A good online friend started exploring his “healthier” side by going vegan. Yup, everybody seems to be going vegan nowadays. I also have a college friend who’s a vegetarian. No beef, no chicken, no fish… just the thought of it sends chills up my spine. Veggies and fruits are all well and good but a life without meat is just…

Haaaay…

Aaaanyway, lately, I’ve been developing my fifth taste.

You might say…

“Fifth taste? You’re talking crazy Jigs! There’s only four types of tastes! Sweet, Salty, Sour and Bitter! You’re stupid! I’ll never read your blog again!”

taste itself is subtle. Most people wouldn’t even recognize it. It Enhances the taste of other flavours and brings everything together. It’s amazing, believe me, when you can recognize and manipulate But wait, there IS a fifth taste. You do have the basic Bitter, Sweet, Salty and Sour, and the fifth is UMAMI. There isn’t really an English word for it, but essentially, UMAMI is the savory taste found naturally in meat, poultry, seafood and some vegetables. The UMAMIUMAMI. It’s like UMAMI is the soul of a dish.

UMAMI isn’t just in the taste. It is a combination of taste, smell, color, temperature and appearance. But let’s set the record straight, UMAMI is not MSG. MSG has been touted as a flavor enhancer which is kinda what UMAMI is. However, UMAMI is the natural occurrence of the delicious essence found in foodstuffs (meat, cheese, tomatoes and mushrooms to name a few), which is far better than its synthetic counterpart. I have never used MSG as an ingredient and never will. MSG is the quick and cheap way to attain that savory flavor.

Enough about that…

UMAMI is something that is not unfamiliar to us. I bet, after reading this short article, you will start recognizing what UMAMI is, and what it tastes like. It is an integral part of the whole dining experience. So, I try my best to maximize the UMAMI of any dish I make. Let me say though, UMAMI is something Vegans can appreciate too. Just a bite of a ripe tomato and you can taste UMAMI.


This is basically my Meatyball Surprise dish. What’s the surprise? UMAMI! LoL! Not really! You just have taste it for yourself! Oh wait, you can't! Hehe! Anyhoo, I have two reasons why I’m showing you this dish. One, it's because it has a great UMAMI taste thanks to the beef, the tomatoes and the parmesan cheese which makes this meal amazing! And two…

It's just to show all those VEGANERDS what they’re missing! Mwahahaha!

P.S. VEGANERDS are “non-practicing vegans”- people who are vegans just because they want to be cool!

For more information about VEGANERDS and those “non-practicing vegans” ask PAOLO.