Title: Taste What You’re Missing
Author: Barb Stuckey
Review: For starters I want to tell you all that I am a test tester for a large food manufacturer where I live. Panels I have participated in are; salsa, bacon(fresh and microwave, refrigerator and shelf stable), shredded pork, pork ribs, macaroni and cheese, and thank heaven I missed out on the chicken broth panel. This is a very part-time job, a few weeks each year is all. We do not decide if we like a product, we tell them how much of any item we can taste in the product, ie: salt, sugar, smoke, tomato, onion, vinegar, etc. Each panel can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks and then is usually repeated a few times during the next few years.
With that out of the way I have to say that this book is fantastic!!! It is interesting and thought provoking. Why do we eat what we eat? What do we really taste? Is it too salty or too sour or maybe even bitter? In panels we throw around words like, rancid, porky, piggy(sometimes not really sure what that tastes like), sweet, sour, rich, acidic…etc. This book talks about terms they use in food manufacturing and taste panels. I loved the exercise at the ends of the chapters. Without your nose you really can’t tell what you are tasting…amazing.
Why do we over eat? Why are some kid’s better eaters than others? My kids are great eaters, they try anything and love most foods. We have one who doesn’t like beans, one who doesn’t like onions, one that doesn’t like hamburgers(he calls it ‘murder burger’ so I think it’s the vegetarian Aunt who he is following not the taste…he will eat meatloaf) and one who doesn’t like peas. Meals at our house are varied and strange at times and yet we all eat well. Eat well when you are pregnant and maybe your kids will eat like you. HUM….that is interesting.
Anyone out there who eats….oh that’s everyone(that is the reason for the 5 stars everyone should read this book)…will love this informative, interesting, and fast to read book. Taste…what are you missing? You will be surprised!
Publisher: Expected publication: March 13th 2012 by Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9781439190739
Copyright: 2012
Pages: 416
Quick Review: 5 stars (out of 5)
Why I Read It: Sent by the publisher for review and a book tour.
Synopsis: Malcolm Gladwell's favorite food inventor offers a guide to the senses with advice on how to develop one's palate and to better enjoy the pleasures of eating. In "Taste What You're Missing," Stuckey shares her professional knowledge in an engaging style that's one part Mary Roach, two parts Oliver Sacks, and a dash of Anthony Bourdain for spice.
Author Biography: Barb's daily job requires her to taste food and figure out how to make it better. After more than a decade of doing this, she's honed her tasting skills and her ability to help others make food taste better. She'll be sharing this insight with the world when her first book Taste What You're Missing is published in 2012. It will be the first book about the phsyiology of taste that's written for the general public.
Barb lives with her fiancé and splits her time between San Francisco and Healdsburg, in the heart of Sonona wine country.
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