MSG Vs Salt: What's The Difference?

Food Network host and restaurateur Guy Fieri once told Success, "Food is maybe the only universal thing that really has the power to bring everyone together." While true, there are times when foods or methods of cooking create controversy, and nothing is more representative of this fact than the disputes surrounding MSG and salt. Both are widely-used flavor-enhancers, and both occur naturally in whole and processed foods we eat each and every day. So what's the difference?

For thousands of years, salt (sodium chloride) has been used not only to season and preserve foods but served as a prized trade and even religious offering. It's considered an integral part of human civilization. Meanwhile, MSG (monosodium glutamate) was discovered in 1908 by a Japanese biochemist Dr. Kikunae Ikeda, one of Ajinomoto Group's founders. Through his research, Ikeda sought to discover the secret of umami — that savory, meaty flavor that's one of the five basic tastes along with sweet, salty, bitter and sour. He reduced his wife's kombu (or kelp) broth and uncovered the crystalline form of glutamic acid. After a year of research and development, MSG hit the market and became the easiest way to incorporate umami into any dish.

MSG or monosodium glutamate, also known widely as the brand Ajinomoto, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, a common amino acid found naturally in foods and our bodies. MSG is produced through fermentation of corn or cassava starch, sugar beets, sugar cane or molasses. The process is similar to the way we make yogurt or wine. Glutamic acid is produced through this fermentation process, and neutralized with sodium to create monosodium glutamate. Then using evaporation, the solution is dried and crystalized into the final product.

Contrary to popular belief and bad press, MSG is generally recommended as safe by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and contains ⅔ less sodium compared to table salt. The amino acid glutamate is found naturally in many foods such as mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, tomatoes and seaweed. It's also abundant inside our own bodies, most commonly as a neurotransmitter, chemical messengers that send information between neurons, glands and muscles. While MSG is a common ingredient in Asian cuisines, it can also be found in everything from fast food hamburgers and fried chicken, to salad dressing, beef jerky, canned soups and potato chips.

We're all too familiar with salt, that age-old, ubiquitous flavor enhancer also known as sodium chloride that's found almost everywhere. It's inside the clear glass shakers on restaurant tables, the flakes on your chocolate chip cookies, your sticks of salted butter — and much more. A vital seasoning in both cooking and baking, it can be used to create a gorgeous salt crust on a pan-seared steak or increase the juicy factor by pre-salting your chicken.

Though salt is necessary for our bodies to balance fluids and aid nerve function and muscle contraction, too much in our diets can cause high blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart disease. The FDA recommends that people consume no more than a teaspoon of salt a day, or around 2,300 milligrams. Most people tend to exceed this number, especially when eating highly processed foods.

Using all of our senses is by far the easiest way to discern a difference between MSG and salt. Both  enhance flavor by suppressing the bitter factor in foods, but MSG goes a step further, adding that savory, meaty "umami" to everything it touches. Salt tends to smell salty, like the sea, whereas MSG has no discernable odor. Also, salt crystals are generally shaped like cubes due to their cubic crystal lattice structure, while MSG crystals are elongated, as the crystallization process forms rhombic prisms.

MSG can also improve the appearance of your foods. At some point, you've probably noticed that freezing packaged products can ruin their appearance. While MSG can be the flavor bomb your steak needs or a way to boost a bland tomato, it can also help preserve the texture of these products. By preventing ice crystal formation, the sodium salt can help things like sauces and dressings maintain their smooth consistency. Finally, table salt or iodized salt is far less expensive than MSG, but there are variations among both types and brands, and MSG isn't used in the same quantities. Salt may be our preferred choice for preservation and flavor enhancement, but we should remember the umami properties of MSG and realize it's a safe, reduced-sodium option when our drab dinner needs a little boost.