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Dietitian
The more we know about how the taste buds actually work, the more we can trick them into being satisfied with and even happy about our new, healthier, lighter way of living.
The Nose Knows
Before we get to the taste buds, though, let's start with the organ directly above them, the nose. That's right, folks, while the tongue's taste buds are responsible for detecting basic tastes (salty, bitter, sour, sweet, and savoury), it's the nose that detects the specific flavours of foods through olfaction, or smell. Ever wonder why food just doesn't taste as good, no matter how great it looks, when you have a stuffy nose?
Of course, we smell our food as we prepare our bite and put it into our mouth. But did you know you were inhaling the aroma at the same time you were chewing your food? When you chew, volatiles (odorous, gas-like substances) are released from the food and pumped up to the olfactory receptors located behind the bridge of the nose. Pretty efficient!
Fat Tastes Good, Right?
Think again: fat molecules are actually too big to be processed by the taste buds. Then how come high-fat foods taste so good, you ask. What you may be tasting are impurities and volatiles that are mixed in high-flavour oils such as olive and sesame, meats such as bacon, or my personal favourite, butter. Have you ever noticed how much flavour butter has when you brown it in a pan? The fat hasn't changed; the impurities in butter just come through better. Fat is also a solvent for smells that eventually make their way to our nasal receptors. In many cases, the greater the amount of fat, the greater the “aroma” for these particular flavours.
Now let's talk about the king of fat: fried foods. Experts suspect that the high-temperature-frying process may release the volatiles in food, therefore triggering the “fat aroma.” Deep-frying at high temperatures also contributes two other desirable characteristics:
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to your account or now (it's free).Dietitian
The best way to make low calorie foods to taste better is to buy the freshest best quality produce you can find. I always suggest that you take a leaf out of AN Italian and great grandmother’s book. You can see them sitting at a beautiful table with a bowl of fresh peaches, or some lovely fresh sun ripened tomatoes. They don’t really do much to them, they just let that taste and the flavor of beautiful seasonal produce come through.
So, if we’re really looking at any healthy fresh foods, it's best to buy the best quality you can. Now, that doesn’t mean they have to be organic or expensive. Going to your local markets and buying the fruit that is in season, sometimes the supermarkets even have really good quality fruit.
If you look for the fruit and veggies that are in the bins, at the front of the fruit and veggie section that’s usually the fruits and veggies that are in season at that moment and seasonal produce will always taste best.
So it’s all about looking for the best quality. Storing it, tomatoes shouldn’t be stored in the fridge they should be really stored on the bench. Don’t buy in bulk; often those bags of apples or oranges aren’t really that nice. Nothing tastes nicer than a tomato or an orange that really smells delicious. So my tip is always to get fresh seasonal produce.
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to your account or now (it's free).Nutritionist
What I recommend for being people on a low calorie diet, is they take full advantage of herbs and spices and things like vinegar and lemon juice. I also find that a more satisfying meal is actually a balance of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, ensuring that you're not having something that is all carbohydrate or all protein.
Fat being higher kilojoules, most people tend to cut that out first. But having a good mix of healthy fats is a good. You can include things like nuts, seeds or avocado in order to get that balance between the carbohydrates, proteins, and fats which helps foods be more filling and satisfying. Generally making sure that you're getting those main taste factors in your mouth, so sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami. So with umami, you can add in tomatoes, olives, cheese, and those sorts of things to get those flavors too.
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