This is a physiological process, which involves all human senses. But what does this have to do with food and why is this text here?? Because we are going to talk about sensory analysis of food.
There are many methods for sensory analysis of food and beverages, and they are all based on feelings.
Taste is a complex of sensations, perceived when eating a food product. There are different receptors on the taste buds of the tongue and soft palate. And depending on the type of papilla, the receptors perceive touch, pain, temperature or convert chemical signals, obtained from contact with a substance, into nerve impulses, that are processed by the brain and give a person an idea of the taste of a substance.
We distinguish between five main flavours - sour, sweet, salty, bitter and umami. If we have been familiar with the first four for a long time, umami is relatively new. This term is translated from Japanese as "pleasant taste", and you can feel it in tomatoes, walnuts, Parmesan and Roquefort cheeses, as well as in Japanese cuisine.
Molecular biologists are actively discussing the sixth taste. Someone said., that it is worth adding a burning, someone offers fat flavours, metal, carbon dioxide, mealy taste and other non-trivial options.
Sensory analysis in the food industry is an assessment of product quality, conducted by tasters and experts, who systematically train on special samples and tests. It's a business–instrument, that helps to control and improve the quality of the food product.
Developing your own sensory abilities is easy. We offer to play tasters: choose five different products, prepare them for consumption, place a glass of water nearby, a piece of paper and a pen.
The rest is simple: try the products, record your tastes on paper, that you recognise. Do not forget to rinse your mouth with water after each individual product and pause in 1-2 minutes between them, to avoid raising your receptor sensitivity thresholds.
Want more? Follow the announcements of our events and sign up for sensory analysis training - it's interesting and tasty!