/ck/ - Food & Cooking

Can someone explain to me how the fuck this is regarded as a legit basic taste?

>>4725376
>What's so bad about ketchup on steak?

It's not bad, but they're not great either.

Tomato based ketchups are packed with umami flavors. The umami activates the sensors on the tongue and will enhance meaty flavors you taste.
So technically adding ketchup makes the steak taste better, at least gives a more meat flavor. However, because you're adding a bottled ketchup, you're also adding a shit load of sugars and of course, tomato flavor to the steak and that itself can override the extra taste you got from the umami.

So, think of ketchup as the poor mans choice for umami flavor enhancer. Most people don't even realize or care why ketchup is what it is or how it affects meat flavor, and those that do use ketchup probably do it more because it make their meat taste more meaty rather then the ketchup's own flavor.

There are other, better umami flavors, and they are commonly used with steaks already.
Mushrooms are a natural umami enhancer, and you'll find they are sided with steak a lot of the time, but you can get mushroom based ketchups too and they work really well.
If all else fails, there is umami dedicated pastes out there you can use as a condiment. It has little flavor of its own, but will enhance your meat's flavor.

>Why is this such a gourmet faux pas, or are you just being snobs to feel culinarily superior?

It's the same reason why some high-class (read ass-hats) restaurants don't provide salt at the table.
They think that the food they create should be eaten as provided because it's perfectly fine as its been cooked.

Some people feel ketchup's own flavor over powers the steaks blood taste more then it enhances the meat flavor. This is particularly true of meats that aren't seared well since that's where most of the 'meat' flavor people associate with steak comes from.

As I've said, there are better ways to enhance the meat flavor without using ketchup, but it does work if you also like the taste of ketchup too, that's a bonus.

Ur ma's mammies.

<<-- Because, this