Umami?

Salty, Sweet, Sour, Bitter. These are the "tastes" of the tongue that I grew up with. I was never taught Umami. While planning a tasting experiment for Atira and Tell to learn which parts of the tongue were more sensitive to the various "tastes", I encountered this controversial fifth "taste".
The name comes from the Japanese language and can be translated as pleasant savoury taste. Umami foods include meats, mushrooms, cheese, and tomatoes. Apparently it was first scientifically identified by a Japanese professor back in 1908 in Tokyo. Not all scientists agree that it is one of the "tastes", however, so perhaps that's why I had never heard of it before today.
It was one of those "I learned something new" school days.





















I also learned that 8 year old boys can disappoint you with their lack of manners...for instance, when explaining that a loss of scent results in a loss of taste and to demonstrate that you tell them to plug their nose, after which, they proceed to insert one finger into each nostril. Then, in the same day, they can surprise you with their artistic eye by spotting the outline of the Eiffel Tower in the roast beef on their dinner plate.
I love being a mom to boys!

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