These Sautéed Mushrooms and Onions Are Packed with Umami (2024)

FAQs

What mushrooms have umami flavor? ›

Some people say that glutamates are responsible for "mouthfeel" and "body" in food without adding bitterness, sweetness, sourness or saltiness. Mushrooms – portabello and shiitake mushrooms in particular – are a good example of an umami-rich food. They're earthy and meaty on their own, without any flavoring added.

Dried mushrooms tend to have more umami than fresh ones, and cooked mushrooms are more umami-rich than raw. This means that adding mushrooms in virtually any form—raw, sautéed, whole cap garnish, even a dusting of dried powder—will add an umami lift to foods.

Onions impart a characteristic hotness and smell of allyl sulfide, which helps with Vitamin B1 intake. A high Glutamate content makes the onion itself tasty, and when it is used in soup its Umami permeates the dish. If you eat raw onion, watch out for 'onion breath'.

Some foods that are high in umami compounds are seafood, meats, aged cheeses, seaweeds, soy foods, mushrooms, tomatoes, kimchi, green tea, and many others. Try adding a few umami-rich foods to your diet to reap their flavor and health benefits.

Many foods with umami flavor are good for you, such as tomatoes, mushrooms, seaweed, and fermented foods. Other foods such as meat and cheese should be eaten in moderation. Cured meats generally aren't healthy to eat, except occasionally.

Using umami-rich seasonings such as ketchup, molasses, tomato paste, fish sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Marmite, or miso paste will give you a quick fix of umami. Don't be afraid to innovate. Give this Umami Meatloaf Burger a try and experience it yourself.

As a dry rub for any kind of protein like beef, pork, salmon, chicken, etc. regardless of how you plan to cook it. Add to soups and stews—it's delicious in any kind, really—for a broth that tastes flavorful fast. Add to the mixture for meatloaf, meatballs, and fish patties.

Umami translates to "pleasant savory taste" and has been described as brothy or meaty. You can taste umami in foods that contain a high level of the amino acid glutamate, like Parmesan cheese, seaweed, miso, and mushrooms.

What vegetable has the most umami? ›

Tomatoes are abundant in the umami substance glutamate. The drying process decreases moisture and concentrates the glutamate. In addition, drying creates the umami substances nucleotide and guanylate. When cooking, dried tomatoes are used for salads as a topping in strips.

Chicken eggs contain high-quality protein with well-balanced amino acids, as well as the vitamins (B6, etc.) necessary to metabolize the protein inside the body. This is why, along with milk, chicken eggs are called “complete foods.” Egg yolks contain the umami compound glutamic acid.

Olive Oil + Butter.

Sautéed mushrooms with butter have their benefits, but so do sautéed mushrooms with olive oil. I use both oil and butter for a dynamic duo that pairs searing (oil) with rich, satisfying flavor (butter). (I also use both in my Sauteed Spinach.)

This is the big one: Do not salt the mushrooms too early in the cooking process. Salting too early often draws out too much of the inherent moisture or liquid, which can be a bit overwhelming if you're a mushroom newbie making a large batch.

Olive oil: I cook my mushrooms in the skillet with olive oil (I like how it adds a golden brown crust and flavor). Butter, garlic, lemon, and thyme: After cooking my mushrooms, I stir in butter, garlic, fresh lemon zest, fresh thyme leaves, and a bit of lemon juice.

Portabella mushrooms have a rich and savory umami flavor and a firm, dense texture. When cooked, their firm texture and hearty juiciness makes for a meaty eating experience.

Black trumpet mushrooms (Craterellus fallax, cornucopioides and others) are undeniably one of the best tasting mushrooms in the world. Their rich, earthy flavor becomes bitter when concentrated or pureed, so newcomers to this mushroom will enjoy them most lightly sauteed or incorporated into a cream sauce for pasta.

King oyster mushrooms have a nutty, earthy, woody, intensely umami flavor, with some seafood and licorice notes.

In particular, tomatoes, potatoes, green peas, lotus root, garlic and corn are the highest plant-based umami sources. Various types of seaweed (kombu, kelp, etc.) are also high in umami. Within the same vegetable, the amount of umami can vary for a couple different reasons.