Did you ever open a can of tomato sauce and wonder what happened to the taste? Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Research Center in Albany, Calif., did.
So they set about analyzing the flavor components in the tomato. They found seven essential compounds, including one that had not been known and one previously only associated with perfumes (it`s found in roses). The compounds can be derived from natural sources. When combined, they produce a close-to-genuine tomato flavor, says chemist Ron Buttery, research project leader.
”As you can imagine, tomatoes had been worked over (analyzed by chemists) quite a bit, but a few components hadn`t been identified,” he says. The intended use of the new patented tomato blend is to flavor soups and sauces and to restore tomato taste to processed tomatoes, which lose flavor when they are cooked.
”People don`t realize that most tomatoes harvested are converted into tomato paste, a dehydrated form of tomato that can be stored and used for various products,” says Buttery. So far, one manufacturer has expressed interest in the blend, he says.
