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By jamie, June 16, 2010 3:17 am

I’m sure most of you have heard that the human tongue can only detect four tastes: sweet, sour, bitter and salty. Can you think of anything you have ever tasted that does not contain at least one of these elements? If you have been following along, then you can probably guess that this conventional “scientific” wisdom is not true – we can also taste “umami,” or “deliciousness.”

Even when I don’t read a book about food, the book ends up talking about food. This chapter begins with French chef, Auguste Escoffier, who defied the popular custom of his time by focusing on the flavor of food rather than the presentation (fancy food used to be served buffet style, cold, and with an emphasis on visual appearance over tastiness). Once again, there is a lot in this chapter, and I cannot possibly share it all with you here, so I’ll only give you some highlights.

Japanese chemist, Kikunae Ikeda first discovered the taste sensation “umami” (which means “delicious” in Japanese). It’s an amino acid, L-glutamate, which is uncovered when a particular protein is cooked, fermented, etc. The discussion of the science in this section is fascinating – foodies will likely enjoy reading this entire chapter. Long story short, MSG is a synthetic substitute for L-glutamate – it makes food taste delicious (Lehrer does not mention anything else it does).

“Why wouldn’t we have a specific taste for protein? We lover the flavor of denatured protein because, being protein and water ourselves, we need it. Our human body produces more than forty grams of glutamate a day, so we constantly crave an amino acid refill. (Species that are naturally vegetarian find the taste of umami repellent. Unfortunately for vegans, humans are omnivores.) In fact, we are trained from birth to savor umami: breast milk has ten times more glutamate than cow milk. The tongue loves what the body needs.”

Escoffier served his foot hot, which allowed patrons of his restaurants to involve their noses in the eating experience – some of the molecules of hot food drift to our nostrils. Much of what we think we taste when we eat, we are really smelling – up to 90%, according to Lehrer. This must explain why, when I had a cold last week, nothing was worth eating – I couldn’t seem to “taste” ANYTHING because I couldn’t smell anything. I think our brains can compensate for this when there is trouble though, because some people have no sense of smell and they can taste things. I once had an upper respiratory infection that left me unable to smell for a few months (even after I was no longer sick – I worried that it might not return, and was relieved when it slowly came back – I guess I was regrowing damaged receptors) – food still had flavor.

Escoffier also paid attention to other details, from the dishes and silverware to the outfits of the waiters, making sure everything was very fancy so diners would expect fancy food too. Lehrer uses some of the same examples as in How We Decide to illustrate that when we think we are getting something expensive, our minds think we are getting something better, even if we are not. Have you guys ever tested this? I think that I am not susceptible to the idea that expensive always means better, though I may be fooling myself. Let’s see – I buy store brand medications, and I try the other products too and only reject them if they are not up to my standards (for example, I am picky about pickles – store brands rarely do it for me).

One more thing about the great Auguste Escoffier – he invented the menu because he realized that not everyone has the same preferences in food. The science behind this: we have thousands upon thousands of taste and smell receptors, and the ones we don’t use wither away. The more we smell and/or taste a particular flavor/scent, the more receptors we grow for that particular flavor/scent. This is how we can develop a taste for something that we previously did not like. As Lerher puts it, “because the sense of taste is extremely plastic, it can be remodeled by new experiences. It’s never too late to become a gourmet.” (Note to Hubby – Honey, there is hope for you and vegetables yet!).

Other posts about Proust was a Neuroscientist:

Post 1: Walt Whitman – Proust was a Neuroscientist, by Jonah Lehrer
Post 2: George Eliot and Our Clay Brains
Post 3: Deliciousness and Auguste Escoffier

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By jamie, May 13, 2010 2:22 pm

Public confession #589: I ate breakfast at McDonald’s today. Obviously, I need some sort of intervention, so I am going to read another Michael Pollan book – maybe this time it will take. Actually, I’m not all bad – I DID plant a garden after all, which Pollan recommends at the end of In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.

More about my garden below, first let me say that this book is about where our food comes from. Today I read the introduction and the first chapter.

