Umami
a fun word and a tribute to everything is new!
Today’s Winding Road of Writing
For those of you that sometimes remark my writing can jump around a bit and take unexpected turns, today the things that inspire me are taste, proteins, acknowledgment, progress, and perspective. I hope these concepts shine through.
What Makes You Want An Extra Scoop?
Consistent with my theory that most anything can be interesting, we get our title tonight. I recently got together with my small creative writing group. One of them, in an off-hand comment, was talking about the recently completed Thanksgiving meal. The traditional green bean casserole was transformed this year. The person who always makes it added a couple of teaspoons of soy sauce to what was a mammoth (Thanksgiving-size) casserole and the flavor change for many was unmistakable. How the hell can a couple of teaspoons of soy sauce make any difference at all? It was a fun tale to listen to and kinda funny that this rather mundane casserole (for the record in the upper Midwest we call it hotdish), a bunch of green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and crispy onions could have its perspective changed. This is the most basic of fare and continues by tradition.
Paper Never Refused Ink
This remains one of my vivid memories of Dad. When something appeared in the newspaper or was reported on the news, if it conflicted with Dad’s point of view, he might just say “paper never refused ink”. When you are a kid, teachers tell you all kinds of stuff. In the early days, I think I was a “lock-stock-and-barrel” guy. I figured if they were teaching it to us it must be true. I went to elementary and high school in the 60s and 70s. I think I am a lifetime learner. My memory is not bad either. I have concluded that an awful lot of what I was taught as a young kid has turned out to be UTTER NONSENSE! Is this frustrating? Not at all! I think it is amazing because once a topic becomes one of inquiry, it is just gonna get better. So I happen to be one of those people that like things that get constantly refined. Even a green-bean casserole is ripe for improvement. When my fellow writer talked about soy sauce, I am sure they did not imagine that might become the inspiration to write about it. Now it is time for the jump to lightspeed. I have decided that the “important” things that are GOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD” are those things that get on a learning curve. Green bean casserole is NOT ON A LEARNING CURVE. I will not belabor the point as I’ve written about it a fair amount. Fields that change rarely and “polish the apple” are important, they just will not be inflection points to great societal change.
One of the great benefits of living today is how fast we are revising the truth. I remember as a kid being taught about taste buds. It seemed ironclad we were dealing with bitter, salty, sweet, and sour. The bitter always made great sense to me. Why not install some gatekeepers to stuff that may be bad for us? It turns out the bitter tastebuds are nearest to our throats. They are that last line of defense against poisons, which are often bitter to the taste. The part I was NEVER TAUGHT about was the savory/umami taste buds. It seems these are the most important of all! As I learned more about the whys of taste, I discovered all of our taste buds are just early signals to our brains about what is coming. It turns out that a Japanese scientist in the early 1900s1 evaluated and documented what was going on in our mouths. It wasn’t just sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. It wasn’t until 1990 that we revised our theories to honor the Japanese scholarship and the age of umami was finally upon us! It turns out our tastebuds for savory/umami are CRITICAL. In one of my favorite posts to write, I examined the whole search for protein and how it keeps EVERYTHING on this planet ticking. There are hundreds of millions of proteins of all sorts. Every one of them is just a string of amino acids strung together in a particular order. So eating is all about getting the necessary amino acids and proteins we need to thrive. Umami is ALL ABOUT proteins. They are fundamental for all of us and they are all over the middle of our tongues. If you have the time, Nature’s Cookbook is a very cool story. In a tribute to the value of a well-stocked pantry and keeping the key ingredients close at hand, there are ONLY 20 amino acids that humans need. We can make 11 of them ourselves while the other 9 we need to eat. Those 20 amino acid dance together in all different shapes and sizes to construct the 20,000+ proteins humans need to make a go of it. While a case can be made that us humans are VERY SPECIAL, AlphaFold resolved the folding pattern of over 200,000,000. Sure we are amazing, but don’t get too full of yourself!
What’s The Lesson of Kikunae Ikeda?
Kikunae Ikeda, if you follow the footnote, EXPLAINED to the whole world what was going on in 1908. Most of us conveniently ignored him. I’m glad we have finally come around. Think of all the UNNECESSARILY bland casseroles of the last eighty-plus years we could have improved if we were OPEN TO CHANGE.
Umami & Artificial Intelligence
There is so much news recently about the breakthroughs in machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). At some levels, it is so overwhelming it can seem scary. If you mention the topic, it is clear many of us are scared. It is also clear to me that many of us are dwelling on the fearful doomsday paths. We are also focusing on “why this will never happen”. It is not unlike the folks from 1910 to 1990 who didn’t consider umami a real thing. Now I am not proposing that umami and AI are equally significant. What I am pointing out is our tendency to ignore all sorts of things that are inconvenient truths. Having eaten some bad casseroles over the years, why not take some easy steps to make them better?
