“Arielle changed the way that I think about flavor and in these pages she will do the same
for you” (René Redzepi chef of Noma). A 2025 JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEE NAMED ONE OF THE BEST
COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY BLOOMBERG • DELISH • KCRW NPR GOOD FOOD • LOS ANGELES TIME • NEW
YORK TIMES • SAVEUR • SCIENCE NEWS • TIMES UNION • WASHINGTON POST • ROBB REPORT An
irreverent accessible essential guide to the science of flavor and how to use it in your own
kitchen from the food scientist-confidante of some of the world’s best chefs Arielle Johnson
with more than 75 recipes—plus a foreword by René Redzepi. Meet Arielle Johnson—she’s a flavor
scientist (she loves flavor so much she got a Ph.D. in the subject). She spends most of her
time helping chefs better understand what’s going on beneath the hood of flavor and make
delicious new foods. Now with Flavorama she shares this invaluable knowledge with home
cooks everywhere. Mixing equal parts fun and braininess Arielle dives into how chemistry
sensation and craft unite to create flavor distilling what flavor really is (molecules!) and
how to get it to work for you (spotting patterns breaking rules) in an easy-to-digest
handbook. You don’t need a lab or a professional kitchen—or even a background in science—to get
something out of the science of flavor. With Flavorama you’ll be able to easily finesse
flavor while cooking to give any dish a little oomph easily swap out an ingredient for one you
have on hand use a recipe or technique to improvise something new or boldly replicate a
flavor. Out of basil for pesto? Pivot and use mint shiso or tarragon—all are members of the
same “herbal-aromatic” flavor family—for a new-but-somehow-familiar herb sauce. Or add a
drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of flaky salt to chocolate ice cream— a simple hack for
deliciously complex flavor. Included are 99 recipes so you can hit the ground running with your
new science-of-flavor knowledge: An Algorithm for a Minimalist but Excellent Dressing for
Lettuce Umami-Boosted Cacio e Pepe Chilled Soba Noodles with Grapefruit The Meatiest
Slow-Cooked Meat Panela-Coconut Iced Coffee Pineapple Caramel Sauce Burnt Scallion Butter
Under-appreciated–Spice Pumpkin Pie Cook with the creativity confidence and flexibility of a
world-class chef and learn how to unlock the flavor potential of your ingredients create your
own dishes make your own bitters ferment your own miso and much much more. Charming
illustrations and diagrams drawn by Arielle herself accompany this indispensable guidebook to
flavor town.
