Taste lexicon: Umami and kokumi rise in savory NPD, says Kerry

02 Nov 2020 --- Kerry is embarking on a new campaign, Explore Umami and Kokumi, that invites food product developers to access the company’s extensive resources on the two tastes.

The company has also developed an industry-first taste lexicon for umami and kokumi, as well as a portfolio of clean label solutions in this space.

Kerry’s components include a report that explores umami trends in Asia. It also delves into articles that explain how umami and kokumi work synergistically to deliver authentic, complex, multidimensional preference-driving taste in “the most memorable way possible,” says Kerry.  

Umami – also known as the fifth taste – elevates, enriches and improves succulence, while kokumi brings depth, the fullness of the mouth and richness. 

“We first spoke to chefs across Asia about how they create umami and kokumi tastes and then worked to develop ways to make these scalable and accessible to the food industry at large,” says Kay Marshallsay, Kerry’s global product director for fermentation.

Umami – also known as the fifth taste – elevates, enriches and improves succulence, while kokumi brings depth, fullness of the mouth and richness.  “This research report provides an on-the-ground perspective that details the emerging global taste trends emanating from Asian cuisine.” 

Redefining umami
An exploration of umami and flavor-building is a research report that talks to chefs across Asia to gain their leading-edge perspectives about consumer taste preferences and hot trends in their culinary space. 

Four key areas were identified:

• A move toward taste complexity
• Consumer acceptance of sour, bitter and umami tastes
• An increasing call for holistic taste experiences
• Reduced public acceptance of processed, industrialized food production

These and other sub-themes were examined in this exploratory report as it highlighted building taste using traditional Asian ingredients. 

Topics discussed include dashi from Japan, tempeh from Indonesia and kimchi, jang and sikcho from Korea. 

Used together with umami, they ensure depth, roundness and deliciousness for savory products in various applications, including prepared meals, soups, sauces, snacks, meat and meat-alternatives tailored to suit local markets. 

This report exploring taste-building in Asian cuisine and other Kerry umami and kokumi informational resources can be downloaded from Kerry’s website. 

Taste lexicon
As part of its research into umami and kokumi, Kerry created a taste lexicon for the savory category. Its glossary of terms includes a list of descriptors, definitions and references to describe the full palette of these tastes. 

This lexicon allows for a unified, agreed-upon language for Kerry and its customers to describe savory notes in umami and kokumi. 

The Explore Umami and Kokumi campaign includes a research report that explores umami trends in Asia.Striking a balance 
The sensory qualities of umami and kokumi used in perfect synergy can bring depth and taste to savory foods, says Kerry. 

While food scientists continue to study umami and kokumi, chefs have long used them to create delicious and memorable dishes. Integrating them effectively into savory products requires an experienced understanding of how they interact and other ingredients. 

Since this often calls for small, nuanced adjustments, Kerry’s experienced flavors and sensory experts regularly provide ideas and solutions that help achieve desired results without compromising overall balance. 

Kerry’s clean label portfolio of umami and kokumi solutions have resulted from innovative research that developed over time using its rich heritage in fermentation and its long-established culinary-focused culture. 

In August, FoodIngredientsFirst spoke with suppliers active in the salty foods segment to examine how fermentation, synergistic spices and the kokumi trend helped create winning snack experiences.

Edited by Elizabeth Green