Sweet or sour?

Shades Cahaba fifth graders recently celebrated learning about the science of food with a “chemical change” taste testing party.

In their molecular gastronomy study, the students used the “miracle berry” fruit, a small red berry called synespalum dulcificum, to transform foods they never thought could be so sweet and delicious.  

According to Linda Bartoshuk at the University of Florida’s Center for Smell and Taste, the cause of the taste reaction is a protein called miraculin, which binds with the taste buds and acts as a sweetness inducer when it comes in contact with acids.  Basically, anything that is inherently sour and or bitter will taste sweet.

The students tasted lemons, apple cider vinegar, green apples, grape fruit, salt and vinegar chips, and feta cheese. They documented what they thought the foods would taste like before they tried them and then after they tried them with the Miracle Berry.