When it comes to the "umami" of food, many people attribute it to the work of seasonings. In fact, some foods are naturally umami and are well-deserving of the title "natural MSG."
1. Foods rich in glutamates. These mainly include seaweed, potatoes, beans, and millet. For example, potatoes contain a relatively high amount of glutamates, so using them to stew beef will make it much more "umami" than with other vegetables. According to historical records, in the early 20th century, the Japanese isolated sodium glutamate from seaweed broth and discovered that the taste it produced was very similar to what is commonly known as "umami," which led to the invention of MSG. In China, on the other hand, soy sauce and fermented black beans, which are rich in glutamates and enhance the umami of food, were invented through the fermentation of soybeans.
2. Foods rich in inosinates. These are generally found in beef, chicken, pork, and fish and shellfish, which is why freshly cooked fish and seafood taste so delicious. Numerous studies have confirmed that inosinates are food flavor enhancers and are known as "strong MSG." This is also reflected in the ancient Chinese character for "umami" (鲜), which is a combination of the characters for "fish" (鱼) and "sheep" (羊).
3. Foods rich in guanylates. Mushrooms contain a high amount of this umami substance, especially shiitake mushrooms. However, they need to be cooked or dried to convert other substances in the shiitake into guanylates before they release their delicious umami flavor. This is why dried shiitake mushrooms in the market smell more fragrant than fresh ones. Similar foods include dried fish and shrimp crisps.