HYDERABAD: Haleem: The city’s a nourishing medley of wheat, pulses, and meat, is a veritable feast that stands on its own, requiring no accompaniment. But does it possess a taste that sets it apart from the other four known tastes? According to food bloggers and scientists alike, it indeed does, and that’s what makes it truly unique. “Haleem is brimming with umami, a fifth taste that tantalises the taste buds in a way that sweet, sour, salty, and bitter could never achieve,” explains food blogger Zubair Ali, though he cannot pinpoint the exact reason why.
Praveen Kumar, a researcher at the Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology, notes that umami is a hotly debated taste within the scientific community.
“Umami is the savoury taste of glutamate, which is found in meat protein when mixed with proteins of other grains, constituents of haleem. The taste adds depth and complexity to the overall flavour profile of the dish, it stays for longer than any other of the four tastes in the mouth for it leaves a coating of sensation over the tongue,” says Praveen.
Haleem is a harmonious blend of slow-cooked grains and tender meat. Its foundation is embellished with an array of aromatic spices, such as cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves, which unfurl their unique flavours, creating an intricate, evocative tapestry of tastes as they engage the taste buds.
He adds, “There is also a Maillard reaction that occurs between plant and meat protein amino acids, creating a wide variety of flavour compounds. The caramelisation of onion and other spices compounds adds depth to the dish, providing a sweet and slightly bitter taste. Also, there is gelatinisation of starch-containing starch granules present in wheat and other lentils that swell and gelatinise when heated in the presence of water.”
Zubair Ali says that slow cooking also contributes to umamification. He says, “There’s only one middle eastern dish that is full of umami besides haleem and that is khichada which has haleem-like consistency but is made up of chunks of meat rather than shreds seen in haleem.”
Sweet, sour, salty, and bitter — these four sensations have long been considered the cornerstones of our gustatory experiences. However, none of them offers a taste as enduring, as mouthwatering, and as enveloping as the elusive fifth taste known as ‘umami’. CE delves into the fascinating chemistry of umami, which can be found in full force during Ramzan in Hyderabad’s haleem