New research by Oxford University, published today in the journal Flavour, has made headlines on the unlikely subject of cutlery.
Experimental psychologists working in the university's cross-modal research lab run by Charles Spence (who previously collaborated with Heston Blumenthal on the development of his iPod-enhanced dish Sound of the Sea), have found that using different types of cutlery can alter taste perception.
Cheese eaten off a knife, it turns out, tastes saltier than off a fork.
And yoghurt consumed via colour-contrasted cutlery makes it less sweet. When, for example, pink yoghurt is eaten with a blue spoon, it doesn't taste as sweet as it does with a pink spoon.
The weight of the spoon matters, too. Previous research has shown that the attributes of heavy porcelain bowls are transferred to the food inside, which is consequently rated as denser, more expensive and more likable. In the cutlery experiment, however, the heavier spoon was made to look just like a lightweight plastic spoon the subjects had also tasted yoghurt from.
Presented with a spoon that was unexpectedly three times heavier than it looked, says the study, the subjects rated the food as "the least dense, least expensive, and as one of the least liked". This had led the researchers to conclude that it's not the actual weight of the bowl or spoon that is transferred to the food, but rather the expected weight. However, oddly, the heaviest spoons made food taste sweeter.
As a lay person who likes her food, I enjoy applying these studies inexpertly to my own experiences. My partner and I have never quite got used to each other's cutlery and tend to still use our own. He prefers lighter, untarnished stainless steel, whereas I'm a sucker for vintage heavy, silver-plate (and I like eating off knives – have I been unwittingly enhancing saltiness all these years?)
Are we asserting our individuality, or do we simply prefer the tactile experiences we're used to? Tea definitely tastes better in my special mug. Few of my colleagues will ever forget mug-gate: the day it went missing and I threw all my toys out of the pram.
In terms of practical use, the study's lead author, Vanessa Harrar, has said that the results "may be used to help control eating patterns such as portion size or how much salt is added to food." But its conclusions are a little disappointing in this respect, merely suggesting it as an area for future research. Surely it would have been more useful for this research to focus on portion size as well as, or even instead of taste?
There have already been similar studies into how plate size and colour affects how much we eat (high contrast between food and plate leads to diners serving themselves less). So perhaps in future, instead of being on a conventional diet, we will simply change plate colour according to our food. Although where that leaves dishes without one prevalent colour, such as Neapolitan ice cream, I know not.
Do you care what you eat off or with? Do you think this research will ever amount to more than a bit of fun?
This article originally appeared on guardian.co.uk
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