Temporal design of taste and flavor: practical collaboration between chef and scientist

Abstract

Recently, many chefs have collaborated with researchers and used scientific techniques in their cooking. These researchers advise chefs from a scientific perspective. However, they do not know what chefs think and what concept they want to express through their dishes. Once scientists understand what motivates chefs in the creation of their new dishes, they would be able to provide chefs with more precise advice. The authors identified culinary success factors (CSFs) from context analysis of a culinary magazine for chefs and visualized the relationships between the CSFs when renowned chefs trained in Japanese and French cuisine create new dishes. The results revealed differences not only in cooking techniques, ingredients, and condiments but also in cognitive structure (pattern of thinking) when creating new dishes. One of the authors (KS) has two Michelin stars for his French restaurant. He believes that umami affects the flavor of the main ingredients, which allows him to feature the intrinsic characteristics of the main ingredients. The chef’s cognitive structure is apparent in his cuisine. Based on the results, the chef is advised to understand the nature of umami substances, how to recognize their tastes or flavors, and create a dish that brings flavor changes temporally. In a demonstration, a new dish is unveiled using an umami ingredient according to such a concept, which fits chef’s cognitive structure.