Some foods deliver a delightful flavour bomb. Think coffee, garlic, passionfruit, basil, mint and many herbs, cinnamon, vanilla or lemon. Others such as steamed potatoes, tofu, white rice, chicken breast and boiled zucchini deliver little to our tastebuds and can be described as bland.
Flavour is complex. The flavours of foods consist of sweet, sour, bitter and salt components as well as a savoury quality known as umami.
The true flavour of any food, however, comes not only from our tastebuds, but from the aroma of what we are consuming. Scientists argue about the exact figure, but agree that a large percentage of what we taste comes from our ability to smell. Sadly, that has been a big problem for many people who have lost their sense of smell, and sometimes their appetite, for a prolonged period after developing COVID-19.
Coffee is a prime example of the influence of aroma. Its taste comes from an estimated 100 flavours, most of which we smell. The aroma of freshly ground coffee is so pleasing to most people that real estate agents often advise sellers to make coffee just before an open house inspection.
We also add flavour to foods with salt and sugar. If consumed in excess – as both are in the modern diet – either can cause problems.
The high degree of processing to which so many of our foods have been subjected destroys much of their natural flavour, so food manufacturers compensate by adding salt or sugar, sometimes both.
If we get used to higher levels of salt and sugar from early childhood, we establish a much higher taste threshold for these flavours. I’ve often discussed sugar and the problems it can cause in excess, but let’s take a closer look at salt.
Salt
Salt is sodium chloride. Sodium is an essential element that helps balance fluids in the body. We need enough, but more is not better. The kidneys work hard to get rid of excess sodium (and other unwanted or harmful substances). Too much sodium makes it harder for the kidneys to remove extra fluid. The extra fluid retained by the body puts stress on the arteries, decreasing their elasticity (sometimes referred to as hardening of the arteries) and causing the heart to work harder. Ultimately too much sodium can lead to an increase in blood pressure. Half of all heart attacks and over 60% of strokes are due to high blood pressure.
In societies where salted foods are not used, blood pressure stays the same throughout life. Throughout most of the developed world where salted foods are common, blood pressure rises with age.
Most people don’t need to eat salt to get enough sodium. The amount naturally present in foods including all types of seafood, meat, eggs, dairy products and some vegetables, as well as foods with added salt such as bread and cheese, is more than enough to meet the average person’s basic requirements. If you suddenly move to a hotter climate or do something that makes you sweat more, you may need some salt for a few days until the body adjusts and reduces the amount of salt lost in sweat.
About 80% of the sodium we consume is already in the processed foods, fast foods and restaurant meals we consume. Sometimes you are aware you are eating something salty. Mostly, however, we are so used to eating salted foods, that we don’t even register its saltiness.
Some foods taste obviously salty (for example soy and many other sauces, salted crunchy snack foods and packet soups) but in others, including some breakfast cereals and sauces, some added sugar may disguise the salt.
Salt is added to many processed foods because the extensive processing has left them bland. For example, it’s difficult to detect the flavour of corn in cornflakes, and without added salt and sugar, they would have little taste.
Some companies have been following suggestions to reduce the salt content of some products. This includes some brands of breakfast cereals, some breads and some canned items. In the United Kingdom, such programs have reduced the average salt intake by about 15% over the last 10 years. Australian companies have been less enthusiastic, although cornflakes, which once had as much salt as potato crisps, have a little less these days.
Sauces, soups, salad dressings, marinades and savoury snack foods, and salt added in the home kitchen are major contributors to salt intake.
Add flavour without salt
- Make greater use of herbs and spices (fresh and dried) in your cooking.
- Grow your own herbs such as mint, parsley, different varieties of thyme, chives, dill, coriander, oregano, sage, rosemary and (in summer) basil. Pots are excellent for mint and oregano where the vigorous roots can spread easily.
- Use lemon juice (in Greece, we used to think people squeezed lemon juice onto almost everything) or lemon peel. If you’re enjoying Asian style dishes, use lime juice or kaffir lime leaves (try soaking them in the milk for custard or home-made ice cream).
- Use wine or different types of vinegar in sauces, marinades and dressings.
- In cool weather, make your own soups, using home-made stock using vegetables and any bones from foods such as chicken. (After roasting a chicken, add some water to the pan and use it to later boil up the chicken bones for stock to use in soups or risotto).
To avoid excess salt
- Try to avoid adding salt to foods. If you must, at least taste foods before adding salt. If the food tastes too bland, try using freshly ground pepper rather than salt.
- For a snack, choose fresh fruit or unsalted nuts rather than salted crisps of other savoury snack foods. Enhance the flavour of nuts by ‘toasting’ them on a dry frying pan over a gentle heat for a few minutes. Cool and store in an airtight container.
- Choose natural muesli or rolled oats or an unsalted breakfast cereal.
- Choose unsalted canned products. Lentils, chickpeas and other canned legumes, canned tomatoes and tomato paste, sardines and many other foods are now available without added salt.
- Look for low salt/low sodium products – by law, they must have no more than 120mg sodium/100g. Salt-reduced products must have 25% less salt than the standard product, but this may still mean the food is very high in salt. Salt-reduced soy sauce, for example, is still an extremely high salt product.
Take-home message
Using less salt allows you to discover and enjoy the true flavour of many foods. Dr Rosemary Stanton OAM