Understanding Tastes and Food Flavors

The delicious – or not-so-delicious – way in which a food tastes in your mouth is the result of many factors including flavor, smell, temperature and texture. Taste buds tell us if a food is sweet, sour, salty, bitter or umami; but the flavor of a particular food is also determined by aromas picked up by your nose. Understanding how different flavors balance and counterbalance one another can help you be more comfortable with cooking!

The five tastes are:

1. Sweet – Fruit, roasted vegetables, baked grains, sugar, honey, agave syrup, maple syrup and milk have a sweet taste. Go easy on added sugars.
2. Sour/acidic – Sour fruits, such as limes and lemons, buttermilk, green tomatoes, vinegar, yogurt and fermented foods, such as sauerkraut, have a sour or acidic taste.
3. Salty – Snacks, seaweed, ham, olives, cheese and some seafood, such as oysters and clams, have a salty taste. Breads and rolls, cold cuts and cured meats, pizza, poultry, soup and sandwiches are some of the foods that add the most sodium to our diet. Many packaged foods are available in lower-sodium versions. The American Heart Association recommends that most people consume less than 1,500 mg sodium per day.
4. Bitter – Dark leafy greens, arugula, Brussels sprouts and cabbage, coffee, grapefruit*, unsweetened cocoa and tonic water all have a bitter taste.
5. Umami – Defined as the “fifth taste,” it is described as meaty or savory. Examples are beef, chicken, pork, tomato sauce, ripe tomatoes, mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, nutritional yeast and soy sauce. When eating umami foods, look for lower-sodium or no-salt options.

*Some cholesterol-lowering medications may interact with grapefruit, grapefruit juice, pomegranate and pomegranate juice. Please talk to your healthcare professional about any potential risks.