Sensory Properties

Sensory Properties Overview

• Sensory properties concern how food and drink are perceived by our five senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste.
• These properties involve the appearance, aroma, taste, texture, and sound of a product.
• Knowledge of these attributes is crucial to chefs, food manufacturers, and anyone involved in food preparation as it directly influences a person’s consumption and enjoyment of food.

Sight

• The visual appearance of food is the first sensory property we encounter. It influences our expectations and can stimulate or deter our appetite.
• Factors include shape, size, and colour. More appetising meals often have a variety of colours and a balance of visual elements.
• Presenting food with uniformity, creativity, and neatness enhances its visual aesthetic, making it more appealing to eat.

Smell

• Smell is a critical sensory property as it highly impacts taste.
• Evoking smells through cooking techniques like roasting, baking, or frying can enhance the overall dining experience.
• Recognition of food by smell can associate it with pleasure or disgust, affecting one’s desire to consume it.

Taste

• Taste is determined by the interaction between food and taste receptors in our mouth.
• The five primary tastes are sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami.
• The balance and contrast of these tastes are important for a satisfying viewing experience.

Texture

• Texture is perceived through the sense of touch, in both our hands and mouth.
• The key textural attributes are smoothness, crispness, hardness, chewiness, and stickiness, amongst others.
• The combination of different textures within a meal can increase the appeal and variety of the dish.

Sound

• Sound, often overlooked, is as important a sensory property as others.
• Crispiness and crunchiness of certain foods, heard when bitten or chewed, enhance the overall sensory experience of eating.
• The noise produced during food preparation and cooking also impacts our perception of food quality.

Sensory Evaluation

• Sensory evaluation is the scientific discipline used to evoke, measure, and interpret responses to the characteristics of foods as perceived by the senses.
• It involves methods of comparing items, profiling descriptive flavours and textures, or finding consumer preference.
• Testing can be done on an individual basis or part of a panel, where several people taste and score the sensory properties of a product.
• This testing is fundamental in the design and modification of recipes or manufactured products, ensuring they are appealing to consumers.

Importance of Sensory Properties

• Understanding sensory properties is crucial in making food appealing and enjoyable.
• It helps in menu planning, determining how diverse or complementary different dishes are.
• In a broader sense, it plays a vital role in the food industry, influencing product development, quality control, marketing strategy, and consumer surveys.