Celery Aroma Boosts Broths Impact

Japanese researchers from Ochanomizu University and T. Hasegawa Co., Ltd., both of Tokyo, have determined that compounds from celeryparticularly the volatile odorant compoundsdistinctly improve the flavor of chicken broth, boosting its complexity and umami impact. The results of this research were published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, online ahead of the print version.

Researchers prepared broth samples with and without celery fractions, and volunteers then evaluated the samples sensory characteristics via rating the perceived intensity of eight terms: thick, impactful, mild, lasting, satisfied, complex, refined and clarified. The researchers note that these eight terms are considered the elements of complex flavor. The volunteers also evaluated the samples for their sweet, salty and umami tastes. The samples were prepared in such a way that odors would not reveal the identity of the celery-enhanced samples.

The volunteers ranked the samples enhanced with celery as embodying more-complex flavor than unmodified samples. They also reported that the celery-enhanced broth had a sweeter taste with more umami impact.

Analysis revealed that the volatile compounds in celery enhanced the complex flavor of chicken broth more than the nonvolatile compounds. The researchers note that among the characteristic odorants of celery, three phthalidessedanenolide, 3-n-butylphthalide and sedanolidecontribute to the complex flavor of chicken broth, with sedanenolide as most effective. The three phthalides enhanced perceived intensities of umami and sweet, as well as complex flavor, despite the fact that they do not display taste properties.

We considered that the increase of intensity of umami and sweet perceived in the samples containing phthalides were not actual values, but rather the increase of intensity of impression of umami and sweet, which was induced by olfactory sensations brought about by the retronasally delivered phthalides, note the researchers, concluding that the mechanism is hard to understand and needs further study.