Bringing Back the Real Umami

I’ve been seeing a lot of advertisements on television and in the newspapers about umami through the use of MSG (monosodium glutamate). They are endorsed by celebrities and even celebrity “chefs”, using it in every dish that they make on TV. Monosodium glutamate, a single sodium of glutamic acid was developed 100 years ago. It was discovered that the taste was produced by glutamate contained in kombu and named it umami.

Umami, is a savory taste imparted by glutamate (converted from glutamine and glutamic acid), an amino acid neurotransmitter that excites our neurons. In its whole, unprocessed, unadulterated form, glutamic acid has a lot of benefits for the body such as fuel for the brain cells. But in the form of monosodium glutamate or free glutamic acid, it can be bad in large quantities.

As one of the excitatory neurotransmitter, glutamic acid can stimulate neurons in the brain system, which alters neuron system activity and triggers headaches, tingling, numbness and chest pain. They can do a lot of harm such as neuron damage. Even if doesn’t damage the neurons, it can cause mental problems most especially with autistic kids. It causes them to lose control and focus in whatever they do. It also overexcites the nerve impulse that certain emotions cannot be controlled. And that includes all adults.

MSG also tricks the brain into thinking that whatever you’re eating is the best thing that you’ve ever had, causing you to consume more and more of the product. That’s why children are so excited about eating processed foods and fast foods such as French fries, chicken nuggets, potato chips and almost all processed products found in the supermarket. Another tricky part is that MSG is disguised in different names.

There are so many products out there that are controlling our taste receptors, misleading us (most especially children) to the real taste of food and that include certain restaurants. MSG is controlling our taste buds. But the way I see it, it is already controlling our lives by deceiving us about what genuine food should really taste.

I don’t believe the addition of MSG to enhance the flavor of a certain ingredient or the dish itself is necessary. Why don’t we just allow the natural flavors of each food to shine through simple and natural ways? Why do we need to trick our brain that something that tastes bad, tastes good?

Some organizations are actively promoting the discovery of umami through a product promoted by “chefs”. I don’t have any problems promoting the umami flavor through the use of real and traditional food but when it’s used in processed form such as MSG, then I have something to say. As celebrity "chefs", why would they use MSG to enhace the flavor in their cooking?

It is clear that the flavoring practices of culinary tradition cannot be replaced by an isolated and concentrated product. When you cook with fresh and whole ingredients armed with the proper cooking skills and technique, the food will definitely tastes good.