For a long time, scientists thought that humans had only four basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Then, a Japanese scientist discovered a fifth basic taste — umami, an elusive savory and pungent taste that is often associated with truffles, parmesan cheese, and anchovies. And now, scientists believe there may be a sixth basic taste that's been hiding in plenty of foods we've eaten all along — fat.
In a new study, scientists discovered that fat interacts with our taste buds in ways that make it capable of changing the way we perceive a food. Like the five other basic tastes — which The Washington Post explains can be likened to the primary colors in the way they mix and match to create other tastes — the basic taste of fat seems to stand on its own as a taste that doesn't share characteristics with the other basic tastes.
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