what is msg used in chinese cooking?

Answer 1

This ingredient is best known today by its scientific name, monosodium glutamate. MSG is a natural flavour enhancer used to bring out the best taste in food.

Answer 2

Mono Sodium Glutamate
Found in almost all food items. Found maximum in tomatoes and fish.
Artificially obtained from fermentation of food stuff with lots of starch.
Its a seasoning. It enhances the natural flavour of food rather than adding flavour to it.
Has a taste of its own. The taste id tremed as "Umami".
Rumors are that it is carcinogenic but the truth is that it is completely safe(u can trust me on that).

Answer 3

Mono Sodium Glutamate. It enhances flavour, a bit like salt.

Answer 4

Mono Sodium Glutamate. It helps in enhancing & bringing out the flavour of ingredients. It has been proven to be carcinogenic (causing cancer) if consumed in large amounts. It appears as colourless, white, crystals.

Answer 5

monosodium glutamate

It enhances flavor, making other foods taste better, but it has no real taste of its own. It is sold in the US as MSG but also under the brand name Accent.

Answer 6

Monosodium glutamate, sodium glutamate, flavour enhancer 621 EU food additive code: E621. HS code: 29224220. (IUPAC names: 2-aminopentanedioic acid, 2-aminoglutaric acid, 1-aminopropane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid), commonly known as MSG or Vetsin, is a sodium salt of glutamic acid. MSG is a food additive, popularly marketed as a "flavour enhancer". In its pure form, it appears as a white crystalline powder; when dissolved in water (or saliva) it rapidly dissociates into free sodium and glutamate ions (glutamate is the anionic form of glutamic acid).

Natural occurrence of glutamate

Glutamate itself is a widespread amino acid: it is found naturally in human bodies and in protein-containing foods, such as cheese, milk, meat, peas, and mushrooms. Some of the glutamate in foods is in a "free" form; and only this free form of glutamate can enhance the flavor of foods. Part of the flavour-enhancing effect of tomatoes, certain cheeses, and fermented or hydrolyzed protein products (such as soy sauce) is therefore due to the presence of free glutamate.

Asian cuisine originally used a natural seaweed broth, such as kelp, to bring up the umami taste in soups. Manufacturers, such as Ajinomoto, use selected strains of Micrococcus glutamicus bacteria in a bath of nutrient. The bacteria are selected for their ability to excrete glutamic acid, which is then separated from the nutrient bath, purified, and made into its sodium salt, monosodium glutamate.

Hydrolyzed proteins, or protein hydrolysates, are acid- or enzymatically treated proteins from certain foods. They contain salts of free amino acids, such as glutamate, at levels of 5 to 20 percent. Hydrolyzed proteins are used in the same manner as MSG in many foods, such as canned vegetables, soups, and processed meats.
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Umami

MSG stimulates specific receptors located in taste buds such as the amino acid receptor T1R1/T1R3 or other glutamate receptors like the metabotropic receptors (mGluR4 and mGluR1) which induce the taste known as umami, one of the five basic tastes (the word umami is a loanword from Japanese; it is also referred to as "savory" or "meaty").

To know a lot more about MSG go to...

Answer 7

Mono Sodium Glutamate... mostly made from soy beans.. as if there isn't enough soy in food.

Answer 8

Monosodium glutamate!!

Answer 9

MSG is salt.

Answer 10

mono sodium glutamet (ajonomotto)