Unriddling the Onion

In the past chemists believed that the taste of onions and garlics and other members of the allium plant family depended on the combination of more than 100 different compounds. But synthetic substitutes designed to find the right combination never tasted quite right. That's because the chemist put far too many ingredients in, according to Eric Block, a professor of chemistry at the State University of New York at Albany. When Block re-examined the problem, he found that only light vital ingredients give allium plants their flavor. "Of the light flavor compounds," Block says, "the sulfur is the prime ingredient. That's what gives an onion its pungent bite, lingering after taste and tear inducing quality."

Tweet

Read more...