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How understanding the elements of taste and flavor—and how

they’re interpreted around the globe—can help you bring balance,

inspiration, and creativity to your kitchen. And help you become

a better cook.

You know when something tastes good—and when it just doesn’t. But do you know how to harness the power of flavor to transform you culinary creations into recipes your family and friends will crave? Knowledge of the key tastes will help you to balance them within each dish and across an entire meal. Even top chefs make mistakes—but luckily you can use the function of our four tastes to troubleshoot.

Once you have the basics mastered, take a trip around the globe from the comfort of your kitchen to see how playing with world cuisines can take your meals to the next level. Let knowledge of tastes, flavors, and world cuisines give you the freedom to be more creative in your kitchen.

The Four Tastes While we often think of flavor and taste as the same thing, there is actually a scientific and culinary difference between the two. Sweet, salty, sour and bitter are the four tastes which are sensed through your tastebuds. All other flavors (such as floral or earthy note) are ones that you sense through your nose. This is why, when you have a cold, almost everything taste bland and one dimensional. Use theses four main tastes as the base of your flavor knowledge.

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Taste, Flavor, and World Cuisine

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Salty Sour

BitterSweet

Umami

FunctionNature’s flavor enhancer,

salt brings out all other flavors and ingredients

ExampleMiso, olives, seaweed,

sea saltPairs well with...

Enhances all other flavors

FunctionSweet flavors add roundness to

savory dishes Example

Fruit, maple syrup, beetsPairs well with...

Bitter

FunctionBitterness makes food taste sharperExampleDark chocolate, bitter greens, (dandelion, broccoli rabe), horseradishPairs well with...

Sweet and salty

FunctionSour and acidic tastes make other flavors bright and sharpExampleLemon, vinegar, citrus, cranberries Pairs well with...

Enhances all other flavors

What is Umami?In the transition to a plant-based lifestyle, there may be some days that a salad just won’t cut it. On those days, rely on the 5th taste: umami. While there is some debate in the culinary community about whether umami is a real taste, there is something to be said for the properties of savory or meaty ingredients.

Mushrooms, nutritional yeast, soy sauce or tamari, tomato paste, smoked paprika, or mesquite contribute umami, and can give any plant-based dish a more savory, hearty taste. Umami is a low note that will cover your tongue after you finish a soup or sandwich.

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Finding Balance A dish must have balance to be satisfying. If one flavor is too prominent, the entire dish can feel inadequate or flat. Using a musical analogy, the following four elements work in harmony to make a dish taste complete.

LOW NOTES

Deep, earthy notes form the base, or canvas, on which other flavors are painted. A savory broth, rich mushrooms, or herbs, such as oregano and sage, can give a dish its low notes.

MID NOTES

Not immediately identifiable, these flavors may add other elements, like color and texture to a dish. Raw celery or tofu are good examples of mid notes—their taste is neutral but enhanced by both low and high notes.

HIGH NOTES

You taste high notes first—they pop out at your first bite. Citrus, spicy peppers, and bitter herbs like horseradish, have high notes.

ROUND NOTES

To bring low, mid, and high notes together, you need something salty and/or something sweet. These two enhance the other flavors, and bring a sense of completion to a dish.

PAIRING

Another way to find balance is to pair one element of taste with its exact opposite. Try pairing:

Sweet + Bitter

Salty + Sour

Hot + Cold

Raw + Caramelized

Richness (fat) + Relief (sour/bitter)

Creamy + Crunchy

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Troubleshooting You just spent an hour in the kitchen, and there’s just something not quite right about the finished product. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but it could probably best be described as flat or bland taste. Let’s apply what you’ve just learned about taste and flavor to get to the root of such dilemmas—and make you feel like a culinary genius for taking dinner from okay to awesome.

If it’s too rich… Add an element of bitterness.

Horseradish, arugula, or broccoli

rabe (rapini) can help to add

sharpness to your meal.

If it’s too heavy… Add an element of sour.

A squirt of lemon or lime juice

brings a little acid to cut through

heaviness

If the flavors don’t sing... Try a pinch of sea salt.

Salt enhances all other seasonings,

drawing out flavors otherwise lost in

the crowd.

If it’s too bitter... Try caramelizing the onions or garlic

to bring out their natural sweetness—

rather than their pungency.

If you can’t tell one spice from the next...

Try toasting the spices before

adding them to your dish.

Toasting dry spices—or sautéing

curry pastes or dried chilies in a

little oil—draws out natural oils to

enhance their aromas and taste.