AI & Machine Learning in the Press
Driverless cars, renewable energy, AI, ML, information access, and gene editing are all candidates for technologies likely to transform our lives over the next ten years. The next version of gorilla glass, the color of our phones, or the color of our texting bubbles are matters best left to the stylish and the tribal. In the last couple of months, there have been numerous stories in the press about the impending danger of AI/ML and paranoia about how humans fit into a slightly different world. An ape that struggled for MANY GENERATIONS to stand up on two legs, free their hands to hold tools, and exploited the endurance that emerged when they learned to perspire was probably an “existential threat”. Two World Wars show the negative proclivities that lurk beneath the surface. None of that means that the evolution of the next tool must magically be rejected or else. For those of us writing on Substack, there is angst over the output of ChatGPT. When my kids were in school teachers were concerned about Wikipedia. I’m not sure what is so bad when something that formerly was hard or had a barrier to entry for so many is now available to all. Isn’t this simply better for all of us? The lessons of technology and its incorporation into our lives have ALWAYS been one of Luddites so desperate to cling to their tribal way of doing things, they merely delay the benefits to the masses. I would respectfully observe if you wish to understand how these amazing new technologies on the horizon might better our world, it would be wise to pay attention to the companies that are focusing on how to better our lives. Hint…it is not likely a great place to look at the latest consumer goods and their colors. The video below is a somewhat neglected story about AI/ML. It does not fit the narrative of those who are sure the breakthrough was done by a company bent on abusing my privacy. however :).
In my opinion, the more we develop AND SHARE, the better the future of mankind. Open-source software is a great example. The story of this next video is quite a sharing gift to humanity. It is better to read this sort of thing instead of “killer robots” or conspiracy nonsense.
Proteins In The ‘Burgh
In the early 1990s, we lived in Pittsburgh, PA. It was in Pittsburgh that our family became fully formed. Our first child was born in Central California and our subsequent two boys were born in the Pittsburgh area. Soon thereafter, our now family of five moved back to Minnesota where my wife and I had met about eight years prior. Pittsburgh is a wonderful city and is defined somewhat by the long-established ethnicities that settled there. Pittsburgh reached its largest in the 1940s and has shrunk in the time since. It has settled into a comfortable population of around 300K in the core city and has become a bit of a rediscovered city in the last few decades. This has happened enough all over America for me to draw some conclusions. While one thousand years ago, the confluence of water might have made the difference, Pittsburgh is transformed today because of the special mix of great Universities like Pitt and Carnegie-Mellon (and MANY others). While I am sure I will fall victim to cognitive decline at some point, my memory remains sharp. I have been blessed with a memory that helps me remember stuff and tie it all together later. One of the most recognized businesses that call Pittsburgh home is H. J. Heinz. I would wager that almost EVERYONE READING THIS BLOG has a bottle of Heinz Ketchup in their refrigerator. The next little bit ahead will explain why. It has a bit to do with proteins and umami!!!
Pass the Mustard & Ketchup
We are now at the part of the story where we discover we are powerless when it comes to our underlying biology. Many years ago I read a story in The New Yorker by Malcolm Gladwell. If you are interested in the rest of the story, here is a link to the Gladwell article. It is a fun read!!! It was about two of my favorite condiments which are always slathered on a burger I might enjoy. Those condiments would be mustard and ketchup. This is an entertaining story. It is the tale of a serial entrepreneur behind the craze that became Grey Poupon mustard. It seems once Americans were given a chance to taste two mustards side by side, despite the great price difference, Grey Poupon became a big hit. Later, the entrepreneur came for the scalp of Heinz Ketchup. This time, he found that try as they might jigger the ingredients, there wasn’t a better combination of ingredients that would make people abandon their Heinz Ketchup. What the heck is going on here? Well, it turns out that ketchup is “special” and quite addictive. It manages to press the buttons of ALL OF OUR TASTE SIGNALS. You see, the impact of aged and fermented tomato paste, coupled with all sorts of other ingredients makes Heinz Ketchup irresistible. It is a little bit sweet, a little bit sour, a little bit salty, a little bit bitter, and packs the punch of umami. The best part of this story is no one knew what umami was when it was first developed, it was just too good to be true. The post-script of this story is when you go into a large grocery store, take a look at how many different takes on mustard are on offer. With mustard, we can be swayed. Then take a look at ketchup. You will not find nearly as much variety. Who knew?
And Then There Were Two…
So soy sauce and tomato paste are examples of ingredients that EXUDE umami. Add them to most things and our primitive biology, in the middle of our tongue will savor the result and in the deepest recesses of our minds will scream, gimme more! If you want to know how primitive biology really is regarding taste, it turns out that when we have something with soy sauce in it, we readily think, “oh no, that’s a helluva lot of salt”. In reality, the complexity of soy sauce packs MUCH LESS SODIUM than most food additives. Salt is CHEAP and is easy to grind up and put in our food or melt our ice. Soy sauce is a much more complex brew.