So what is the “omnivore’s dilemma” you ask? Well, it’s the idea that our species can eat anything we want, but no really, because some things will kill us. Our ancient ancestors were brave pioneers every time they tested a new mushroom or leaf, because sometimes they would drop dead after taking that fateful taste. Other times – an excellent new food source was discovered. Pollan is gearing up to make the case that, though we may know which mushrooms are poisonous, we are still brave pioneers when we test processed foods found in the grocery store because, though it will not likely happen immediately, these “foods” might eventually kill us.

We all know the saying, “you are what you eat.” If you have been following along with me, Jillian Michaels and Michael Pollan have probably given you a clue as to what most of us are made of. Can you guess it? Corn, of course. It turns out that scientists can actually tell what we are “made of” by analyzing our hair or fingernails. People in this country contain more corn than cultures that eat mostly “actual corn” because much of what we eat contains corn components. Yikes.

The first chapter provides a fascinating lesson on corn. Basically, it’s the only food that needs humans to continue growing – it self pollinates, but it cannot “plant” itself. Other plants can spread seeds around and grow without much help – I have a friend who has an “accidental garden” grown up out of her compost pile who can attest to this fact.

Oh, about my garden – it turns out that organic gardening is really difficult. I spend every morning examining leaves for bad bugs – today I found a giant caterpillar that likely single-mouthedly ate leaves from two of our cabbages and from our strawberry plant while we calmly slept last night. It was hiding in the grape tomato plant today, and I almost missed it! Natural camouflage, you know. Oh, and we have an armadillo hole in the middle of the watermelon patch. Armadillos eat bugs, but they can also dig up your entire yard (and garden) looking for their dinner.

Here is my garden (please ignore the date/time stamp – it’s a new camera and I haven’t figured out how to change the date yet):

Lettuces, tomatoes, peppers

Cucumbers, zucchini, and tomatoes

Damaged cabbage leaf

Damaged strawberry leaves

Baby girl watering watermelons.

Watermelon Patch - notice the hole in the center? Armadillos at work!

Close-up of armadillo hole

Other posts about The Omnivore’s Dilemma:

Post 1: The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan
Post 2: Even Fish Eat Corn
Post 3: Junk Food is Cheap Food
Post 4: Global Garden
Post 5: I Have a Garden. What’s Next, Chickens?
Post 6: Chickens and Pigs
Post 7: Honestly Priced Food
Post 8: Squash is not Poisonous
Post 9: Hunting, Vegetarians, and Animal Kindness
Post 10: Mysterious Mushrooms

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By jamie, May 6, 2010 3:48 pm

I remember the first time someone called me a “beaner.” I did not know what he was talking about, so I went home and asked my mom and learned that it’s a derogatory term for Mexicans. I didn’t know I was Mexican at this time either, given that I had never been to Mexico, nor did we have any relatives there, so this name was particularly confusing to me. Cristián calls out “beaner” as particularly amusing term because it refers to a common ethnic food choice, and suggests that maybe we should retaliate by referring to Anglos as “baconers.” (I know a few people who would not take this as an insult.) He also provides a list of other derogatory terms for various different Latinos, some that I had never heard of until today. Some people sure are creative when they are insulting others, no?

I finished reading Part One, which got increasingly silly, then read all of Part Two, which is subtitled “Culture and People.” In order to keep things a little lighter than they were yesterday, I’m going to talk about couple of things that interested me that may or may not be amusing to you:

When Latinos cook, we like to make tons of food. I concur, particularly when we have guests. Of course this may be common in other cultures as well, but this is my story. I want to make sure that no one goes without, and that everyone has all they want. If there looks as though there may not be enough (this has happened a couple of times, and has caused me great distress), I will busy myself and wait until everyone has served themselves and gotten seconds, and then, only if I am quite certain that they are not going to go for more, I will feed myself. I do this with leftovers too, especially meat dishes – I wait to see if hubby is going to eat them and only have them for lunch if I am sure he does not want them. Hubby refers to this as being a “food martyr” (although I try very hard to be undetected, and I am certainly not starving, so I don’t really think this is an accurate term).

I am always happy when I have leftovers, because it means that no one denied themselves. I guess if I were more self conscious about my cooking (I can follow a recipe, but I have yet to get a sauce to thicken and I am almost guaranteed to overcook meat because I like it that way, so you can decide if that makes me a beginner or an intermediate cook) I would worry that too many leftovers meant something else.

