Eating is such a full-on sensory experience: taste, yes, but also smell and mouth-feel (texture) and even sound (the crunch of an apple, the slurp of soup.) And we all know the saying that we taste first with our eyes. But how much do we remember to actually taste what we're eating? Are we still tasting after our third our fourth bite?
Weekend Meditation: Remembering to Taste
Some chefs believe that we encounter palate fatigue after just a few mouthfuls. Thomas Keller's French Laundry and Grant Achatz's Alinea are famous for their long (up to twenty-four courses) tasting menus, each course consisting of just a few bites. Their goal, and the reason in part why they are so popular, is to keep us alert and engaged in the food, in the immediate sensual experience of eating.
When I check it out in my own life, I find that this palate fatigue is actually true. The first two or three bites of a sandwich are bursting with flavor. And then there's this foggy area where I've lost that intense interest and I am just eating. For me, however, the flavor awareness always returns with the last bite. Something deep in my brain wakes up and says 'Oh no! Almost gone. Taste!'
I figure I can work a little on that foggy area and try to taste my food more. Experts say when I do this, I will eat less and slower but that's secondary to me. I'm more interested in seeing if it's possible to keep some of that fresh, engaged interest in my meal all the way through.
So far, this has been tough going. My habit is to check out, get lost in my thoughts (or in the book spread out on the table in front of me). Not to mention carrying on a conversation with my dinner companion or, classically, eat the full bag of popcorn before the trailers are over and the film begins.
But when I do remember to keep at least some of my attention on what I am eating, a kind of a calm settles over me. I feel a balance and a satisfaction that escapes me when I'm just shoveling it in. It's a nice feeling and I don't have to spend hundreds of dollars at a fancy restaurant to have it.
(Image: Dana Velden)
Comments (8)
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Thanks for this Dana I will have to try this. Maybe the next time I have a dinner companion we can work on it together.
view Daigan's profile
Yeah, I was going to say. Maybe try eating slower.
Additionally, if the food is not homogeneous, each bite should have some different flavors. That could help.
view wunami's profile
This is such a true statement. Its why we as a country are overweight too I think. It was a great experience to watch my father in law at dinners.. he enjoyed every single bite, and you could see his enjoyment, and he knew when he had eaten exactly enough...
He grew strawberries and when they were ripe he told us that two strawberrries were quite enough, and it turned out to be so.. we savored every bit of those two strawberries.
We chubby ones seem destined to replay the middle of the meal stuff that Dana discusses.
view Dominic's profile
I do this too -- except with that lobster in the photo, because it's work to get the meat (and is soooo delicious).
view emaozora's profile
I love these weekend meditation. They always leave me with so much to think about!
view Liana WW's profile
Sharing food helps with really tasting it - my fiance and I love sharing dinners, and always share whatever we have, even if it's not something classically share-able like tapas. It wakens you to how good your meal is when someone else is discussing it with you, trying to identify what that last flavour is, or commenting on how perfectly the chef got this bit right.
And it works when you've cooked dinner at home too - sit down to eat, with dinner as the focus (not the telly, books/magazines/papers, internet, whatever), and savour it :-)
view FoodieGreenie's profile
I usually go through two glasses of water with a meal, because I need to stop and clear the palate. I've suffered with the fatigued palate since I was a kid. The big portions being served don't help.
view That70sHeidi's profile
I find television is the biggest distractor in these situations. Do I usually watch TV while eating? Yeah, though I hate to say it. I do prefer to sit and savor my food; but most days, dinner is the only time I'm sitting in one place long enough to get even partway through Mad Men.
If it's a special meal, though, either through occasion or ingredient, I'll insist on sitting at the table like proper human beings. ;)
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view eprewitt's profile