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Smelling your food before you eat it


Fat Guy

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I smell my food when eating. I don't make a show of it by sticking my face in the plate or the plate in my face but I do take time to inhale the aromas coming from the food. A steady inhale through the nose as the food (or drink) approaches makes a world of difference.

I've tried cocktails that I didn't think were particularly exciting until I slowed down and took the time to take in the aromas while taking a sip. With that, they suddenly came to life and made sense.

The evidence has been around for a long time and doesn't require scientific study. When I'm stuffed up from a cold or something and can't smell things very well, food and drinks don't taste as good. I tend to eat far less when I have a cold, even if I'm feeling hunger and eating doesn't cause any physical discomfort, because everything seems really bland.

It's kinda like wrestling a gorilla... you don't stop when you're tired, you stop when the gorilla is tired.

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I watched an episode of Masterchef recently and noticed that Joe Bastianich smells everything before doing his tasting. I don't think it is very attractive to watch and I found myself watching for a grimace that would say it smelled "off" to him.

Cooking is like love, it should be entered into with abandon, or not at all.

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Well it makes sense to sniff food. People sniff wine and such before they drink it so they can enjoy it more, so why not?

As I started reading this thread the comparison to sniffing wine immeadiately came came to mind. I am a food sniffer. I believe that I developed this habit as an off-shoot of learning to appreciate wine. I do not, however, lift the plate but rather sniff the forkful (or spoonful) of food just before it goes into my mouth - maybe a one or two second sniff with a slight pause to savor the smells - then in it goes. Not ever bite, just the first one or 2 of any particular item. I've never had anyone comment on this to me so I'm figuring my family and friends aren't put off by it.

Edited by Porthos (log)

Porthos Potwatcher
The Once and Future Cook

;

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Some people have said that watching people sniff their food is unattractive. Maybe that's why it's not done more often, because it makes sense as a way to enjoy your food. My curiosity led me to ask, Is sniffing your food bad manners?

Naturally Miss Manners has the answer:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/23/AR2010022304837.html

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I understand that appreciating the aroma of your food is important, and agree that it's a good part of the dining experience. But I hate it when I serve food and the recipient sniffs it -- I'm talking a bend over, twitch the nose, make a noise SNIFF. It feels to me as if there's an implication that I might be serving food that's off somehow. Like perhaps the quality is lacking, or there's a risk of illness. It doesn't read as a positive action to me.

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When someone puts a plate of food in front of me, my first action is to lean forward slightly, and inhale deeply. The sort of action one might see at a normal dinner table immediately followed by an "Mmmm! That smells great!" The idea that this might be offensive to the host is odd to me. I do engage in phase II smelling, which I admit may be more questionable: just before eating the first bite off my fork, I do the same deep inhalation. I think there is a clear social difference between the sniffing action one makes when investigating potential spoilage, versus one appreciating the aroma of the food. Then again, I appear to have offended Fat Guy, so maybe it's not so clear after all!

Chris Hennes
Director of Operations
chennes@egullet.org

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I very often actively smell my food - after all, taste is mostly smell-centric (excluding the 5 basic tastes). if you don't smell the food you miss a great deal of the experience. Sometimes it is a wave/fanning action with an open hand towards my nose to push the steam/vapour of a soup or other warm dish towards my nose. It is an extension of my wine tasting method as well I suppose. I have never found this offensive or particularly noticed any one else being bothered by it.

Sure, you get some of the scent when you chew food via the back interior nasal passages but nothing beats a good slow sniff.

Guess my thought is, WHY would you NOT want to enhance the gustatory experience by missing out on a huge part of eating???

Llyn Strelau

Calgary, Alberta

Canada

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Well, it depends - did he lean over within an inch of the food, wave his hands in the air like a big, giant TOOL and sniff so hard the the food lifted off the plate? :laugh: Sounds like NOT. I do sniff, but find that a discreet inhale of my fork when I lift the first bite to my mouth is sufficient.

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If someone sat down to dinner at my house and started sniffing everything before they ate it I would instinctively be totally pissed off, because I associate the active smelling of food with looking for spoilage. However, if the guest first said, hey, this smells great, let's savor it like it was wine or freshly baked bread, etc, I would probably sniff along.

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When someone puts a plate of food in front of me, my first action is to lean forward slightly, and inhale deeply. The sort of action one might see at a normal dinner table immediately followed by an "Mmmm! That smells great!" The idea that this might be offensive to the host is odd to me. I do engage in phase II smelling, which I admit may be more questionable: just before eating the first bite off my fork, I do the same deep inhalation. I think there is a clear social difference between the sniffing action one makes when investigating potential spoilage, versus one appreciating the aroma of the food. Then again, I appear to have offended Fat Guy, so maybe it's not so clear after all!

you are braver than me Chris! or maybe you routinely eat higher quality food... i start with a much more tentative sniff. i only inhale deeply once that 'sniff test' comes out positive !

the smelling part is an integral part of enjoying the food, though. it gets all the senses primed for the actual eating!

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If someone sat down to dinner at my house and started sniffing everything before they ate it I would instinctively be totally pissed off, because I associate the active smelling of food with looking for spoilage. However, if the guest first said, hey, this smells great, let's savor it like it was wine or freshly baked bread, etc, I would probably sniff along.

I think it's pretty easy to tell from someone's facial expression whether they're sniffing for something wrong, or enhancing their appreciation. The idea of sniffing food before eating seems normal, although I'm mildly surprised that it would be noticeable. I definitely sniff some foods (good strawberries come to mind, since the smell is so fantastic), but I doubt it is at all noticeable (I was trained to be very, erm... discreet about pretty much everything I do at table).

Michaela, aka "Mjx"
Manager, eG Forums
mscioscia@egstaff.org

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If I'm faced with something "new" at a restaurant, I definitely sniff. If I'm feeding from the trough at home, not so much. I have to say, I think there's a difference between the sniff-for-spoilage and sniff-for-ecstasy body language.

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My kid can smell when baked goods are done, especially ones I've made before. She can also smell rain coming. Shocked me when she first told me the whatever was done, when she was 3ish. She can also smell if I add a little extra calcium (aka cheese) to her precious Kraft. Sigh.

Smelling the food - sometimes. But not 'head to the plate'.

"You dont know everything in the world! You just know how to read!" -an ah-hah! moment for 6-yr old Miss O.

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I sniff in appreciation, especially ripe fruits like strawberries, raspberries, peaches, but I'm pretty subtle about it (I hope so anyway). Like some others, I have done a lot of sniffing of wine so it is part of appreciating what I am about to eat or drink.

Sniffing is not to see if it is "off" in some way. Although I do sniff stuff from my fridge if I am unsure about it.

Cheers,

Anne

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