One of the my hobbies is studying superstitions from around the world, and I may even write about it more formally someday. I am happy to get to blog about mal de ojo, or “the evil eye” right now though. It’s so fascinating. I really want to know from those who are NOT Latino – have you heard of it? What does your culture (what is your culture?) do to prevent it or cure it? So, for those who do not know, mal de ojo is an illness caused by jealousy, even unintentional jealousy. Babies and pregnant women are especially susceptible to it – if someone looks at them (or anyone) and feels envy, even if they do not realize they feel it, then can unwittingly make them sick. When I see a cute baby in public, I am very careful not to stare too long so that I do not accidentally give them the ojo.

There are many different ways to prevent being the recipient of the evil eye, but it varies by culture. I’m sure many of you have seen bracelets or other jewelry made of beads that look like eyes – for some, wearing these beads is adequate protection. Cristián says that wearing red is enough, even a red string around your wrist, and I have read that this is true in other countries as well. In the U.S. Southwest, where I grew up, it had to be coral – real coral, which is not very easy to get, but you do what you have to, right? My sister and I have our coral necklaces, and our kids have their coral bracelets (the coral was gifted from a dear cousin, who passed before she met my baby, may she rest in peace). I wore a beaded talisman throughout my pregnancy, just in case.

The main symptom of the evil eye, according to de la Fuente, is a headache. In New Mexico, a victim can even get an unexplained fever! What about you? I know you are out there! What do you know about the evil eye?

Evidently, the cure for the ojo in Chile includes making a cross on the victim’s forehead, and muttering secret prayers over and over again. It’s much trickier in New Mexico – you have to find the person who gave the evil eye (and hope that it wasn’t a stranger!), and have them spit in the victim’s mouth. See why we wear the coral? The prevention, in this case, is far easier – and far less disgusting – than the cure!

Other posts about Hot, Passionate, and Illegal?:

Post 1: Hot, Passionate, and Illegal?
Post 2: Food Martyrdom and the Evil Eye
Post 3: Dedicated to Arizonans Against SB1070
Post 4: The Day I Walked to Mexico

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By jamie, April 19, 2010 7:59 pm

This last Friday we had a dinner party. We served pork tenderloin with a Cajun rub, penne with broccoli and mushrooms, a sauteed vegetable medley, and spinach salad. For dessert we served strawberry shortcake. We made an overabundance of food, and are still eating leftovers (hubby was out of town on Saturday, and we ate at his parents’ place yesterday). Funny thing about eating whole foods – they fill you up faster than the other stuff, so we still have food for one more night, then I have to get cooking again.

In the last chapter of the book, Pollan advises us to “eat less.” He takes issue with the idea that we have to eat every couple of hours, and says that snacking is not necessary. Instead, we should “eat meals.” Here’s another public confession: I have gained weight since my daughter was born, mostly because I do not follow this wisdom. Sometimes I will realize, at 3 or 4 in the afternoon, that I have not eaten a thing all day long. So I have a snack. Then we have dinner. Then another snack. Then more snacking, sometimes until right before I go to bed. (I’ve been doing much better the past week or so, eating within two hours of waking most days, and aiming for one hour.)

He again acknowledges that his new way of eating is expensive: “Not everyone can afford to eat high-quality food in America, and that is shameful; however, those of us who can, should.” This still bothers me – we should all be able to eat high quality food. When I was in the grocery store the other day, I noticed a sign in the produce section advertising that WIC recipients can now buy fresh fruits and vegetables with their vouchers. They couldn’t before?! I suppose if people eat less, they might be saving money too, and end up without too much of a net increase in their food budget. And those who CAN afford to pay more for food can “vote” for better choices for everyone by choosing the better food. I’m still not happy though.

His final food policy: “Cook and, if you can plant a garden.”

I can’t remember if I have told you about a policy my sister recently made for herself: She decided that, whenever she wants to eat something sweeter than fruit, she will bake it instead of buying it. I can imagine that this will really cut down on the eating of treats. Cooking will do the same thing for helping avoid eating junky food – french fries (Pollan’s example) sound less enticing when eating them involves washing, peeling, seasoning, and frying potatoes. I wonder how far I should take this – I have an ice cream maker, and I might eat less ice cream if I have to make it first!

As for the garden, we are working on setting up our first garden right now, starting with tomatoes and strawberries! I’ll keep you posted.

