Part of what we teach our students in the culinary program at Lincoln Land Community College is the importance of flavor. Yes, the plate may look beautiful and served at the correct temperature, but if it does not taste good, then all is lost. Arielle Johnson has written a new text all about flavor, and the title is “Flavorama: a guide to unlocking the art and science of flavor.”
Flavor is a combination of taste and smell, and this makes it a challenge for people who want to master it. There are five distinct tastes — salty, sour, sweet, umami and bitter. Our tongues have receptors for detecting each one. Johnson delves into all five.
Smell is more complicated, with about 400 types of smell receptors in the nose that capture signals from many, many different molecules taken together. This means a near-infinite number of flavors exist.
Arielle Johnson has a Ph.D. in chemistry and was the resident scientist at Noma, a fine-dining establishment in Copenhagen that has been named the World’s Best Restaurant five times since it opened in 2003.
The colorful hand drawn illustrations in “Flavorama” help one understand flavor science. Some of the illustrations of the human brain and nasal cavity explain how nerve cells that line the roof of the nasal cavity detect scent molecules and send signals directly to a part of the brain that handles feelings and memories.
What about smell? Johnson organizes the building blocks of smell into categories — her main ones are fruity, herbal, spiced, meaty and vegetal, each further broken down into subcategories. Johnson writes, “Smell — our most underrated, underappreciated sense — has everything to do with the way we experience flavor.” She further writes that “taste plus smell equals flavor.”
Included in her book are close to 100 recipes. Most of these recipes have just a handful of ingredients. They are written in paragraph form with boldfaced ingredients labeled within the instructions.
I love lemon-flavored dishes, and Johnson asks the question, what is a lemon? The answer she writes, “… is a round yellow citrus, the fruit of the citrus lemon tree, a hybrid between a sour orange and citron. What gives us the flavor is the three distinct layers, the zest, the pith and the juice-infused flesh.” Each one has its on distinct flavor. Depending on the recipe, the lemon can add a citrusy aroma or sour taste. A lime, on the other hand, may “match the sourness of the lemon, but its aromas are much more herbal.”
Her book teaches us how to improvise when cooking and identify alternative ingredients when at the last minute you run out of one. “Flavorama” has been named one of the best cookbooks of the year by the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Science News and the Washington Post. If you are intrigued by how science impacts your cooking, I highly recommend purchasing this book. My thanks to Emily at Prentice Hall Publishers for her assistance and providing permission to include the following recipe.
Cilantro-parsley-tarragon salsa verde
In a powerful blender, combine:
1 bunch (about 90 g) cilantro (washed well and dried, large stems removed)
1 bunch (90 g) flat-leaf parsley (washed, dried, and large and medium stems removed)
1 small bunch (10 g) tarragon (leaves plucked from stems and stems discarded)
1 cup (240 ml) light and grassy extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon (15 g) Dijon mustard
2 cured anchovies
1 tablespoon (12 g) capers
1 tablespoon (15 ml) lemon juice (from half a lemon)
1 peeled clove garlic
1 teaspoon (6 g) of sea salt and 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) ground black pepper
Instructions
Blend at medium-high speed until combined, with all herb leaves broken down and emulsified in. It should be a thick-bodied, medium-fluid sauce; add more olive oil gradually to thin out the texture if necessary. Taste and add more salt, black pepper or lemon juice if necessary.
Store for 2 to 3 days in the fridge or up to 3 to 4 months frozen.
Makes about 2 cups.
“If you combine good flavors, food turns into an orchestra.” ~ Joey Fatone
About
Lincoln Land Community College offers credit programs in Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management and Baking/Pastry, and non-credit cooking and food classes through LLCC Community Education.
Cooking or food questions? Email epicuriosity101@llcc.edu.