Originally published at: Map of umami foods across the world | Boing Boing
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Whaddayaknow, I find I’ve been drawn to recipes lately that use some like those. Anchovy paste, fish sauces, mole, oyster sauce… But so many I’ve never tried! Alas, I’ll never get to all of them.
I will say, that’s not U.S. bacon pictured on the map, looks more like Canadian or UK-style – pork loin rather than the stripey pre-sliced stuff we thrive on.
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It has been explained to me (with the help of the Frying-Pan of Gentle Admonishment) that Marmite is not a pizza topping,
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Kind of weird how they attribute salt cod to Brazil. It’s Basque and dates to pre-Colombian times. Bacalao is a staple in most cuisines throughout the entire Atlantic rim, though most of them claim to be the originators, in spite of the fact that Bacalao Viscaina is definitely of Basque origin. The Basque region (SW France, NW Spain and Portugal) was one of the few areas that could successfully dry salt and cod due to the offshore breezes and balmy climate.
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They don’t mention kvass for Russia, Poland, and most of Eastern Europe?
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Bacalhau was brought to Brazil by the portuguese people, but it was originally from Norway.
ETA
I believe that the Brazilian representative of this Umami world map would be Tucupi, an ingredient based on toxic and sometimes deadly poisonous cassava, typical of the cuisine of the Amazon region. You can eat it without fear, as the Brazilian natives developed a way to make it safe thousands of years ago.
ETA 2
@cannibalpeas you are right. Due to Portuguese colonization, codfish is a popular, albeit expensive, ingredient on Brazilian tables as all cod consumed in the country is imported from Europe. Although nowadays we have Amazonian fish prepared like Codfish.
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Australia thanks you for the cover image.
And that map is making me hungry. I looked at Thailand, and yep, I love fish steamed in a mix of fish sauce, lime juice, and brown sugar. Pepper and garlic to taste.
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If you don’t produce a lot of monoamine oxidase (like me), I would suggest avoiding things with strong Umami flavors. Unless you like migraine headaches, in which case… indulge!
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My suggestions to the umami world map would be Norwegian rakfisk and Norwegian/Swedish lutefisk.
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Oh yes, the flavour subtleties of lutefisk are a perfect showcase for the ineffable contributions of umami.
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Kind of insulted that not only does Canada not appear on the map, but the entry for the United States is basically printed right on top of us.
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Mushroom ketchup!
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Well, now I’m curious… what is Canada’s umame contribution? I don’t think poutine counts. 
The Bloody Caesar? 
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TIL that there is regional ownership of Bloody Marys (Maries? Marie’s? Bueller?) that contain Clamato.
ETA: Also, is the US the only N American nation stupid enough not to use Clamato regularly?
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Well, since they show “gravy” for the U.S., I’d say poutine can count for Canada! (But not for the cheese curds in poutine, though, because that’s fresh cheese, not aged.)
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Ever had seal? Delicious.
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Ugh, I blocked that from my memory. I love gravy, but 99% of the gravy I’ve had in the US isn’t gravy. It’s sausage-flavored Elmer’s glue. In a US diner the two most important questions you can ask are “do you make the gravy here?” and “do you have real maple syrup?” Most of them say no to both (after clarifying that maple syrup ≠ maple-flavored corn syrup).
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