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A comparison of umami ingredients from the East and the West
Umami is actually used in various forms all over the world. In Asia, umami is mainly found in beans and grain, fermented seafood-based products, shiitake mushrooms, kombu and dried seafood. In Western cuisine, there are also fermented or cured products derived from meat and dairy products, namely ham and cheese. The most well-known ingredient is the tomato.
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Umami food or seasoning made from fermented beans and/or grains.It is normally available in either paste or liquid form. |
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Umami seasoning made from fermented fish, prawns and/or other seafood. Available in either paste or liquid form. |
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Umami food made from other ingredients. |
Asian fermented seasonings
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Different types of fermented seasoning can be found throughout the world. Fish sauces such as Num Pla in Thailand and Nuoc Mum in Vietnam, along with a range of fermented products typified by miso and soy sauce, have long been used and appreciated in Asian countries. Fermented condiments are made by adding salt to fish, beans, grains, etc., and allowing them to ferment. During the fermentation process, proteins are broken down into their constituent amino acids, and a condiment which contains high quantities of glutamate is produced. Particularly in Asian countries with a tradition of wet rice cultivation, daily cooking which does not include the addition of seasonings is unimaginable. This is a particular characteristic of countries where white rice, vegetables and fish form the staple diet. Rice based diets and simple forms of umami are very closely linked.
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Fermented foods in Ancient Rome
| Throughout the Ancient Roman Empire, fermented fish sauces called garum and liquamen were used as seasonings. These ingredients were equally as important as wine and olive oil. They were produced in the same way as the fermented condiments of South East Asia, with fish such as sardines and mackerels being salted and fermented. In particular, the amber-colored garum extracted first from the fermentation process was most highly prized. The famous 'Apecius Cookbook' of Ancient Rome contains many recipes where, in times when there was no sugar or salt, garum was frequently used. One could say that garum was prized as a condiment which combined umami and saltiness. The use of garum died out along with the Roman Empire, however anchovy paste and sauce can be seen as its modern counterpart.
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| Fish bones found inside a container from the Garum shop Courtesy: Dr. Curtis, University Georgia, USA |
The worldwide permeation of the umami taste of tomatoes
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Tomatoes, which originated in South America, were brought to Europe when Columbus discovered the continent. It appears that they were originally used for medicinal purposes, but in Italy they underwent a re-evaluation, and were used as a foodstuff, forming the basis of a wide variety of dishes, and are now an indispensable ingredient of Italian cuisine. In the UK, Worcester Sauce was made from tomatoes and a wide variety of other vegetables, and this was eventually exported to America, along with tomato sauce and paste, where a variety of processed foods such as ketchup and chili sauce were produced. Today, tomatoes are one of the most widely produced vegetables on the planet and their umami taste is appreciated all over the world. |
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The synergistic effect of umami is employed in stock all over the world
Stock is the basis of cooking all over the world. Various kinds of stock are made using a variety of ingredients, with kombu and bonito flakes being used in Japanese 'dashi', and meat and vegetables used in Western 'bouillon' and Chinese 'tan'. It can be said of all these types of stock, however, that they skilfully combine and draw out the umami flavour of the glutamate contained in kombu and vegetables and the inosinate found in bonito flakes and meat. Although the synergistic effect of umami was only discovered scientifically in 1960, this effect was being put to good use all over the world long before this in the form of stock.
A comparison of stocks from around the world
Each of the different countries' stocks contains more glutamate than any other amino amino acids, making each of them rich in umami.
The stocks from China and Western regions contain a multitude of different amino acids in reasonable proportions, whereas the dashi stock from Japan is high only in glutamate, giving it a purer and simpler flavor.
The result of these analysis were supported by Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
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