So when I say the word “flavor,” what do you think about?

Just think on it for a sec.

Ok time’s up.  I learned the CRAZIEST SHIT today that is going to blow your mind.

Flavor = taste + aroma.

But Dréa aren’t flavor and taste synonymous?

Well, no, cause that would obviously fuck up the aforementioned equation.  I didn’t know it either, and apparently neither does Wiki.

Let’s talk about Taste.  Your pallet can “taste” four things:  sweet, sour, salty, and bitter.  (Yes umami is considered a fifth category, but it does not stand alone, it simultaneously enhances the other four flavors on your pallet.  Like an expansion pack for your tongue.)

These are the only four things, often in combination, you can actually taste.  Because we only have 4 receptors on our tongue.

Yes, whenever you are tasting anything, at all, ever, you are ONLY tasting those four things.

But Dréa, when I taste things like a blueberry or a banana, those are distinct tastes!  WTF mate?

Enter aroma, the other element of flavor.  We have 18 receptors in our nose.  What does this mean?  We are smelling our food more-so than tasting it.  Or a better way to put it, our nose and our tongue in conjunction allow us to perceive flavor.

Get a banana.  Or a piece of basil.  Plug your nose and taste it.  With a banana you will experience sweet and a little bitter, but it will not “taste” like a banana.  Now unplug your nose and continue chewing.  Boom.  Banana.

Banana, like basil, blueberries, and quite a bit of our food is primarily an aromatic.

Why is this a cocktail-worthy mind-blowing event?

Because it allows you to manipulate what you’re cooking very exactly.  Do you want to change the aromatics of your dish, or the taste, to achieve the flavor you want?

For instance, you’re making something.  You taste it and decide it needs to be sweeter.  You have honey and sugar readily available, which one do you chose?

Honey is an aromatic, sugar is not.  When you smell your dish, does it smell perfect but the taste is off?  Use sugar.  Does it “smell” like it needs something?  Use honey.  Don’t know what it needs?  Plug your nose and taste it.  That’ll bring you down to the four basic flavors and simplify all the input you’re getting.

FYI this same concept works when you are trying to identify that one thing in a dish or wine, but you can’t quite put your finger on it.  Plug your nose and take a bite/sip.  Right after you swallow or a few bites in, open your nose.  You’ll get a rush of the aromatic elements before they combine again with taste, and your mystery item will probably be readily identifiable since you’ve filtered it out.

I know right, I feel like I need a cigarette.