Chinese food culture has been extensive and profound since ancient times. Whether it is the exquisite selection of southern delicacies or the northern delicacies with strong colors and flavors, in the end, they all pay attention to "color, aroma and taste".
Even if a food has a strong aroma and excellent taste, if the "appearance" is not good, it may directly affect the appetite. After all, the first thing that catches the eye of a dish is the appearance.
In addition, not only in China, but almost all over the world, people use "color, fragrance" as the criterion for judging food. Among them, "color" always comes first.
As early as 1951, the famous American marketing psychologist Louis Cheskin said in his book "Colors, and What They Can Do" published in the same year: "A group of people are invited to dinner, and dinner has steak, Chips and peas. The lights were dim at first and the guests couldn't see the true color of the food. After the meal, the lights went back to normal and it was found that the steak was blue, the peas were red, and the fries were green. Many guests Run to the bathroom immediately and vomit."
This isn't just an anecdote. It is reported that for nearly half a century, scientists have been studying why blue foods may cause people to feel disgusted. Charles Yuan Spin, an experimental psychologist and director of the Laboratory for Intermodal Research at the University of Oxford, published a paper in the journal Frontiers in Psychology titled "What's the story of the blue steak?" A research paper on the unexpected popularity of blue foods may have an answer.
Although the results of this study are still open to question, they do reflect the possible impact of food color on human eating habits. You know, vision consumes a lot of brain power, because vision requires billions of nerves in the brain to work together. This is why color, and even appearance, can affect other human senses.
As early as in a classic experiment in 1939, scientists conducted related research on the human senses. In the experiment, the researchers took two kinds of chocolates for the participants to taste. Only during the tasting, the participants tasted the two chocolates in a blindfolded situation. The results showed that the six participants believed that the taste of the two chocolates was the same after tasting.
The scientists then asked the participants to taste two types of chocolate in a visible context. The results were quite different. Four of the six participants thought the white chocolate was more milky, while the other two thought the white chocolate tasted better. light. It was through this experiment that it was discovered that color may have an effect on the human sense of smell.
Interestingly, Charles found in his experiments that although blue drinks and candies are becoming more and more popular, for meat and fish, blue is always reminiscent of the use of artificial colors or chemical additives. People are disgusted.
The Japanese researchers on the team said that when using the same grade of ingredients, painting sushi blue would greatly affect its taste rating. This is because, after the fish or meat changes color, people will always subconsciously have the idea of food spoilage or poisoning.
In this regard, Charles said: "Visuals have priority, they will preset the taste and texture of the food we want to taste. Visual expectations have a great impact on how we taste the food. In addition, carefully consider the way the food is served on the plate. Color can also drive us toward eating less unhealthy food.” In
2019, The Lancet published an article on the current state of human eating habits. The paper points out that the current dietary consumption habits of human beings are unsustainable from the environmental level, especially the traditional breeding industry with animal protein as the main source of intake.
On the other hand, general research believes that the weekly intake of animal protein by humans should not exceed 100 grams, which can not only achieve a continuous diet, but also minimize the health problems caused by poor eating habits.
So, Charles thinks, there may be a new way out by dyeing meat blue. As we all know, the act of dyeing meat in today's consumer market has long been "common". For example, adding nitrite to meat can not only extend the shelf life but also make the meat look more attractive pink.
American colorist Morton also said: "When our ancestors were looking for food, they found that most of the purple and black foods were poisonous or had deteriorated, so the ancestors encountered these foods and avoided them consciously. I’m afraid.”
He added: “Similarly, modern people are accustomed to thinking that purple and black food will spoil or be harmful to human health. There was a famous candy company that launched blue candy because of its originality. Got a lot of 'spoiled' complaints and had to withdraw them all."
But what if the meat was intentionally dyed blue? Since the taste of food is not only defined by taste and smell, dyeing meat blue may reduce appetite, thereby reducing people's excessive intake of meat.
While it may not be simple, it is certain that dyeing meat, as a sensory boost to better healthy eating habits, is at least more meaningful than the current addition of nitrite.
