Flavors and flavorings.

 The basic principles of the physiology of the sense of taste and smell

As a student of gastronomy we must keep in mind the importance of well-seasoned food, this can
be used to excite the brain and the palate of the consumer, as an example we can talk about the
act of sprinkling a little salt on a dish to enhance its sweetness, the chef must understand how to
season food and be able to recognize the flavoring ingredients used in professional cooking to
enhance the flavor of food.

Flavors:

Flavor it's a combination between flavor, aroma and other sensations caused by the presence of a
substance in the mouth.

When a particular taste, sensation and/or aroma is detected, a set of neurons in the brain is
excited and, with experience, we learn to recognize these patterns as the flavor of bananas and
chocolate. This combination of flavors and the ability to recognize them is sometimes referred to
as the palate.

o Taste, it’s what we detect when substance comes in contact with the taste buds
on the tongue (sweet, sour, salt, bitter and umami), some substances impact whit
other parts of the mouth some nerves that respond to sensations of pain, heat or
cold, or sensations that our brain recognize as spiciness, pungency or astringency.
o Mouthfeel refers to the sensation created in the mouth by a combination of a
food’s taste, smell, texture, and temperature.
o Aromas are odors that float up through the back of the mouth to activate smell
receptors in our nose.

Taste:

The basic flavors were seen with the Chinese in 1000 B.C.E. they described five basic flavors as
sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and pungent/hot/spicy, they associated them with vital organs of the
body, seasons of the year, elements of nature or signs of astrology. Indian cooks try to create
dishes with a balance of all six flavors sweet, sour, salty, spicy/pungent, bitter and astringent, in
part to promote good health. Maintaining the proper balance of flavors in a dish or during a meal
assists in maintaining good health and good fortune.

For years, Western culture has based its cuisine on four flavors:

 Sweet: It is the most pleasant and sought-after flavor by consumers, it is found in natural
sugars such as sucrose and fructose or flavorings, this flavor can be enhanced by adding a
little sour, bitter or salty flavor. However, adding too much can take away the perception
of sweetness of our food.
 Sour: It is found in acidic foods such as sour cream or lemon and can be intensified by
adding a little sweetness this can also make in large quantities decrease the sensation of
acidity.

 Salty: Salt helps finish a dish, heightening or enhancing its other flavors. Dishes that lack
salt often taste flat. Like the taste of sweetness, the less salt consumed on a regular basis,
the more saltiness we can detect in foods. the presence of a salty taste in a food is the
result of the cook’s decision to add salt, or to use a previously salted ingredient such as
salt-cured fish or soy sauce.

 Bitter: This taste can be found in beer, dark chocolate, cheese, or coffee; it can be
balanced with a sour or salty taste, it is believed that the reason for the dislike of bitter
foods dates to ancient times where this taste functioned as a defense mechanism against
the consumption of toxic or inedible foods. Some vegetables of the cabbage family are
bitter but with the addition of a little sugar or salt they become a delicious food.

 Umami: It is recognized as the fifth element recognized by Japanese cuisine, umai means
delicious, the taste buds detect umami in foods such as cheese, meats, rich broths, soy
sauce, seafood, fatty fish, and monosodium glutamate, aged or fermented foods also
provide umami.

Other sensations produced by foods, such as spicy, hot, spicy or something that is
astringent, sharp or dry. They are not recognized as flavors since they do not have any
reaction with the taste buds, it has a relationship with the nerves in the mouth that are
transmitted to the brain creating the sensation of spiciness.

Mouthfeel:

Factores que afectan la percepción de los sabores.

 Temperature: Foods at warm temperatures offer the strongest tastes.

Heating foods releases volatile flavor compounds, which intensifies one’s
perceptions of odors. it is best to adjust a dish’s final flavors at its serving
temperature. That is, season hot foods when they are hot and cold foods
when they are cold.
 Consistency: The consistency of food affects its flavor. Two foods with the
same amount of taste and olfactory amount of taste and olfactory
compounds that differ in their texture will differ in their perceived
intensity, for example the whipped cream has more volume and therefore
a milder flavor.
 Presence of contrasting tastes: Sweet and sour are considered opposites,
and often the addition of one to a food dominated by the other will
enhance the food’s overall flavor. For example, adding a squeeze of lemon
 to a broiled lobster reduces the shellfish’s sweetness. But add too much,
and the dominant taste will be negated.

