an odd set of health problems dubiously named "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome."
MSG was immediately blamed for this. Shoddy science mixed with boomer hypochondriacs have relegated MSG to the same demonization as Zyklon B which is far from the truth. The FDA and others have done countless double-blind studies to confirm that so-called "MSG sensitivity" is bullshit nocebo (people thinking they have a problem and thus it becomes one). Glutamate is a component of meat, cheeses, and is naturally occuring in a variety of vegetables. It's what makes that stuff good!
Most likely all of those that claim they have a sensitivity to MSG are really just chronically dehydrated and are consuming too salty a dish. If you're interested in its long history, wikipedia has a great write up on it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate
I decided to give it a shot, because why not? Health food people think it's dangerous and it's apparently what makes junk food taste good. Time to give something another look.
What does MSG really taste like?
I bought a bottle of Accent at my local grocery store. This bottle will essentially be a lifetime supply because you don't need a lot of it. If you live in Asia or have an asian grocer nearby you can purchase a similar product for cheaper called Ajinomoto. It's the same thing.
I licked my thumb, opened the container, and put it in. It's a fine white powder, similar to salt. When I tasted it, it tasted like powdered beef broth. Very similar to beef flavored ramen (which it probably is a huge component of).
It imparts a savory element to food. Savory really isn't a good description of it. On its own, it's really weak. With other food, it envelops your mouth with a sort of swirl of taste, adding depth to whatever it is your cooking.
I first used it in a dry rub for some ribs that I was planning on smoking. I've used this rub before and it was ok. With MSG, it was incredible.
I'm making a pasta sauce from fresh tomatoes. It's been sitting for over 12 hours. I pre-spiced everything, but left out salt. I put in some MSG, stirred, and gave it a taste. Wow! There was an absolute explosion of tomatoes, garlic, onion, and all of the other spices I used.
I then added a little bit of salt to round out everything. Incredible, tastes amazing.
How Much Do I Need to Use?
Surprisingly, not a lot. I would add it first before adding salt. I recommend somewhere between a teaspoon to half a tablespoon depending on how big your dish is. MSG is known as a super salt. Meaning you can use less sodium, but retain the same amount of flavor. Be careful and go light on both, add more salt until the desired taste is achieved.
What Can I Use It With?
I would add it to anything that you want to impart a savory taste to. I've read great examples of people using it in water instead of salt for boiling vegetables and pasta.
I've read that you can substitute MSG with salt in pretty much every dish that calls for it. The above examples are just a small example. The only food I would never add MSG to are sweets like candies and baked goods.
Experiment and see what works for you. This was the missing ingredient that made my great cooking go to out of this world.
MSG was invented in 1908 by a Kikunae Ikeda, a Japanese food scientist who wanted to find out why certain vegetarian broths had a meaty flavor but contained no meat. He found a seaweed (Kombu) loaded with glutamate and made a fine salt that captured the flavor. He named it umami, the Japanese word for delicious, which is fitting because it has also been identified as the fifth flavor savory.
MSG has been used in Asian cooking for well over a century. For all of you guys that lust over Chinese street food, this is what makes it so good.
It made its American debut in the 1940s. Industrial food manufacturers and the government liked it because it made those otherwise unpalatable WW2 rations taste ok.
MSG got a bad wrap in the 70s when a doctor wrote a letter in a medical journal describing a strange headache he was having after eating Chinese food. A health hysteria surfaced as people came out of the woodwork to describe an odd set of health problems dubiously named "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome."
MSG was immediately blamed for this. Shoddy science mixed with boomer hypochondriacs have relegated MSG to the same demonization as Zyklon B which is far from the truth. The FDA and others have done countless double-blind studies to confirm that so-called "MSG sensitivity" is bullshit nocebo (people thinking they have a problem and thus it becomes one). Glutamate is a component of meat, cheeses, and is naturally occuring in a variety of vegetables. It's what makes that stuff good!
Most likely all of those that claim they have a sensitivity to MSG are really just chronically dehydrated and are consuming too salty a dish. If you're interested in its long history, wikipedia has a great write up on it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate
I decided to give it a shot, because why not? Health food people think it's dangerous and it's apparently what makes junk food taste good. Time to give something another look.
What does MSG really taste like?
I bought a bottle of Accent at my local grocery store. This bottle will essentially be a lifetime supply because you don't need a lot of it. If you live in Asia or have an asian grocer nearby you can purchase a similar product for cheaper called Ajinomoto. It's the same thing.
I licked my thumb, opened the container, and put it in. It's a fine white powder, similar to salt. When I tasted it, it tasted like powdered beef broth. Very similar to beef flavored ramen (which it probably is a huge component of).
It imparts a savory element to food. Savory really isn't a good description of it. On its own, it's really weak. With other food, it envelops your mouth with a sort of swirl of taste, adding depth to whatever it is your cooking.
I first used it in a dry rub for some ribs that I was planning on smoking. I've used this rub before and it was ok. With MSG, it was incredible.
I'm making a pasta sauce from fresh tomatoes. It's been sitting for over 12 hours. I pre-spiced everything, but left out salt. I put in some MSG, stirred, and gave it a taste. Wow! There was an absolute explosion of tomatoes, garlic, onion, and all of the other spices I used.
I then added a little bit of salt to round out everything. Incredible, tastes amazing.
How Much Do I Need to Use?
Surprisingly, not a lot. I would add it first before adding salt. I recommend somewhere between a teaspoon to half a tablespoon depending on how big your dish is. MSG is known as a super salt. Meaning you can use less sodium, but retain the same amount of flavor. Be careful and go light on both, add more salt until the desired taste is achieved.
What Can I Use It With?
I would add it to anything that you want to impart a savory taste to. I've read great examples of people using it in water instead of salt for boiling vegetables and pasta.
I've read that you can substitute MSG with salt in pretty much every dish that calls for it. The above examples are just a small example. The only food I would never add MSG to are sweets like candies and baked goods.
Experiment and see what works for you. This was the missing ingredient that made my great cooking go to out of this world.