Since finishing the book this weekend, I have been thinking a lot about what I have learned, especially about milk – I spent a long time in the grocery store on Saturday trying to choose yogurt – most of it is low fat and contains milk powder, which I am now afraid for my family to ingest. I ended up getting Baby Girl’s favorite brand, but I chose vanilla instead of her usual flavors, to sort of transition her. She liked the vanilla, so I am encouraged to take the next step. I think I am going to buy Greek yogurt this week and blend fresh fruit into it (I still need to check labels though before I decide).

Scroll down for other posts about In Defense of Food:

Other posts about In Defense of Food:
Review
Post 1: In Defense of Food, by Michael Pollan
Post 2: Breakfast Cereal is not a Food?
Post 3: Chocolate Science
Post 4: “Hourly Yogurt Enemas?!”
Post 5: Hunting and Gathering
Post 6: Look Mom – No Cavities!
Post 7: Mainlining Glucose or “I’m Not an Addict!”
Post 8: Food is Religious and Political
Post 9: Whole Milk Sounds Almost Sinful
Post 10: I Don’t Like the Salad, Mommy
Post 11: Let’s Plant a Garden

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By jamie, April 10, 2010 7:28 pm

What have I eaten today? This morning I had hard boiled eggs, but mixed them with a little bit of mustard and light mayonnaise and spread them on white bread (we’re out of the whole wheat variety). My daughter and I shared an apple for a snack. Then for lunch I had a lot of strawberries, which I sweetened with real sugar (I used less than a tablespoon in total). I drank a glass of milk earlier, and since then have only had water to drink (not very much though). Tonight we had dinner from a Mexican restaurant (we brought it home) – there was a lot of chicken in my enchiladas, a green salad with real guacamole instead of dressing, and not too much cheese. The salsa tasted fresh. Today wasn’t too bad.

Here is how Pollan defines the “Western diet”: “lots of processed foods and meat, lots of added fat and sugar, lots of everything except fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.” As I said, today wasn’t TOO bad – for me. My daughter had Cheerios and milk, processed yogurt puffs, Ritz crackers, string cheese, and a chocolate cupcake left over from her school party (mine is waiting for me for later) in addition to her apple. She tasted the strawberries (without sugar), but didn’t like them today (sometimes she loves them). She ate chicken and rice at dinner, and drank milk and water – no juice today. Not great.

Chapter 2 of section 2 is titled “The Elephant in the Room” and is about the Western diet, and how it seems to accompany “Western diseases,” including “heart disease, diabetes, cancer, obesity, hypertension, stroke, appendicitis, diverticulits, malformed dental arches, tooth decay, varicose veins, ulcers, [and] hemorrhoids.” It’s worse than I thought it was – evidently, these ailments only seem to happen once a population adopts our way of eating.

I can understand diabetes and hypertension, but tooth decay? Really? A Canadian-born dentist, Weston A. Price, studied this back in the 1930s, and found that people who did not follow the Western diet had “no need of dentists whatsoever” – they had almost no tooth decay, regardless of whether they ate mostly seafood, mostly meat, or mainly fruits, vegetables and grains. In fact, what they ate did not seem to matter at all, even if they left out entire food groups, as long as they did not eat like we do. I was surprised to read that.

Just this week my daughter had her well-child visit, and the pediatrician said it’s time to schedule her first dental appointment. We are also supposed to brush her teeth with fluoride toothpaste after each meal and before bedtime. When he told us that, I felt a little bit of worry that we won’t do a satisfactory job of helping her keep her teeth cleaned (sometimes she cooperates, and sometimes she doesn’t) and she will get a cavities on her baby teeth. Maybe if I keep her away from too much processed food I can worry about this less.

Scroll down for other posts about In Defense of Food:

Other posts about In Defense of Food:
Review
Post 1: In Defense of Food, by Michael Pollan
Post 2: Breakfast Cereal is not a Food?
Post 3: Chocolate Science
Post 4: “Hourly Yogurt Enemas?!”
Post 5: Hunting and Gathering
Post 6: Look Mom – No Cavities!
Post 7: Mainlining Glucose or “I’m Not an Addict!”
Post 8: Food is Religious and Political
Post 9: Whole Milk Sounds Almost Sinful
Post 10: I Don’t Like the Salad, Mommy
Post 11: Let’s Plant a Garden