 Presence of fats: Many of the chemical compounds that create tastes and
aromas are dissolved in the fats naturally occurring in foods or added to
foods during cooking. As these compounds are slowly released by
evaporation or saliva, they provide a sustained taste sensation.

 Color: A food’s color affects how the consumer will perceive the food’s
flavor before it is even tasted. A food or a slug is correctly identified
thanks to its color, which is why when the color of the food is very far
from its natural color the consumer does not perceive the flavor in the
same way, for example a sliced apple that has turned brown may suggest
an off flavor, although there is none.

Taste perception impairment

 Age: Taste and smell sensitivity does decline as we age. It declines at a

slower rate than our vision and hearing. The sense of smell tends to
decline earlier than the sense of taste.

 Health:
o A cold
 Temporary loss of smell
o The presence of mucus
 Prevent airflow, preventing the odor compounds from
reaching the olfactory receptors.
o Medications
 Alter the perception of taste and smell

 Smoking: Smoking diminishes odor sensitivity, two hours after smoking,

the sense of taste is unaltered. Immediately after smoking, however, taste
sensitivity is lowered.

Flavor Profiles

Describes its flavor from the moment the consumer gets the first whiff of its aroma until he or she
swallows that last morsel

 Top notes or high notes: The first flavors or aromas that come from citrus, herbs,
spices and many condiments.
 Middle note: The second wave of flavors and aromas come from dairy products,
poultry, some vegetables, fish and some meats.
 Low notes or bass notes: These flavors consist of the basic tastes (especially
sweetness, sourness, saltiness and umami) and come from foods such as
 anchovies, beans, chocolate, dried mushrooms, fish sauce, tomatoes, most meats
(especially beef and game) and garlic, can be created by a cooking process.
 Aftertaste or finish: The final flavor that remains in the mouth after swallowing, for
example, when we drink wine and the astringent taste remains at the end of the
mouth for some time.
 Roundness: the unity of the dish’s various flavors achieved through the judicious
use of butter, cream, coconut milk, reduced stocks, salt, sugar, ; these ingredients
cause the other flavorings to linger.
 Depth of flavor: the dish has a broad range of flavor notes.

Aromas:

Describing Aromas and Flavors in Food

Many have attempted to standardize the language used to describe both positive and negative
aromas and flavors. Frequently they employ flavor wheels or other charts

 Tipos de aromas

 Variety of herbs, spices, oils, vinegars, wines, and other flavorings

Herbs and spices

They are used as flavorings

Herbs are a group of plants whose leaves, stems or flowers are used to add flavor to foods, are
available in dried or dried form.

o Basil
o Opal basil
o Bay
o Charvil
 o Cilantro
o Garlic chives
o Curry leaves
o Dill
o Epazote
o Lavender
o Lemongrass
o Lime leaves
o Lovage
o Marjoram
o Mint
o Parsley
o Oregano
o Rosemary
o Peppermint
o Sage
o Savory
o Tarragon
o Thyme

Spices have a strong flavor are the barks, roots, seeds, buds, or fruits of plants are used in dried
form rarely in fresh form and are purchased whole or ground.

o Aleppo pepper
o Allspice
o Anise
o Annatto sedes
o Star anise
o Asafetida
o Capers
o Caraway
o Cardamom
o Chiles
o Cayenne
o Paprika
o Chile powders
o Crushed chiles
o Cinnamon
o Cloves
o Coriander
o Wasabi
 o Cumin
o Fennel
o Fenugreek
o Filé poder
o Galangal
o Ginger
o Grains of Paradise
o Horseradish
o Juniper
o Mustard sedes
o Nutmeg
o Peppercorns
o Black and white peppercorns
o Green peppercorns
o Pink peppercorns
o Szechuan pepper
o Poppy sedes
o Saffron
o Sesame sedes
o Sumac
o Tamarind
o Turmeric

