Magical Food Scientists

For anyone who doesn't know, they found the source of the mystery maple syrup smell that randomly appears in New York City. It turns out that a food additive/processing company in New Jersey was processing fenugreek seeds and making the smell, which drifted across the Hudson in the right weather conditions. And I can tell you that fenugreek smells nothing like maple syrup.

I know there are a bunch of food chemistry plants in Jersey, and I am fascinated by jobs where you have assignments like refining a sour cream and onion flavor profile for a potato chip company. I once read an interview with one of them that took place in a grocery store. The food scientist sampled packaged foods and was guessing who developed the taste, leading to quotes like "Yeah, those Doritos sure do taste like Jackie." I never get to say things like that at work. And I love that they are all master chemists who argue about what "onion" tastes like.

I love the whole idea of food science and chemistry. According to the FDA, anything made from another food item is natural flavoring. So maybe you can make a maple syrup flavor from fenugreek. I know that vanilla flavor can be extracted from wood, usually waste from the paper industry. But this is easier to understand, because you can get notes of vanilla flavors in wine and bourbon, both of which age in a wood barrel.