blake wrote on Sat, 13 Feb 2010 12:23:53 -0500:

>> In article >,
>> blake murphy > wrote:
>>
>>>> Pretty much any acid is sour. Vinegar is pretty common.
>>>> Some people keep a bottle of vinegar on the table to add
>>>> some "sour" to taste, just like many people keep a bowl of
>>>> sugar on the table to add to coffee, tea, cereal or
>>>> whatever. Many people keep a bottle of ketchup on the
>>>> table, too. That has a lot of sugar and some vinegar, so
>>>> it is a sweet and sour condiment. I'm confused about this
>>>> Umami paste. A scientist in Japan already isolated a
>>>> primary Umami flavor, know as monosodium glutamate, or MSG.
>>>> This process of extraction was patented in 1909:
>>>
>>> i have no idea of the cost of the umami paste, but i'd guess
>>> anchovy paste is cheaper and give much the same effect. or
>>> the powdered m.s.g.
>>>
>>> your pal,
>>> blake
>>
>> Never thought of trying anchovie paste. I'm just learning to
>> cook with the canned ones. It does add a "something savory"
>> to anything you add it to for sure.
>>
>> So, a healthier MSG substitute? I doubt the sodium content
>> would be any lower. <g>

> probably not. but the sodium load in m.s.g. (especially in
> the small quantities a home cook would use) isn't that great.

> as far as i can determine (google is clogged with references
> from 'sodium kills' or 'm.s.g. maims' sites so actual facts
> seem hard to come by - most just say 'don't eat the following
> things, they're bad'), table salt is 40% sodium:

> <http://www.diturophotography.com/nutrition/pages/salt.htm>

> ...and m.s.g. is about 21%:

> <http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17608.cfm>

> given that most recipes i've seen call for much greater
> quantities of salt than for m.s.g. (though they often call for
> soy sauce as well), i'm not sure a 'lower-sodium' substitute
> is even worth searching for.

> but i don't have a dog in this fight. my blood pressure is on
> the low side (despite smoking like a fiend), and at one time
> the doc said my blood concentration of sodium was low.

I'll just mention again that MSG itself is not present in food even if
you sprinkle some on it. What is there is glutamate ions and glutamic
acid is a major component of proteins from which it released by cooking.
I wonder if the "slow food" gang realize how much glutamate they are
obtaining by using a crock pot.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not