1. FLAVOR AND TASTE

2. TASTES
…are the “sensations we detect when
a substance comes in contact with the
taste buds on the tongue”

4. TASTE BUDS
 “The smallest functional unit of taste”
 Found in the papillae
 Taste receptor cells: several in each taste bud

6. SOUR SALTY BITTER SWEET
 Sweet: comes from naturally occurring sugars (fructose and
sucrose) or added sugars
 Sour: opposite of sweet and found in acidic foods
 Salty: comes from adding sodium chloride (with the exception of
oysters and seaweed)
 Bitter: caused by alkaloids and used as a survival mechanism for
inedible or toxic foods

7. UMAMI
Close to what we understand as savory
 Naturally occurring in foods with the amino acid glutamate
• Cheese, meat, soy sauce, mushrooms, tomatoes, wine

8. FACTORS THAT AFFECT
TASTE
Temperature: warm foods have stronger tastes
(except salty)
Consistency: dense foods take longer to perceive
Fats: some compounds that offer “taste” are
dissolved in fat

9. FLAVOR
“Combination of the tastes, aromas, and
other sensations caused by the presence of a
foreign substance in the mouth”

10. OLFACTORY SENSE

11. FLAVOR PROFILES
 Top notes: first sharp flavors
 Middle notes: more subtle (dairy, poultry, vegetables, fish, meats)
 Low notes: dominant and lingering (beans, chocolate, mushrooms,
tomatoes, meats)
 Aftertaste: final lingering flavor (bitterness of chocolate)
 Roundness: unity through butter, cream, salt, sugar
 Depth: broad range

13. BALANCE
Introducing various taste
components to balance the flavor of
food