Fork Makes Broccoli Taste Like Bubblegum

Fork Makes Broccoli Taste Like Bubblegum

Gone are the days of dreaming about candy-flavored broccoli from our high chairs. The dream is now reality.

The Aromafork, a near-magical product that is part of the Aroma R-evolution kit (HuffPost first reported on the product's patent in April), has the potential to transform bland flavors into thrilling ones.

aroma revolution
The contents of the Aroma R-evolution flavoring kit

The fork plays with perception, Sophie Boivin, the public relations representative for Molecule-R Flavors, told The Huffington Post. It tricks the mind into thinking that it's eating what you're smelling. Since our nose is actually more adept at taste than our tongue is (our tastebuds can detect five flavors, while our nose can distinguish trillions), the gadget emits scents to influence taste as you eat.

To work the utensil, you drip a droplet of one of the liquid aromas -- which is very concentrated -- onto a paper in the handle, and then inhale while biting into whatever is at the end of the fork.

Boivin says chocolate mousse eaten with the wasabi aroma, for example, is a combination that really mystifies the senses.

wasabi pud

"You have the feel and texture and meltiness of chocolate mousse, but the taste of wasabi," she says. And, while you're tasting, your sight is also a bit befuddled: the brown chocolate tastes like what you visually assume is green heat. The whole experience is delightfully confusing.

The Aromafork might give anyone allergic to peanuts (up to one percent of the population) the chance to enjoy the ever-beloved peanut butter and jelly sandwich, so long as they're willing to eat it with a fork. Each aroma is free of all known allergens, including peanuts, nuts, milk, fish and eggs. So, those who have restrictions may finally be able to taste the foods they miss. Even those who've cut meat from their diets might add the "smoke" aroma to their fork, which Boivin (a vegetarian herself) says makes things taste a lot like bacon.

In total, the kit is equipped with 21 aromas in 6 different flavor categories:

periodicofaroma

Beyond novelty combinations and tastes for allergy sufferers, the flavor fork can also replicate traditional food pairings. Team plain, try mashed potatoes with the butter aroma and you've got buttered mash potatoes.

butter

This may be revolutionary for anyone in search of a healthier waistline: Just a tablespoon of real butter contains 100 calories, but the smell will cost you nothing. Boivin says the kit was originally developed for education and entertainment, but there has been talk of adapting it for diets and weight loss in the future.

If you're intrigued and would like to do a little sensory manipulation of your own, you can purchase the Aroma R-evolution kit online.

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