Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor enhancer that has been used in a wide variety of food products over
the years. It is a sodium salt of glutamic acid, an amino acid. Resembling salt or sugar in appearance when it is
isolated from a food, MSG does not have a distinctly recognizable taste. It triggers the taste buds newly classified as
being sensitive to "umami", a savory taste and loanword
borrowed from Japanese.
Chefs, even before giving a name to umami, have been using ingredients with a naturally high glutamate content to enhance the flavor of dishes. It is found in large quantities in ingredients such as tomatoes, mushrooms, corn, parmesan cheese and soy sauce, in addition to occuring in meats, like beef and chicken. It is the perception of MSG as a food additive - rather than as a naturally occurring flavoring - that has given it a bad name.
In the early 1800s, monosodium glutamate was isolated from seaweed, though it can now be manufactured synthetically, producing a version chemically identical to the naturally occurring one. In the late 1960s, people began to complain about experiencing headaches and other unpleasant sensations, most often after eating Chinese food. These symptoms were attributed to the presence of MSG and its reputation began to go downhill.The most recent study done by the FDA on the possible effects of MSG showed that, while people still claimed to be experiencing an variety of supposedly MSG-provoked symptoms, there was no evidence that these people were actually being harmed by the MSG. In fact, the study concluded that "there is no scientific evidence that the levels of glutamate in ... manufactured glutamate has effects different from glutamate normally found in foods."
Food writer Jeffrey Steingarten summed up the situation neatly, as pointed out on Epicurious: "'Two or three ounces of Parmesan cheese,' writes Jeffrey Steingarten in his hilarious analysis of MSG research in It Must've Been Something I Ate, 'contain enough free glutamate to give a headache to anybody who claims to be sensitive to MSG, and yet I have never heard of a Parmesan Headache.'"
Have you?
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