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Rosemary

Truffle oil/Truffles

Herbes de Provence*

Shallots

Apple cider vinegar

Sage

Wine

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Flavors can define a culture. Every region within a country has its own unique play on local and traditional ingredients that create a flavor profile that represents home for its citizens, and acts as a kind of cultural signature for visitors. The beauty of this diversity of flavor profiles is that, by incorporating them into a base recipe, you can easily transport a dish to another part of the world.

Play around with these common flavor themes in your kitchen using the Base Noodle Bowl, Quinoa Cakes and Dragon Bowl recipes found with this lesson.

French French cuisine contains earthy, heavy flavor notes complemented by a focus on fresh herbs. Truffles (and other mushrooms such as chanterelles, porcini, and even humble button mushrooms) add a rich, meaty taste to any plant-based meal. Apple cider vinegar and wine bring lightness to heavier herbs. (Don’t worry—the alcohol content in wine is cooked off before serving!)

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Flavors of World Cuisine

Typically savory, fennel, basil, thyme, and lavender,

herbes de Provence varies from chef to chef. This is

the most common version of it, but some can also

include marjoram, tarragon, bay leaf and rosemary.

Play around to find your favorite combination.

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Greek The islands of Greece have long embraced their olive, nut, and lemon trees in creating dishes that revolve around these light flavors. Look for cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, and sample a wide range of fresh olives to see the small nuances in flavors they can provide.

Lemon

Oregano

Pistachios

Garlic

Olive oil

Parsley

Almonds

Olives*

Paprika

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Beyond kalamata olives, explore olives that are brined,

salted, sundried, marinated, or pickled; green, black,

large, small, firm, or buttery.

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Chili flakes

Tomato

Olive oil

Basil

Oregano

Olives

Balsamic vinegar

Garlic

Onion

Parsley

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Flavors of World Cuisine (continued)

Italian The smell of tomatoes roasting with garlic, olive oil, and basil can instantly transport you to Italy. These are balanced by balsamic vinegar and spicy chili flakes.

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Japanese Most Japanese dishes rely on a balance of sweet, salty, and umami tastes. As you transition to a plant-based diet, incorporating more umami flavors from soy sauce, mushrooms, and seaweed can give you the hearty taste you crave.

Ginger(pickled or fresh)

Sesame seeds Soy sauce or Tamari(gluten-free)

Daikon(pickled or fresh)

Mirin(sweetened rice wine)

Citrus

Green onion/scallion Rice vinegar

Sesame oil

Wasabi

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Miso*

Seaweed*

Mushrooms*

Miso is fermented from either soy, barley or brown rice. As

you’re shopping you’ll notice that there are many different colors

as well—ranging from white, to yellow to red. Darker colors are

generally stronger in flavor. You can select the type of miso

depending on how much you want this umami taste to stand

out in a recipe.

There are many different types of seaweed to choose from.

Kombu is a thick seaweed often used to flavor soups and beans.

Arame and wakame make a delicious addition to salads and stir-

fries. Nori is used to make sushi rolls, or can be crumbled onto

salads. Play around with different types of seaweed, depending

on your recipe.

Mushrooms add a savory earthy taste to your dish. White

button mushrooms have the most mild flavor. Enoki mushrooms

have a delicate flavor that is often added to salads. Shiitake

mushrooms are traditionally used in Asian soups and have a

deep earthy flavor. Oyster mushrooms have a smooth taste that

resembles seafood. There are many other varieties—look at your

farmers market for locally foraged mushrooms!

Japanese (continued)

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Middle Eastern A sweet, earthy warmth is characteristic of Middle Eastern dishes. Look in specialty grocery stores for fresh turmeric—its vibrant orange/yellow color helps with the presentation of any dish.

Cumin

Onion

Cinnamon

Garlic

Almonds

Dried fruit

Turmeric

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Mexican Lime accents and lightens most Mexican dishes, while cumin brings earthy warmth, and a spectrum of chilies create heat. The Mexican flavor profile includes elements of sour, spicy, and bitter tastes, and most signature ingredients can be found in your local grocery store.

Cinnamon

Green onion/scallion

Onion

Cilantro

Corn

Lime

Chipolte chilies

Cumin

Jalapeño

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Southeast Asian While there are numerous regional nuances as you travel from Laos to Malaysia to Thailand, there are several flavor elements that remain consistent across borders. Here you’ll see a blend of spicy, sour, salty, and sweet tastes.

Coconut milk

Lime

Shallots

Cilantro

Ginger

Lemongrass

Chilies

Garlic

Lime leaf (or lime zest)

Red curry paste*

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Curry paste has a much richer taste than simple curry

powder. Look for red, green or yellow curry paste

in the Asian food aisle of your grocery store or in a

speciality store.