Umami Power
Leveraging MSG’s potential
Umami Power
Leveraging MSG’s potential
By Rosalyn Darling
February 6, 2024
By Rosalyn Darling
February 6, 2024
MSG had a bad rap for so long, it’s encouraging to see this powerful umami element make its way back onto menus. MSG creates that unctuous flavor that can boost a dish or beverage into stardom. This is especially true for plant-based dishes that lack the umami boost from animal-based meats and ingredients.
As an Asian-American chef, I feel good about seeing this cultural ingredient reexamined past old, damaging myths and reclaiming its presence back in the limelight. With great umami power comes great responsibility. MSG is meant to enhance umami essences that exist in a dish and does not impart flavor of its own. Adding a pinch to a seasoning blend, finishing sauce or breading system can create an enhanced, mouth-watering, savory effect.
Consider these simple ways to integrate MSG onto menus:
- White Kimchi Dirty Martini made with Nolet’s gin, white kimchi juice, MSG and lemon
- MSG-honey butter with golden buttermilk biscuits
- Crispy cauliflower wings smothered with MSG-infused Buffalo sauce
MSG had a bad rap for so long, it’s encouraging to see this powerful umami element make its way back onto menus. MSG creates that unctuous flavor that can boost a dish or beverage into stardom. This is especially true for plant-based dishes that lack the umami boost from animal-based meats and ingredients.
As an Asian-American chef, I feel good about seeing this cultural ingredient reexamined past old, damaging myths and reclaiming its presence back in the limelight. With great umami power comes great responsibility. MSG is meant to enhance umami essences that exist in a dish and does not impart flavor of its own. Adding a pinch to a seasoning blend, finishing sauce or breading system can create an enhanced, mouth-watering, savory effect.
Consider these simple ways to integrate MSG onto menus:
- White Kimchi Dirty Martini made with Nolet’s gin, white kimchi juice, MSG and lemon
- MSG-honey butter with golden buttermilk biscuits
- Crispy cauliflower wings smothered with MSG-infused Buffalo sauce
About the Author
ROSALYN DARLING specializes in insights-based culinary innovation that spans across away-from-home and retail channels. Plant-forward foods, reducetarian culture and alternative mixology have been her current areas of focus in the kitchen, working with both Fortune 500 CPGs and top 200 foodservice operators to bring this sprouting trend to shelves and menus across the nation. A taste of what Rosalyn has experienced during her dynamic career as a hybrid of marketing and culinary innovation includes: Strategic Consulting Partner with The Culinary Institute of America, Culinary Instructor for Premier Culinary Clinics, Speaker at National Restaurant Association’s Foodamentals Studio & Culinary Experience Center, Master Trainer for dairy-free beverage mixology at N.Y. and L.A. Coffee Festivals, and Flavor & The Menu Culinary Roundtable Presenter and Panelist. Rosalyn holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Management and Entrepreneurship from the University of Illinois Chicago and a culinary degree from the International Culinary School at the Illinois Institute of Art Chicago.
