Umami Paste?

Submitted by Stuart Broz on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 4:08pm
Foods: 
MSG
Topics: 
Flavor

Apparently, umami paste is now available in Europe (at least in the UK and in Paris).

I don't know precisely what this is, and I wonder if it is simply a paste loaded with Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). The branding, however, is brilliant. People are afraid of MSG. It sounds artificial and chemical. Easy to use "umami" though? Yeah. People want that.

If anyone has some more information on this stuff, let me know.

Comments

Submitted by crimfan on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 6:40pm.

but no thanks. Just say no to instant umami. :)

Stuart Broz's picture

Submitted by Stuart Broz on Wed, 02/10/2010 - 10:19am.

I appreciate your reactionary attitude on this. :)

Submitted by crimfan on Wed, 02/10/2010 - 10:33am.

I'm not 100% convinced taste five exists, although from some reading it seems there is growing neurological evidence for it. (My objection might come from the word itself; Japanese loan words bug me.)

But raw MSG... ugh, no thanks. It seems to add a metallic, "excessive" taste to things, the taste analog of looking at too many supersaturated color shots or listening to a recording where all the volumes have been Turned... UP... TO... 11!!!!

I'll take my source of savoriness from natural sources such as cheese, mushrooms and stock, thankyouverymuch.

Stuart Broz's picture

Submitted by Stuart Broz on Wed, 02/10/2010 - 10:37am.

Huh. I don't get that. People respond to different things in different ways, though... and when you are using MSG directly, it is easy to overdo it.

Submitted by crimfan on Wed, 02/10/2010 - 10:41am.

Well it might be that my problem is that I've come to identify MSG with poorly cooked fast food, where MSG is used as a substitute for quality ingredients and good cooking. So it might be the case that MSG is used all over where I don't know about it but it's used a little, not a lot. Kind of like the difference between Peter Jackson's use of supersaturated colors and a Claritin commercial's.

Submitted by Jim (not verified) on Fri, 02/12/2010 - 2:01am.

There are other ways to get umami besides MSG. Other foods are high in glutamates. Cheeses are, and I know there is low cost cheese out there. This is a reason for using Parmesan rinds in making soup. Seaweed is another. That is why there is kombu in some Japanese broths. Mushrooms are also high in umami.
Of course now food companies use yeast extracts to get their glutamates, now that people are wary of MSG.

Submitted by crimfan on Tue, 02/16/2010 - 7:10pm.

Yup, but umami (and its bad-tempered cousin MSG) is a topic Stuart and I like to argue about and what fun is there on the internet if two netters can't beat a dead horse solidly into the ground?

Submitted by Wayne Marsh (not verified) on Thu, 04/28/2011 - 9:49am.

I've had several tubes of this. Here are the full ingredients:

Tomato puree, garlic, anchovy paste (anchovies, salt, sunflower oil), black olives, balsamic vinegar, porcini mushrooms, parmesan cheese, citric acid, olive oil, vinegar, sugar, salt.

Rub it on some fish before you fry it, it's good stuff!