What Is MSG—and How to Use It to Enhance Your Cooking, According to a Chef

MSG is an important flavor agent for anyone who enjoys savory food, but it has a mixed reputation. Short for monosodium glutamate, MSG is a naturally occurring chemical substance found in food or isolated and used to enhance umami flavors. While MSG may sound like something too clinical for a kitchen setting, it’s the same as referring to water as H2O or table salt as sodium chloride (NaCl, if you remember high school chemistry class).

We spoke to chef Calvin Eng, owner of popular Brooklyn restaurant Bonnie's, to learn what you should know about using MSG. 

What is MSG? 

“MSG is a seasoning and flavor enhancer that combines sodium with glutamate, which is an amino acid that provides umami,” says Eng. It simply makes food taste good. It adds savoriness and umami that makes you salivate and want more of it, he notes. And if you’re literally drooling with anticipation at digging into an MSG-seasoned dish, that will only benefit each bite. 

“Once MSG is exposed to a liquid, like saliva, the sodium and glutamate molecules separate so the body takes in glutamate regardless of the original source of it,” Eng explains. He adds that MSG is naturally occurring in foods like tomatoes, seaweed, mushrooms, and hard-aged cheeses and that natural MSG is the same as the seasoning MSG. Our bodies process the glutamate the same way. Eng’s personal preference for MSG on his spice rack is Ajinomoto (fans may recognize the cute panda printed jars), which is made by fermenting naturally occurring MSG from plant-based ingredients (like sugarcane) and processed to create the seasoning.  

MSG as a Separate Ingredient

Humans have been eating MSG as long as we have been eating foods that contain it, but the advent of the standalone ingredient dates back to 1908. That is when Japanese biochemist Kikunae Ikeda ran experiments at the University of Tokyo to isolate and extract the savory flavor of kombu seaweed. The chemical reason for the seaweed’s distinct taste? Monosodium glutamate. If the demystified name feels odd, know that MSG is referred to as Ajinomoto in Japan, after the company that popularized its widespread use.

MSG is a powder similar to salt sold for restaurant and home use. It’s a popular ingredient in many East Asian dishes—so prominent, in fact, that Eng's restaurant Bonnies offers an MSG Martini, which amplifies the savory flavors of the ever-beloved dirty (or extra dirty) martini enhanced with olive brine. 

Cooking With MSG At Home

MSG has about a third of the amount of salt content of table salt, so if you’re looking to lower your sodium intake but still get a salty flavor, MSG may be helpful. 

"You can use MSG in all kinds of dishes, from drinks to desserts, not just savory dishes," Eng says. "I find myself reaching for it when I'm cooking all types of cuisines, not just Asian food. I keep it on my counter at all times next to salt and sugar." 

MSG can be added while cooking or while finishing a recipe to intensify the seasoning. “I use MSG to balance out my dishes and give that specific umami savoriness,” says Eng.

MSG Misconceptions

If you’ve ever heard someone order food “without MSG” or claim an MSG allergy, there’s a reason for that (but not necessarily a good reason). As MSG became popular in America in the 1960s, so did Chinese American restaurants and takeout. A letter to the New England Journal of Medicine circa 1968 claimed that eating MSG was making people sick, and the health myth went viral, per se. A list of symptoms was incorrectly dubbed “Chinese restaurant syndrome,” and a health inaccuracy circulated for decades. Meanwhile, researchers could not find a link between reported symptoms (like headaches or nausea) and MSG consumption. In fact, the bias was explicitly against Chinese and Asian food—MSG was and is a common ingredient in mass-produced soup mixes and foods served at diners, flavored snacks at the supermarket, and more. The FDA deems MSG perfectly safe for consumption. 

“I try to do my best to educate those who still believe MSG is bad for you,” Eng says. He notes that it has been scientifically proven to be safe by leading global health authorities, including a study conducted by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. The study examined potential adverse reactions to MSG and concluded it is safe.

And folks who are adverse to MSG should remember that they’re likely already eating it in the omelets, mushroom soups, or tomato sauces they make at home. 

“There is no difference between the naturally occurring glutamate found in umami-rich mushrooms, cheese, and tomatoes and the glutamate found in MSG,” Eng says.