this post was submitted on 06 Oct 2023
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Science

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[–] metallic_z3r0@infosec.pub 23 points 1 year ago (6 children)

I like the word 'umami', but it's weird to me that they don't just use 'savory' which is the same thing. Cool that it's been figured out receptor-wise.

[–] FlowVoid@midwest.social 25 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Umami is the fifth flavor. This paper is about the sixth, which doesn't seem to have a name other than "ammonium chloride".

[–] jarfil@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Solid Ammonium Chloride is used to make dry batteries"

I'll definitely have to try some "sweet and battery" poached eggs.

[–] FlowVoid@midwest.social 5 points 1 year ago

I can't believe it's not battery!

[–] Bitrot@lemmy.sdf.org 11 points 1 year ago

Probably because the scientist was Japanese.

[–] princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Weird that this flavour that’s been recognised in eastern cuisine for 100s if not 1000s of years uses a borrowed word in English when it’s only been acknowledged in western cuisine for a few decades.

FYI ‘savoury’ is a borrowed word from French.

[–] Marsupial@quokk.au 3 points 1 year ago

It is weird that we have a word to describe it, yet instead used a different languages word for something we already have a word for.

[–] Umbrias@beehaw.org 1 points 1 year ago

It's been acknowledged in western cuisine forever too lol. You think western chefs just could've put a finger on meat char tasting good across all of human history??

No it's just that it was discovered to be a fundamental receptor on the tongue which responds to amino acids. It was discovered by a Japanese researcher. The weird eastern exceptionalism is just silly if you take five seconds to look into why it's named umami.

[–] bionicjoey@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 year ago

Umami's so fat...

[–] AdminWorker@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Savory is kinda salty. Umami is kinda buttery

[–] cnnrduncan@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Umami is just a Japanese neologism for savoury. In my food science course at uni the two terms are used interchangeably.

[–] populustree@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

okay who let the weeb name the taste

[–] Dr_Cog@mander.xyz 12 points 1 year ago

The Japanese scientist who discovered it

[–] NattyNatty2x4@beehaw.org 1 points 1 year ago

Weebs will take any chance they can get to name something with a japanese or other asian language's word, true (isekai/portal fantasy, anyone?), but in this particular case "umami" became popularized because it was a japanese scientist that confirmed it was an actual basic flavor. Origin of research and not weeb culture is what put umami on the english map.