Bitterness in Foods and Beverages

by Russell L. Rouseff (Editor), Rouseff Russell Ed

Bitterness is one of the four commonly accepted taste qualities (the others are sweet, salty and sour) and is surprisingly wide spread in foods. Bitter compounds have been reported in just about every food from avocado's to zucchini. Bitterness can be elicited from a diverse collection of chemical compounds encompassing a wide range of molecular size and functional groups. The complexity of the bitterness response can make the studies in this area perplexing. Because some individuals are almost totally blind to bitterness whereas others are extremely sensitive to bitterness, it is difficult for the food scientist to formulate or blend so that concentrations of bitter compounds are high sufficient for insensitive individuals but not too high for sensitive individuals. This book was designed to be of practical assistance to those food scientists who may be struggling with a bitterness problem as well as those sensory scientists interested in

356 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990