Let your taste buds go wild with KFC’s new and exciting creation.
You thought there’s only sweet, sour, salty and bitter? Well, KFC will be introducing the fifth taste to their fried chicken and this indescribable flavour, known as the umami taste, will make you keep coming back for more!
Check out the media release here:
MEDIA RELEASE
Since thousands of years ago in culinary history, there have been four widely accepted and recognized taste profiles – sweet, sour, salty and bitter. These four taste profiles defined almost everything we eat. Chefs and cooks everywhere craft their dishes based on these four tastes, and mastering the intricate balances of the four tastes is the key to create delicious dishes.
It wasn’t until recently that a fifth taste, loosely described as ‘moreish savoury’, was propelled into the limelight in the culinary world. Studies published in 2009 confirmed that the human tongue does indeed have taste receptors for this savoury taste profile, commonly known to us as ‘umami’. This discovery excited the culinary world immensely, as the umami taste was found to be the most appetizing taste profile of all, and learning more about this taste can only mean being able to create more and more delicious masterpieces.
Although the umami taste has only recently gotten its well-deserved limelight in the modern culinary world, it is interesting to note that the Japanese has long since known about it since the start of the 20th century. In fact, ‘umami’ is a loanword from the Japanese, crafted by scientist Kikunae Ikeda from the words umai (delicious) and mi (taste). Dashi, a rich stock made from kelp which is widely used as a flavour base in Japanese cooking, is one of the foods known to have the strongest umami taste. Other foods rich in umami are asparagus, tomato, cheese and meat. It is hardly surprising that the Japanese found out about umami way before everyone else did, given their knack for discovery and inventions coupled with their long and rich culinary history!
Drawing inspiration from the Japanese’s love of umami, KFC launches the new Umakara Chicken. Juicy, fresh chicken marinated in savoury shoyu and Japanese spices, hand-coated in a spicy, crispy batter, then sprinkled with an umami spice sprinkle – the Umakara Chicken is definitely beyond what you commonly expect from typical Japanese flavours such as shoyu or teriyaki. The addictive lure of umami and the kick of heat from the Japanese spices make for an indescribable flavour combination that gives you uninhibited taste enjoyment that is truly out of this world!
Experience the wonder of the Umakara Chicken for yourself!
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