You will have heard the saying, “We eat with our eyes”?

Well actually, we eat with all our senses, take our ears for example.

Flavour and sound are intrinsically linked, yes it makes a huge difference.

Imagine the crunch of a potato crisp or an apple when you bite into it – if they don’t crunch, our ears tell our brains that they are proberbly stale.

Or how about the fizz of champagne or soft drinks– if you couldn’t hear it, you’d think it was flat.

Some food companies marketing departments are fully aware of this, and exploit it. 

Rice Krispies built a brand on the “snap, crackle, pop” of their cereals.

When we sit down to eat, we aren’t always in the same state of mind. Sometimes we are munching our way through a sandwich in the car late for a meeting, or perhaps we’re sat sipping leisurely on a hot chocolate and lingering over exquisitely plates of food while we catch up with friends.

When we are hungry, we can find ourselves eating too quickly, taking larger than normal mouthfuls, hardly noticing, let alone tasting our food. Conversely we could be eating slowly, if we have something on our mind distracting us from our meal. We are not present in the process of eating so not able to appreciate the full range of flavours and aromas.

What often happens is we don’t feel satisfied and are left wanting more—more snacks, more chocolate, more.

Where were our five senses?

That’s when we start craving snacks, and look around for other foods to eat, to fill that void, this then can become a bad habit.

One of the ways to be mindful of what you eat is to be present and engage all five senses when food is placed before you.

1. Look=20%

If you’re in a restaurant then read the menu it’s the chef’s description of the dish. Take a look at the plate in front of you.

What does it look like? Is it well plated very tempting ?  Is each eliment of the dish placed carefully with finesse?

Does the food look hot, not over-cooked? Is the portion large, or small?

2. Touch=5%

We don’t always touch our food, unless the dish calls for, unless you’re having things like chocolates, bread and fruits, finger food like joloff rice french fries, or cuisines like Indian food or Mexican tacos. If you do get a chance to touch your food, observe things like texture and temperature. Is it hard and crispy, or soft and mushy? Is it ice cold, strangely lukewarm, or too hot or cold to the touch?

 

3. Listen=20%

Notice the sound it makes as you cut it or take a bite. Does it make a crunching noise or is it squishy like when you eat belly pork or bone marrow? Did it sound the way you expected?

 

4.Smell=75-95%

Next take a forkful of food and lift it to your nose, lean over the bowl.

What can you smell?

The sharp pungency of spices, the fiery rush of chilli, or the soothing aroma of chicken?

how is the smell is making you feel. Does it bring back pleasant memories or make you want to have a mouthful immediately, does it smell strange, or do you need to have a taste to find out?

5. Taste=5-10%

As the food is in your mouth, think about its taste, texture, and temperature.

Is it taste sweet, sour, salty, umami or bitter?

Is it fresh-sweet like carrot, or salty-sweet like butterscotch?

Is it sour like lime…or more like red berries?
What is the texture of the like? Is it crisp and flaky like pie, smooth like mashed potato, or crunchy like vegetable stalks?
How’s the temperature of the food in your mouth? Burning our tongue, too cold to taste, or just right to eat?

With every mouthful, after each of the five senses, think about how you feel about the dish.

What do you think about the dish’s look, smell, taste, or texture?

Did it meet your expectations?

Do you want to eat more, or are you not bothered?

Then, compare how each mouthful changes as you taste with your five senses.

Does it look less appetising because you’ve stirred it around, but tastes better?

Has it become soggy and cold with each mouthful, and less desirable than your first bite? Or is it cooked so well that each mouthful tastes as good as the first?

When we start noticing and realising all these things, we start to judge our food not like a critique but like a gourmet.

You become more in tune to what you’re thinking, how you feel while eating, and you gain control over your emotions, hunger levels, and cravings.

This can help to stop us overeating, and giving in to cravings.