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[Bobitis]

I see/read this term bandied about quite a bit.

What does it mean? Is it a subjective term, or is there a more concrete description?

[Bentley]

To me it is any flavor or taste that is not sweet, but still very subjective...Beef gravy, sourkraut, meatloaf, tomato sauce, okra, calamari...

[Michael_NW]

Savory is listed as one of the five basic tastes, along with sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness. Sometimes referred to as umami, there is a lot of scientific background on it's discovery, properties, how our taste receptors interpret it, etc . . . Just do a web search and you'll find more information that you'll care to read, but it's pretty fascinating.

[MN-Smoker]

Here's a good page that will give you a lot of info on savory.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umami


Soy sauce.  What you taste other than saltiness would be savory.

Soy sauce tastes salty, but there's a "depth" of flavor with it.  That depth is a savory component.


If you ever make your own BBQ sauces, or sauces for chicken wings, you usually need something salty and sweet, but sometimes it still lacks that depth.  That's when a savory component like worcestershire or soy sauce fills in and gives a sauce more complexity.

Various other spices and seasonings will help you get there as well.

[Kristin Meredith]

I have a simple definition -- if it is not sweet, it is savory.  And sometimes I like to mix them together -- french fries dipped in a chocolate shake!

[Michael_NW]

I have a simple definition -- if it is not sweet, it is savory.  And sometimes I like to mix them together -- french fries dipped in a chocolate shake!

And chocolate-dipped bacon!

[Conumdrum]

When you have had an awesome bowl of ramen where the broth takes days to make, you will know savory.  Even a brisket has that flavor, many call it a beef flavor, but its the beef flavor with a rich under toned umami flavor.  It's just hard to explain.

Heck, I have a kikkoman soy sauce dispenser on my counter prolly 15 years old.  Had one in my house whenever I didn't live in the dorm.  I am guilty of taking a teeny swig from it as I cook.  It's that savory.  No sweet, no heat, just savory.

[Michael_NW]

When you have had an awesome bowl of ramen where the broth takes days to make, you will know savory.  Even a brisket has that flavor, many call it a beef flavor, but its the beef flavor with a rich under toned umami flavor.  It's just hard to explain.

I agree!

[GrillinGlen]

Its funny that Umami wasn't a recognized taste when in was in school, learned about it on Food Network

[MN-Smoker]

Umami has been tied to the amino acid, glutamate.

Kikunae Ikeda discovered this, then developed umami salt and patented Monosodium Glutamate.  (We know it as MSG).

[Bentley]

And as I recall, that was like 1905 or 1915 something like that!

[Bobitis]

Humor me if you will...

Sweet is not savory, but sour is? 

[Michael_NW]

Humor me if you will...

Sweet is not savory, but sour is? 

Nope, sour is completely different. Sour, like sweet or savory, is one of the five basic flavors. Combining these flavors in different ways is what makes food so wonderful.

[MN-Smoker]

Humor me if you will...

Sweet is not savory, but sour is? 

All different flavors.

Two easiest ones

Sweet - self explanatory - sugar, carrots, etc.
Salty - salt 


Sour - mouth puckering - lemons, acidic foods,
Bitter - could be confused with sour but it's more bitter, and not sour.  Think of foods that are absent of sweetness like black coffee, dark chocolates or brussell srouts

Savory - to me this is "depth" of flavor.  It's the "good home cooked meal" flavor you get.
Cured meats, cooked tomatoes, soy sauce, fermented foods.


If you are bored, make your own sauce and do by adding separate components of each profile to build your own flavor how you like it.

[scooter]

I don't think that sweet, sour, bitter, salty, umami are actually "flavors", they're aspects of food you can always sense but don't always taste. Refined sugar which has all the flavoring from the cane removed has virtually no taste but you will always sense its presence in a recipe. Some unrefined salts will carry some flavor from the sea they came from but refined table salt has no flavor but you can always sense its presence in recipes. Just some of my own observations like you can only smell when you inhale through your nose and you can only taste when you exhale through your nose.