- Concept
- 旨味
Umami
The fifth basic taste, and the reason Japanese food satisfies.
Umami is the fifth basic taste alongside sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. It is carried above all by glutamate, an amino acid found naturally in seaweed, tomatoes, Parmesan, dried mushrooms, and fermented goods like miso and soy sauce. The taste is described as savory, round, and full, and it makes food taste richer without adding more salt or fat.
Background
Facts
- Discovery
- the Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda isolated glutamate from kombu dashi in the early 1900s
- Sources
- glutamate in seaweed and vegetables, inosinate in fish and meat, guanylate in dried mushrooms
- Synergy
- glutamate and inosinate reinforce each other, which is the whole point of awase dashi
- In the pantry
- kombu, katsuobushi, dried shiitake, miso, soy sauce, aonori
Connected here
Entries built on the concept
Aka-misoAged, salty and almost meaty.powerful umami 85%Umamifermented depth 85%Fermentsaltiness 80%Salinitytangy edge 50%Acidity
AonoriSprinkles from the sea.ocean 85%Oceanumami 75%Umamifresh 55%Grassgrassy 45%Grass
DashiThe broth that sits under almost everything.
Dashi ingredientsDried, and flavorful for exactly that reason.
FurikakeThe sprinkle that turns rice into a meal.
Green teaThe family where the leaf is never allowed to oxidize.
Hatcho-misoOnly soybeans, two years and three tons of stone.dense umami 95%Umamifermented depth 95%Fermentdry saltiness 70%Salinitytangy edge 65%Acidity
KojiThe mold the whole pantry rests on.
KombuThe foundation of the broth, never boiled.umami 95%Umamibroth 80%Umamiocean 70%Oceansaltiness 55%Salinity
MisoSoybeans, salt and time.
NoriThe paper of the sea, toasted and crisp.toasted ocean tone 70%Oceanumami 70%Umamitoasted nuttiness 55%Roastsaltiness 55%Salinity
Seaweed and kelpUmami grown in the sea.
Umami synergyOne plus one makes eight.
Keep exploring
Related in the Zukan
- DashiConcept
- Umami synergyConcept
- Dashi ingredientsFamily
- MisoFamily
- KojiConcept
- Seaweed and kelpFamily
- AonoriSea vegetable
- KombuSea vegetable
- NoriSea vegetable
- Hatcho-misoMiso type
- FurikakeFamily
Evidence
Sources
- Nekko Journal: Umami, guiden till den femte grundsmaken (retrieved 2026-08-08)
- Umami (Wikipedia) (retrieved 2026-08-08)