Flavour enhancer
Encyclopedia
Flavour enhancers are food additives commonly added to food and designed to enhance the existing flavours of products. In western cultures, the 5th taste or umami
went unrecognized for a long time. It was believed that flavour enhancers did not add any new taste of their own. It is now understood that these substances activate taste receptors
for umami
, and thus add this taste to products.
The commonly used flavour enhancers are:
Umami
Umami , popularly referred to as savoriness, is one of the five basic tastes together with sweet, sour, bitter, and salty.-Etymology:Umami is a loanword from the Japanese meaning "pleasant savory taste". This particular writing was chosen by Professor Kikunae Ikeda from umai "delicious" and mi ...
went unrecognized for a long time. It was believed that flavour enhancers did not add any new taste of their own. It is now understood that these substances activate taste receptors
Taste receptor
A Taste receptor is a type of receptor which facilitates the sensation of taste.Examples include TAS2R16 and TAS2R38.They are divided into two families:* Type 1, sweet, first characterized in 2001: –...
for umami
Umami
Umami , popularly referred to as savoriness, is one of the five basic tastes together with sweet, sour, bitter, and salty.-Etymology:Umami is a loanword from the Japanese meaning "pleasant savory taste". This particular writing was chosen by Professor Kikunae Ikeda from umai "delicious" and mi ...
, and thus add this taste to products.
The commonly used flavour enhancers are:
Australian
- 621 monosodium glutamateMonosodium glutamateMonosodium glutamate, also known as sodium glutamate or MSG, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, one of the most abundant naturally occurring non-essential amino acids....
, MSG - 622 monopotassium glutamateMonopotassium glutamateMonopotassium glutamate is a compound with formula KC5H8NO4. It is a potassium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E622 and is used in foods as a flavor enhancer. It is a non-sodium MSG alternative....
- 623 calcium diglutamateCalcium diglutamateCalcium diglutamate, sometimes abbreviated CDG and also called calcium glutamate, is a compound with formula Ca2. It is a calcium acid salt of glutamic acid. CDG is a flavor enhancer — it is the calcium analog of monosodium glutamate...
- 624 monoammonium glutamateMonoammonium glutamateMonoammonium glutamate is a compound with formula NH4C5H8NO4. It is an ammonium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E624 and is used as a flavor enhancer....
- 625 magnesium diglutamateMagnesium diglutamateMagnesium diglutamate is a compound with formula Mg2. It is a magnesium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E625 and is used in foods as a flavor enhancer....
European (by E number)
- Glutamic acid (an amino acidAmino acidAmino acids are molecules containing an amine group, a carboxylic acid group and a side-chain that varies between different amino acids. The key elements of an amino acid are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen...
) and its saltSaltIn chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
s:- E620 Glutamic acidGlutamic acidGlutamic acid is one of the 20 proteinogenic amino acids, and its codons are GAA and GAG. It is a non-essential amino acid. The carboxylate anions and salts of glutamic acid are known as glutamates...
- E621 Monosodium glutamateMonosodium glutamateMonosodium glutamate, also known as sodium glutamate or MSG, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, one of the most abundant naturally occurring non-essential amino acids....
, MSG - E622 Monopotassium glutamateMonopotassium glutamateMonopotassium glutamate is a compound with formula KC5H8NO4. It is a potassium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E622 and is used in foods as a flavor enhancer. It is a non-sodium MSG alternative....
- E623 Calcium diglutamateCalcium diglutamateCalcium diglutamate, sometimes abbreviated CDG and also called calcium glutamate, is a compound with formula Ca2. It is a calcium acid salt of glutamic acid. CDG is a flavor enhancer — it is the calcium analog of monosodium glutamate...
- E624 Monoammonium glutamateMonoammonium glutamateMonoammonium glutamate is a compound with formula NH4C5H8NO4. It is an ammonium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E624 and is used as a flavor enhancer....
- E625 Magnesium diglutamateMagnesium diglutamateMagnesium diglutamate is a compound with formula Mg2. It is a magnesium acid salt of glutamic acid.It has the E number E625 and is used in foods as a flavor enhancer....
- E620 Glutamic acid
- Guanylic acid (a ribonucleotideRibonucleotideA ribonucleotide or ribotide is a nucleotide in which a purine or pyrimidine base is linked to a ribose molecule and exactly one phosphate group. In living organisms the most common bases for ribonucleotides are adenine , guanine , cytosine , or uracil ....
) and its salts:- E626 Guanylic acid
- E627 Disodium guanylateDisodium guanylateDisodium guanylate, also known as sodium 5'-guanylate and disodium 5'-guanylate, is a natural disodium salt of the flavor enhancer guanosine monophosphate . Disodium guanylate is a food additive with the E number E627...
, sodium guanylate - E628 Dipotassium guanylateDipotassium guanylateDipotassium guanylate is a compound with formula K2. It is a potassium salt of guanylic acid.As a food additive, it is used as a flavor enhancer and has the E number E628....
- E629 Calcium guanylateCalcium guanylateCalcium guanylate is a compound with formula Ca. It is the calcium salt of guanylic acid.As a food additive, it is used as a flavor enhancer and has the E number E629....
- Inosinic acid (a ribonucleotide) and its salts:
- E630 Inosinic acidInosinic acidInosinic acid or inosine monophosphate is a nucleotide monophosphate. Inosinic acid is important in metabolism. It is the ribonucleotide of hypoxanthine and the first nucleotide formed during the synthesis of purine. It is formed by the deamination of adenosine monophosphate, and is hydrolysed...
- E631 Disodium inosinateDisodium inosinateDisodium inosinate is the disodium salt of inosinic acid with the chemical formula C10H11N4Na2O8P. It is used as a food additive and often found in instant noodles, potato chips, and a variety of other snacks.-Use as a food additive:...
- E632 Dipotassium inosinate
- E633 Calcium inosinateCalcium inosinateCalcium inosinate is a calcium salt of the nucleoside inosine. Under the E number E633, it is a food additive used as a flavor enhancer....
- E630 Inosinic acid
- Mixtures of guanylate and inosinate:
- E634 Calcium 5'-ribonucleotides
- E635 Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides
- Maltol and ethyl maltol:
- E636 MaltolMaltolMaltol is a naturally occurring organic compound that is used primarily as a flavor enhancer. It is found in the bark of larch tree, in pine needles, and in roasted malt . It is a white crystalline powder that is soluble in hot water, chloroform, and other polar solvents...
- E637 Ethyl maltolEthyl maltolEthyl maltol is an organic compound that is common flavourant in some confectioneries. It is related to the more common flavorant maltol by replacement of the methyl group by an ethyl group...
- E636 Maltol
- Amino acids and their salts:
- E640 GlycineGlycineGlycine is an organic compound with the formula NH2CH2COOH. Having a hydrogen substituent as its 'side chain', glycine is the smallest of the 20 amino acids commonly found in proteins. Its codons are GGU, GGC, GGA, GGG cf. the genetic code.Glycine is a colourless, sweet-tasting crystalline solid...
and its sodium salt - E641 L-Leucine
- E640 Glycine