It turns out there are a reasonable array of ingredients that can transform the experience of eating. Some of them surprise me but upon further review they make sense. When I became aware of my insulin resistance, certain foods were left in the rearview mirror. I no longer drink sweetened drinks of any sort or juices. For a time I missed a tall glass of orange juice. I gravitated a bit to tomato juice but I couldn’t drink it as a substitute on its own. Instead, I began to make a Bloody Mary mix. I will share my recipe (to the interested — my guess on the over/under is three) for interested parties. Mine rocks for the early crowd on New Year’s Day. I make it regularly starting with three large cans of tomato juice (46 oz). This has become my go-to as a breakfast lift. For the record, I just drink the mix and don’t cut it with vodka although I’ve used it for that and it holds up well. It turns out it is my version of perfect food, akin to Heinz ketchup. My recipe includes the following ingredients: Low sodium tomato juice, lemon juice, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, Sriracha, pickle juice, fresh horseradish, celery seed & granulated garlic. Guess where the umami comes from???
My Favorite Tangent For Today
One of my later life joys is shepherding my brothers and some male cousins as we solve the world’s problems and talk about Football most Sunday mornings. I’ve blogged about our Dolan Football Chat. Unless you have the mentality of the underdog Buffalo Bills, some of this might seem inane. One of my cousins who spent the majority of his adulthood in the Philadelphia area enters this silly story about umami now. It’s a brain teaser I think and for lovers of words, a fun meander. In your mind try to pronounce Worcestershire. My cousin in the Philly area went to school and played football at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Another good friend and roommate later in life went to school there so I learned how to pronounce it. It’s a helluva tricky word. What is the connection? Well, even the British, not particularly well known for any culinary breakthroughs have been layering Worcestershire sauce into all sorts of things for centuries. In a tribute to faith and tradition, they didn’t really understand the umami thing until 1990 but just knew it made things taste better. So the next time you have a Bloody Mary, instead of mmm, good you can say mmm umami!
That’s Three, Do I Hear Four?
Now I’ve saved, in my estimation the best for last. The world’s great cuisines, in my estimation certainly include French and Italian cooking. I love all sorts of Asian variations and now realize that the “secret ingredient” that makes so many recipes go into Asian cooking is fish sauce. How about the Italians? Well, they use a lot of tomato paste and for that intense finish of umami, the wonderful anchovy!!! I’m sure there are a few yucks out there. It brings to mind one of my favored expressions of an old colleague. He’s as happy as if he had good sense. I am quite sure that almost ANY GOOD sauce of an Italian chef starts with tomato paste and anchovies. What we don’t know won’t hurt us.
By the way, while Americans continue to indulge in government cheese and 90-day-aged cheddar, it is the French and Italians that realized, LONG AGO that long-aged cheese exudes goodness that is hard to describe. Call it umami baby!!! They are also more likely to pander to the mushroom, another umami carrier. There are all other unusual and fun sources of umami. Since I came to understand its importance, when I eat ethnically, I seek out menu items that wreak of umami. I am rarely disappointed. The AMAZING part of it all is we can exude the essence of protein in SURPRISING ways.
Isn’t it amazing that this all comes from a primitive need to survive, build muscle and feed our brains? Besides, can there be a cooler word than one that is pronounced eww-mommy?
For those out there who are itching to tell me all the great examples of umami that I missed please feel free! One late-age source I have in my life now thanks to my son and daughter-in-law having enriched our lives with Japanese culture is Nori. That is a cool way to say dried seaweed. The last one I will share which to many of you will seem positively ABSURD; how about brewers or nutritional yeast? Yeah, baby and it is quite good sprinkled on popcorn. You heard it here first! FWIW my dog Denny enjoys Nori and nutritional yeast on his popcorn. I don’t share these insights with the vet.
The Poll & Music
This is the last post of the year and I hope you will all be back next year. While predictable, here are a couple of great New Year’s songs. I dare you to not play at least one of them.
What’s Next
One of my resolutions for the new year is to KEEP WRITING. I asked in the last post what you like and I am going to honor the wishes of my readers. I hope you stay along for the ride. In the interest of excitement, I can only promise that what comes next will be FUN and UNEXPECTED. See you in 2023. The pressure is off as the year will be odd so we are free to follow suit.
https://flavourjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/2044-7248-4-13#:~:text=After%20the%20discovery%20of%20umami,sour%2C%20salty%2C%20and%20bitter. — Kikunae Ikeda did the trailblazing work in 1908 and it took us nearly a century to say, oh yeah you were right. This explains why my textbooks in the 1960s and 1970s were not so great.