Get high to make food taste better, Swiss scientists say

Getting high while cooking makes your food look - and taste - better. Scientists from the Nestlé Research Center have found that food cooked at high altitudes not only tastes better but is more visually appealing.

The scientists travelled to the world’s highest revolving restaurant, the ThreeSixty in the Swiss village of Saas-Fee, and spent the day cooking at 3600 metres above sea level. Back down in their lab, they replicated the cooking process and compared the results.

All up, they cooked three batches of vegetable broth using identical recipes. The first was cooked high in the alps, the second in their laboratory at normal pressure and the third at high pressure in the lab. They found that the broth cooked in Saas-Fee had a very different flavour profile.

“The results were analysed both in the laboratory using a range of analytical processes and by a panel of tasting experts to see how the different combinations of pressures and cooking times impacted on the culinary quality and molecular and sensory profile of the preparations,” said Dr Candice Smarrito, the NRC scientist who led the study.

At 3600 m above sea level, water boils at just 85°C. The lower boiling point of water allows food to cook more gently, at a lower temperature. This process maintains the food’s natural amino acids, carbohydrates and organic acids, as well as volatile compounds such as aromas.

Having these elements preserved in the components of a finished dish makes the flavours, colours and aromas more intense - even without the addition of flavour enhancers or salt.

The researchers also found that low-pressure cooking reduces food weight loss and therefore increases the yield of vegetables. It also leads to significantly richer broths in terms of amino acids, carbohydrates and organic acids, enhancing their non-volatile, volatile and sensory profiles.

In particular, the team noticed an enhancement of sulfur volatile compounds when boiling at lower pressure, which correlates with a stronger leek aroma.

The researchers established that imitating the conditions of mountain cooking through low-pressure boiling might be used to enhance the flavour profile of culinary preparations, increasing consumer preference.

The research was conducted as part of the company’s exploration into how it can create healthier, tastier foods using natural processes without the use of artificial additives and enhancers.

The researchers’ findings have been published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.