MSG for me and you

This mouth-watering seasoning is the missing answer to many food crises.

Why does two minute Mie Goreng taste better than a bowl of rice and freshly sauteed vegetables? Why do I crave noodles in oil and powder from a plastic sachet, more than fresh bok choy and broccoli? 

The answer; monosodium glutamate, or more commonly referred to as MSG. 

YouTuber and Internet personality Uncle Roger, portrayed by Nigel Ng, surfaced to fame when he criticised an egg-fried rice tutorial by the BBC. Drawing on traits stereotypical of Asian parents — using day-old rice and a wok over a gas stove — Uncle Roger resonated with first and second generation migrants. More importantly, he declared his love for MSG. 

This restarted the controversy surrounding MSG and its questioned adverse health effects. 

However, this mouth-watering seasoning is the missing answer to many food crises. 

I have always noticed MSG in my pantry, something my mum would sprinkle into her Indonesian 

cooking, from nasi goreng to Mie Goreng. Growing up, MSG was just ‘Sasa flavouring’. When I came to realise that the eminent white powder was attaining a bad rap for being a chemical additive, I thought to myself, “Bullshit, I was raised on this!”

MSG was first discovered and extracted from seaweed in 1908 by Kikunae Ikeda, a Japanese 

chemist who identified its favour enhancing power. MSG is now derived largely from fermented 

corn starch, sugar cane and cassava starch, and is found in produce such as mushrooms, 

tomato and cheese. 

The umami taste that MSG amplifies is a depth of flavour that goes beyond saltiness; it is 

synonymous with meat and protein. MSG has therefore become popular in vegetarian cooking, 

used to enhance dishes without salt, but with the umami flavour that is otherwise found in 

meat. 

MSG is identified as a chemical additive, with Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) classifying it as an “added glutamate”, despite being an identical chemical to “natural occurring glutamate” found in fresh produce. This chemical and additive classification is where many consumers feel the need to eliminate MSG from their diet. 

Some early health scaremongering and subsequent bad press didn’t do it any favours either.

In 1968, Robert Ho Man Kwok wrote a letter to the editor of a medical journal where he described how he “experienced a strange syndrome whenever I have eaten out in a Chinese restaurant.” 

The “syndrome” consisted of numbness at the back of the neck, general weakness, and palpitation (among other symptoms). One of Dr Ho Man Kwok’s possible explanations for this was MSG. Baseless and anecdotal though it was, his letter would go on to create a media frenzy around the glutamate seasoning and ‘MSG Symptom Complex’ was coined in its wake. 

In the decades following Robert Ho Man Kwok’s letter, this mouth watering powder has undeservingly become associated with unnatural and inorganic additives, such as artificial flavours, colours, and sweeteners. My concern is that people are depriving themselves of the savoury tingle, salivating aroma, and salted heaven of MSG that elevates any dish.

A number of health blogs and nutrition organisations have continued the work of Ho Man Kwok, perpetuating the misconception that MSG is a contributing factor to increased stress levels and anxiety diagnoses. Websites like the Integrative Clinical Nutrition Blog advise “to remove all forms of MSG from your cupboards,” to arguably prevent the growing figure of mental health disorders, namely anxiety and depression. 

Various research papers have contradicted such claims and highlight that there are no clear or consistent links between MSG and the side-effects in the ‘MSG Symptom Complex’. 

To that end, FSANZ states that “MSG is considered safe and is an authorised food additive...” but also recognises that, “A small number of people may experience a mild hypersensitivity-type reaction to large amounts of MSG... These reactions normally pass quickly and do not produce any long-lasting effects.”

Besides making everything delicious, MSG is the answer to reducing our meat consumption. MSG is the answer to making your mushrooms, eggplant and tofu taste like meat. MSG is the answer to reducing salt mining in the Himalayas. And MSG is also the answer to reducing our sodium intake.

Thinking about my Mum’s nasi goreng and mie goreng, I think about the glories of ‘Sasa flavouring’. As a flavour enhancer, MSG provides a natural element of saltiness by amplifying the existing flavours in a dish, and making seasoning meals with salt redundant. 

To quote Uncle Roger, “If you’re sad in life, use MSG. If you’re happy in life, use MSG.”