The Fifth Taste — In A Tube

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The taste of "savory'' in a tube.

You’ve no doubt had the experience of trying something so irresistible that you wished it could be bottled and sold?

Laura Santtini, a British cook, has done essentially that with her #5 Umami Paste by capturing the delectable “fifth taste” and putting it into a tube.

As you know, sweet, salty, sour and bitter comprise the four basic tastes we experience on our palate. But more than a century ago, the Japanese discovered what they hail as the fifth taste, otherwise known as umami. It’s often described as “savory” tasting and reflected in ingredients such as tomatoes, cheese, anchovies, mushrooms, cured pork, aged beef and miso soup.

Santtini’s #5 Umami Paste created a sensation last year when it was released in the United Kingdom. This year, it’s finally available on our shores at Dean & DeLuca, where a 2.46-ounce tube is $6 or at ChefCentral for $5.99. For the best deal, Fresh & Easy stores (with locations in the South Bay), are featuring it at the special price of $3.49 until July 6. I recently had a chance to try a sample.

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Celebrating Strawberries

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A simple way to show off spring strawberries.

I like my berries naked.

Truly, when they are juicy and perfectly ripe, I don’t need them draped in any adornment. I don’t even need a bowl. I just plop them in my mouth au naturale with pure abandon.

But sometimes, I do get tempted to dress them up just a bit for company.

“Strawberry Galette with Basil Whipped Cream” has the perfect look for me. It’s more the understated Calvin Klein of strawberry desserts, rather than the Versace version with over-the-top embellishments.

It’s from the new “Martha Stewart’s Pies & Tarts” (Clarkson Potter), of which I recently received a review copy. The cookbook, from the editors of Martha Stewart Living, contains 150 recipes for fruit-filled goodies, from old-fashioned favorites to more modern fare.

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Pastry Chef Emily Luchetti Visits the South Bay & More

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Meet Pastry Chef Emily Luchetti. (Photo courtesy of the chef)

Meet Pastry Chef Emily Luchetti in Campbell

Emily Luchetti, award-winning pastry chef of Farallon and Waterbar in San Francisco, will host a pastry demo and a book-signing at 6 p.m. May 26 at the International Culinary Center of  California in Campbell.

The center is operated by the French Culinary Institute in New York, of which Luchetti recently became a dean.

Luchetti will be signing copies of her new cookbook, “The Fearless Baker” (Little, Brown and Company), at this free event. Attendees also will get a chance to find out more information about the center’s Classic Pastry Arts class, which begins June 2.

RSVP to the event by calling (415) 781-5700.

Waterbar offers four-legged friends complimentary treats.(Photo courtesy of the restaurant)

Free Doggie Treats Courtesy of Emily Luchetti

Speaking of Emily Luchetti, she’s now providing complimentary treats to pooches who are hanging out on the Waterbar patio in San Francisco with their two-legged owners.

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Scenes From “Cooking for Solutions” at the Monterey Bay Aquarium

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Chef Chris Cosentino shows off his fave T-shirt that's a hoot -- at the "Cooking for Solutions'' gala.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium hosted its 10th “Cooking for Solutions” conference last weekend, bringing together chefs; food purveyors; marine scientists; fishermen; government officials; and celebrities such as Isabella Rossellini, Alton Brown and Ted Turner; as well as journalists such as yours truly, to learn about environmental issues gripping our oceans and planet.

There was good news: Experts from the Environmental Defense Fund don’t expect to see any health issues arising from Gulf seafood resulting from the dispersants used to combat the oil disaster.

Alarming news: Former Gourmet magazine editor Barry Estabrook and creator of the James Beard award-winning Politics of the Plate blog, uncovers in his new book, “Tomatoland” (Andrews McMeel), how many of the popular grape tomatoes sold in supermarkets are picked primarily by women of child-bearing-age who are exposed to pesticides regularly.

Troubling statistics: In California, cotton and rice make up only 3 percent of crops grown, but receive 44 percent of federal subsidies doled out in the state. That leaves the bulk of the farmers, who grow fruits and veggies, with few subsidies.

News to use every day: Experts agreed that of all the ecolabels out in the marketplace now, the most trustworthy ones are — Certified Humane, Free Trade, Certified Organic, Marine Stewardship Council, Country of Origin, and Seafood Watch.

Isabella Rossellini -- still stunning and still making powerful films.

Alton Brown, whose next project will highlight the 25 fish you're not eating, but should be.

And charming moments: Rossellini — who attended the conference with her son, who is studying marine biology — talked about her educational yet humorous “Green Pornos.” Rossellini produced, directed and stars in these short films, produced for the Sundance Channel, which highlight the reproductive lives of marine animals. These offbeat films are memorable with their sets made of paper and Rossellini portraying each species in costume. If you’ve never seen a “Green Porno,” they are definitely worth checking out.

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New Seafood Online Retail Store and A Food Gal Giveaway

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Fresh Loch Duart salmon delivered to my door that I cooked up on a grill pan.

Family-owned Anderson Seafoods, Inc. of Orange, Calif., which has supplied premium seafood to retailers such as Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s, has launched an online retail store for consumers.

Imagine both fresh and frozen fish sent to your door via overnight delivery.

Now, you’re probably thinking that shipping fish in doesn’t sound very PC, but Anderson Seafoods has teamed up with UPS to offer carbon neutral shipping to help mitigate that. You can purchase carbon neutral offsets that UPS will match at a very affordable 20 cents per package delivered.

In this day and age of heightened concerns about where our seafood comes from, though, I only wish the Anderson Web site had more detailed information on where some of the types of seafood come from. For instance, it sells “fresh Atlantic salmon,” but doesn’t mention that it’s farm-raised. It also sells Chilean Seabass, even though this species remains on the “avoid list” on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch Guide because it is still considered overfished.

Recently, I did have a chance to sample some of the seafood products, including fresh Loch Duart salmon ($22.01 for 12 ounces), billed as a sustainable farm-raised salmon from Scotland; fresh ahi ($28.50 for 12 ounces); and frozen mahi mahi ($24.11 for 12 ounces). The fish comes vacuum-sealed in insulated containers.

The fish is vacuum-packed for delivery.

The quality is definitely high. For instance, the beautiful piece of salmon was fresh and rich tasting, and arrived sans any pesky pin bones at all, which was quite impressive. I also tried one of Anderson’s frozen entrees — salmon potstickers ($12.38 for 14 ounces), which were very plump with a substantial filling of salmon, water chestnuts and panko bread crumbs.

Salmon potstickers crisped up in a pan till golden.

Contest: If you’d like to try some of the seafood, I’m happy to be able to give away a $125 gift card to Anderson Seafoods. Entries, limited to those in the continental United States, will be accepted through midnight May 28. The winner will be announced May 30.

How to win?

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