Topic 3: Sensory Perception and Quality of Food

Question 1

What chemical compounds are sweet (taste/smell)?

Answer 1

sugars, alcohol, aldehydes

Question 2

What chemical compounds are sour (taste/smell)?

Answer 2

Acids, weaker acids are more sour because of being in an undissociated state. Higher amount of undissociated acid replaces the hydronium ion

Question 3

What chemical compounds are bitter (taste/smell)?

Answer 3

Alkaloids, phenolic compounds

Question 4

What chemical compounds are savory (taste/smell)?

Answer 4

glutamate

Question 5

What molecules are involved in the taste enhancers that improve umami taste?

Answer 5

Taste enhancers are derived from amino acids and nucleotides, these enhance saltiness

Question 6

Percentage of the population are supertasters, medium tasters, or non-tasters?

Answer 6

25%, 50%, 25%

Question 6

What are some examples of salt & umami taste enhancers?

Answer 6

MSG (Monosodium glutamate) is Sodium salt of glutamic acid (amino acid), glycine (amino acid) + its sodium salt, disodium inosinate (nucleotide salt), 5’-Ribonnucleotide salts (nucleotide salt)

Question 7

What is an example of nucleotide salt?

Answer 7

disodium inosinate, 5’-Ribonnucleotide salts

Question 8

What are some examples of sweet taste enhancers?

Answer 8

table sugar (sucrose), sugar alcohols, aspartame (is a dipeptide)

Question 9

Example of sugar alcohols?

Answer 9

(reduced form of sugars, can’t be digested) xylitol, mannitol, sorbitol, lactitol, maltitol

Question 10

use of aspartame over standard sugar?

Answer 10

Aspartame has a 180-200 sweetening power > sugar

Question 11

What does heating food up have an effect on taste?

Answer 11

Taste buds are more sensitive at 20-30 degrees Celcius, enhancing flavor and taste perception

Question 12

What factors affect taste?

Answer 12

temperature (warmer more flavor), moisture (easy to dissolve and spread flavor over tongue), age (older less flavor perceived), health condition, appearance & color can have cultural connotations

Question 13

How many olfactory cells do humans have?

Answer 13

20 million (humans can only smell about 2000-4000 odors, if trained maybe 10,000) (rabbits have 100 million cells)

Question 14

Classification of odors?

Answer 14

spicy, flowery, fruity, resinous, burnt and foul

Question 15

How is food texture measured?

Answer 15

how the food responses when subjected to forces such as cutting, shearing or pulling (food rheology).

Question 16

describe mouthfeel?

Answer 16

coarse (grainy, sandy), crisp, fine, dry, moist, greasy, smooth (creamy, velvety), lumpy, rough, sticky, solid, porous, bubbly, etc

Question 17

meat tenderness?

Answer 17

how easily food gives way to pressure from teeth

Question 18

What is sensory evaluation?

Answer 18

subjective analysis to measure responses of
people to food products as perceived by their senses of sight, taste, touch, smell and hearing.

Question 19

How is taste evaluated

Answer 19

sensory evaluation(subjective): Difference test, affective (preference) test, descriptive test

Objective: spectrometer, viscometer, microscope, penetrometer

Question 20

What is flavor?

Answer 20

multi-sensory integration of odor, taste, mout-feel, and eating sounds