CONSTELLATIONS // SALT'S SPECTER: SUMMONING THE FIFTH SENSE

The tricky transformation of MSG into umami

by Diana Lu

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EXCERPT //

I grew up in the ’90s, bombarded with seemingly unnecessary labels for when Chinese food did not contain monosodium glutamate. The ghostly outline of an ingredient that was never there haunted me. I assumed that it must’ve been dangerous, to warrant the bombastic warnings and pop-art explosion labeling. Was it sweet, like rat poison, I wondered?

In fact, the MSG call was coming from inside the house. It was already in bologna, hot dogs, Cheetos, BBQ Pringles, ranch dressing—explicit in the ingredient list, as required by the USDA. I just didn’t know how to read the fine print; my eyes were trained to the block lettering and hash marks signaling alert and danger.

What I was drawn to—that savory satisfaction that coats the mouth—is the now-celebrated fifth taste: umami. But before it was celebrated, it was vilified.

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