Herb and Spice Blends

Many cuisines have created recognizable combinations of flavors that are found in a variety of
dishes. Although many of these blends are available ready-prepared for convenience, most can be
mixed by the chef as needed.

o Chinese five-spice poder

o Curry poder
o Fine herbs
o Jamaican jerk seasoning
o Herbes de Provence
o talian seasoning blend
o Pickling spice
o Quatre-épices
o Ras el hanout
o Seasoned salts
o Za’atar

SALT
Is the most basic seasoning, and its use is universal. It preserves foods, heightens their flavors and
provides the distinctive taste of saltiness. The presence of salt can be tasted easily but not
smelled.

o Rock salt
o Table salt
o Kosher salt
o Sea salt
o Fleur de sel
o Black salt
o Himalayan salt

OILS

Are a type of fat that remains liquid at room temperature. Cooking oils are refined from various
seeds, plants and vegetables, They are included here as flavorings because each oil, along with its
cooking properties, has specific flavor and aroma characteristics that should be considered when
choosing an oil as a cooking medium or as an ingredient.

o Vegetable oils
o Canola oil
o Nut oils
o Olive oil
o Sesame oil
o Infused oils
o Flavored oils

Thinks to have in mind

smoke point the temperature at which a fat begins to break down and smoke

flash point the temperature at which a fat ignites and small flames appear on the surface of the fat

shortening it is a white, flavorless, solid fat formulated for baking or deepfrying; or any fat used in
baking to tenderize the product by shortening gluten strands.

Vinegars

is a thin, sour liquid used for thousands of years as a preservative, cooking ingredient, condiment
and cleaning solution. Vinegar is obtained through the fermentation of wine or other alcoholic
liquid. Bacteria attack the alcohol in the solution, turning it into acetic acid, e. The quality of
vinegar depends on the quality of the wine or other liquid on which it is based.

o Wine vinegar
o Malt vinegar
o Distilled vinegar
o Cider vinegar
o Rice vinegar
o Flavored vinegars
o Balsamic vinegar

Condiments

is any food added to a dish for flavor, including herbs, spices and vinegars. Today, however,
condiments more often refer to cooked or prepared flavorings, such as prepared mustards,
relishes, bottled sauces and pickles served to accompany foods.

Thinks to have in mind

Relish: a cooked or pickled sauce usually made with vegetables or fruits and often used as a
condiment; can be smooth or chunky, sweet or savory, and hot or mild

pickle: to preserve food in a brine or vinegar solution; and a food that has been preserved in a
seasoned brine or vinegar, especially cucumbers; pickled cucumbers are available whole, sliced, in
wedges, or chopped as a relish, and may be sweet, sour, dill-flavored or hot and spicy

o Chipotle in adobo
o Fermented black bean sauce
o Fish sauce
o Tomato kétchup
o Prepared mustard
o Soy sauce
o Tahini

WINES, BEERS, BRANDIES, LIQUORS AND LIQUEURS

Are used in the kitchen, most often as flavorings, but also as primary ingredients in marinades and
sauces or even as a cooking medium.

Wine

It’s an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of grapes are used to flavor and
frequently to tenderize foods in marinades, to add flavor during or at the end of cooking, and to
deglaze a pan to add flavor to a sauce.
 Beers

It’s an alcoholic beverage made from water, hops and malted barley, fermented by yeast

Brandies

it's an alcoholic beverage made by distilling wine also can be form by the fermented mash of
grapes or other fruits, complements fruits and help to work with the flavors of custards and
creams.

Liquors

It's a distilling of grains, fruits, vegetables or other foods including rum, whiskey and vodka, It can
be used like rum, bourbon and whiskey for their own distinctive flavors or by mixed with other
flavors like chocolate and coffee

Liqueurs

A strong, sweet, syrupy alcoholic beverage made by mixing neutral spirits with fruits, flowers,
herbs, spices or other flavorings.