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losthitsu's review
3.0
Tempted to call this 'bland' if it wasn't such a horrible pun - this is based on a great idea backed up by substantial research, but unfortunately the writing style really lets it down. It's clear the aim was to make academic topics accessible through the addition of personal anecdotes, but the result was sadly just a dry narrative surrounded by very weak attempts at humour. The audio version I listened to also didn't improve things - could we please stop reading quotes from French authors in nonfiction books with a bad French accent, it's really getting embarrassing by this point.
hboyd494's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
reflective
4.0
Explores human history in the context of the desire for delicious flavors. Most writing about ancient diets talks about accessibility and nutritional content. But these authors argue that we often will go to extra trouble for what tastes especially good. Really interesting! Another point is that we often value especially complex flavors (e.g. cheese, fermented drinks).
"Some of the flavor in cooked meat comes from the protein in the muscles. Muscle flavor derives from the mouthfeel of the muscle combined with the aromas from sulfur compounds in the protein. Unfamiliar meat often “tastes like chicken,” in part because the dominant flavors in chicken are these simple, somewhat bland, muscle flavors. “Tastes like chicken” really means “tastes like muscle.” Muscle flavor is easy to complement with sauces or herbs, or bread batter and oil, but it is relatively nondescript on its own."
" To employ a spice is to ignore nature’s admonishments. We humans intentionally gather plants with high concentrations of defensive chemicals or warning aromas and add them to our food, typically in small doses. The chemicals associated with the bitter tastes of dandelions and dill, for example, are poisons. The fragrant aromas of garlic, mint, thyme, and dill are warnings of the existence of poisons. They say, without any real ambiguity, “Go away you beast with terrible gnashing teeth and bad breath or I will make you suffer.” Eating such plants despite their warnings is a bold act. Yet, it is one to which we have grown numb. We are so accustomed to the flavors and aromas of spices that we don’t consider the unusualness of consuming them. "
" The earliest inhabitants of the site were hunter-gatherer people known for making large, ceramic vessels of a style called “Ertebølle” and so are referred to as the Ertebølle people. The later agricultural inhabitants made smaller ceramics of a type called “funnel beaker” and so are referred to as the Funnelbeaker people. (Based on this archaeological nomenclature, we would probably be the “plastic cup people.”) "
" The piperine in black pepper is not the only chemical that triggers TRPV1’s lock. Capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers, does as well. Nor is that the end of the story. A compound present in the bark of cinnamon has an effect very similar to that of capsaicin or piperine, albeit milder. It binds to the same receptor as do capsaicin and piperine. Chemicals in horseradish, wasabi, and mustard all also bind to that receptor. They do so more in the nose, however (where humans also have TRPV1 receptors), than in the mouth (such that they make your nose tingle in addition to making your tongue burn). Or, if you eat a little too much, they make your mouth burn and your nose tingle and burn. "
" Something similar, albeit sort of the opposite, happens when we eat mint. Most mints, including spearmint and cornmint, contain menthol. Menthol has an aroma that we smell, but once in our mouths menthol also binds to the receptor that senses cold "
" In one study on humans, Rozin decided to try to understand how the spiciness of a pepper related to the perceived tastiness of the pepper. He selected a group of individuals that included both people who enjoyed spicy food and those who did not. He offered those people one cracker after another made with the capsaicin from chilies. As he did, he slowly increased the amount of capsaicin in the crackers that they were offered until people said, “No more.” Then, he asked people which cracker was the tastiest. They might have simply disliked all of the spicy crackers. Or they might have all thought the same level of spiciness to be the tastiest (that level at which food preservation was most effective). Or their preferences might have been all over the board, random. None of these was the case. Instead, people tended to choose as tastiest the spiciest cracker they could tolerate. "
"Some of the flavor in cooked meat comes from the protein in the muscles. Muscle flavor derives from the mouthfeel of the muscle combined with the aromas from sulfur compounds in the protein. Unfamiliar meat often “tastes like chicken,” in part because the dominant flavors in chicken are these simple, somewhat bland, muscle flavors. “Tastes like chicken” really means “tastes like muscle.” Muscle flavor is easy to complement with sauces or herbs, or bread batter and oil, but it is relatively nondescript on its own."
" To employ a spice is to ignore nature’s admonishments. We humans intentionally gather plants with high concentrations of defensive chemicals or warning aromas and add them to our food, typically in small doses. The chemicals associated with the bitter tastes of dandelions and dill, for example, are poisons. The fragrant aromas of garlic, mint, thyme, and dill are warnings of the existence of poisons. They say, without any real ambiguity, “Go away you beast with terrible gnashing teeth and bad breath or I will make you suffer.” Eating such plants despite their warnings is a bold act. Yet, it is one to which we have grown numb. We are so accustomed to the flavors and aromas of spices that we don’t consider the unusualness of consuming them. "
" The earliest inhabitants of the site were hunter-gatherer people known for making large, ceramic vessels of a style called “Ertebølle” and so are referred to as the Ertebølle people. The later agricultural inhabitants made smaller ceramics of a type called “funnel beaker” and so are referred to as the Funnelbeaker people. (Based on this archaeological nomenclature, we would probably be the “plastic cup people.”) "
" The piperine in black pepper is not the only chemical that triggers TRPV1’s lock. Capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers, does as well. Nor is that the end of the story. A compound present in the bark of cinnamon has an effect very similar to that of capsaicin or piperine, albeit milder. It binds to the same receptor as do capsaicin and piperine. Chemicals in horseradish, wasabi, and mustard all also bind to that receptor. They do so more in the nose, however (where humans also have TRPV1 receptors), than in the mouth (such that they make your nose tingle in addition to making your tongue burn). Or, if you eat a little too much, they make your mouth burn and your nose tingle and burn. "
" Something similar, albeit sort of the opposite, happens when we eat mint. Most mints, including spearmint and cornmint, contain menthol. Menthol has an aroma that we smell, but once in our mouths menthol also binds to the receptor that senses cold "
" In one study on humans, Rozin decided to try to understand how the spiciness of a pepper related to the perceived tastiness of the pepper. He selected a group of individuals that included both people who enjoyed spicy food and those who did not. He offered those people one cracker after another made with the capsaicin from chilies. As he did, he slowly increased the amount of capsaicin in the crackers that they were offered until people said, “No more.” Then, he asked people which cracker was the tastiest. They might have simply disliked all of the spicy crackers. Or they might have all thought the same level of spiciness to be the tastiest (that level at which food preservation was most effective). Or their preferences might have been all over the board, random. None of these was the case. Instead, people tended to choose as tastiest the spiciest cracker they could tolerate. "
gordillofernando's review
4.0
3.5 stars. I'm a self-proclaimed foodie, and I found many of the points the authors make in this book fascinating. However, I don't think the writing is captivating enough to engage someone without a pre-established interest in the subject matter. It did give me some new stories to share over dinner with friends though!
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