Umami pick-up for plain in-flight fare
IMAGE by Ben Weinstock.
EVERY airline wants to provide a great culinary experience for its passengers. This might seem fairly straightforward, but it’s no simple task when you consider preparing meals to be served at 30,000 feet in a pressurised cabin.
Companies like Dnata Australia, the world’s largest airline catering business, where the chefs are acutely aware of the challenges they’re up against when producing meals that are to be served onboard an aircraft – and they have the recipes for success.
Even before being boarded onto an aircraft, airline meals have quite the journey from kitchen to plane. Each of these steps – preparation, storage and transportation – can have a huge effect on the taste and flavour of the dish, and that’s where airline catering culinary experts come in.
Furthermore, in what represents a challenge as old as the airline catering industry itself, dry air, high-altitude pressure, and even the noise of the aircraft contributes to creating a cabin environment that diminishes a passenger’s ability to taste, causing food to seem blander than it really is.
To counteract this and ensure that flavour, quality and freshness remain intact, Dnata chefs use ingredients and techniques to enhance meals, giving airline passengers a dining experience that will please the palate.
This means exploring new preparation processes with flavours that can withstand the elements without adding salt. Chefs use for an example flavour-boosting methods such as seasonings, marinades and sauces – and even the exciting flavour profile known as umami finds its way into their menus.
Originating in Japan, umami refers to the pleasant and savoury taste found in foods like tomatoes, Parmesan cheese and mushrooms. Making increased and creative use of such ingredients is a major breakthrough for airline catering.
And who knows, British Airways recently created ‘Sound Bite’ soundtrack, based on an Oxford University study which revealed that listening to certain music selections can alter the taste of specific food and drink, may give even further heights to what the chefs cook up in the airline kitchen.
Appetiser - Tasmanian Salmon Mi Cuit, Lemon Gel, Petit Brussel Leaves, Radish, Sorrel, Lemon Oil.
Image: By Ben Weinstock