In addition to the four known taste sensations (bitter, salty, sour and sweet), some scientists now include a fifth, called “umami,” best represented by the MSG flavoring added to certain foods.
(source)
It’s always bothered me that you can’t really express 香 in English. (But then again, Western food isn’t usually 香…) I guess now I can :D
I’ve heard so much of Umami on food network lately, and they never really tell you what it tastes like, they always just say “Like Shitaki Mushrooms!” Well, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that shit appears in the name of that mushroom. In fact I think all mushrooms pretty much taste like dirt. So I’m left with the impression that Umami is dirt-like, an impression that I’m sure is false. So could somebody, please, explain what Umami is to me?
…DDD: nuuuu, that’s not it! ): ):
that makes me sad because it is my favorite taste ever …D:
I don’t watch food channel/haven’t heard about umami before, but I looked it up on wikipedia + the mentions of MSG leads me to believe that it is 香 in chinese, which (everyone knows I am pretty much the least chinese chinese person ever, but this is my interpretation! :D ) I usually use to describe yumtastic foods like rice cakes and asian candy and 年糕 (wtf is that called in english, year cake? ._.) and stuff with sesame in it and mooncakes and and (pretty much a lot of asian pastries) … idkayy. as I said, there’s not much western food that tastes that way :/ (in my opinion…).
PCM:
yeoree: it’s appealing
mouthwatering
tasty
succulent
yeoree: it’s like
the finest wine to a professional drunk
yeoree: yep
yeo analogywell, there you have it. :D
“年糕”= rice cakes usually eaten at Chinese New Year, hence “year cake” 8DD
“香” in Chinese is used to describe anything that smells good, I think, from flowers to food to fragrances. So I think the most accurate translation of “香” in relation to food is that it smells good and leaves a good aftertaste, although it’s primarily the former description. It’s hard to describe western foods as “香” because it’s neither traditional nor habitual. My parents never describe my pasta as “香” because they’re not inclined towards western food, whereas they might describe some Asian dish as so. And if I were to describe as western dish as “香”, I would be more inclined to say, “that smells GOOD,” rather than describing in Chinese.
