It was revealed that odor enhancers were used, and the supervisors were fumigated with "masks of pain". Has the snail noodle also "collapsed"?

In recent years, a "notorious" internet celebrity has emerged - snail noodles.

The "dark king" of the food world, the stinky-smelling snail noodle has become a national internet celebrity, and many people can't get enough of its stinky yet fragrant taste.

However, today, the "odor enhancer" in snail noodles has sparked heated discussions across the Internet. It turns out that the Chengdu Market Supervision Bureau released a video showing that the supervisors conducted a surprise inspection of a snail noodle shop with a takeaway platform score of 4.7 and a monthly sales volume of more than 4,000. It was found that the shop only accepted takeaway business and did not provide dine-in services; the kitchen environment was dirty and the quality of the ingredients was worrying. "Odor enhancers" specifically for smelling snail noodles and food additives and flavors were also found under the kitchen operating table.

What is a "smell enhancer"? Is it safe? Why is it so smelly? Can we still eat snail rice noodles without worry?

Core Tips

■The flavor of snail rice noodle is the combined taste of snails, leg bones, spices, sour bamboo shoots, chili oil and other ingredients.

■“Odor enhancer” is a common colloquial name. It is essentially a compound seasoning that simulates the aroma of snail noodles through a variety of raw materials and flavors.

■As long as the "odor enhancers" used on the market are regular products, there will be no safety issues if used reasonably.

■The characteristic of flavors and fragrances is "self-limiting", that is, they are fragrant when used in small amounts, but they smell bad when used in excess.

1 What is an “ odor enhancer ”?

"Odor enhancer" is actually a common term used by the media. It refers to the base material packets and stinky sauce used in snail noodles. These products are compound seasonings, which contain compound food additives - flavors and spices. Their main function is to give the product a specific smell or taste.

Any mixture of two or more food additives can be called a compound food additive. According to the definition of the National Food Safety Standard "General Rules for Compound Food Additives", compound food additives are food additives made by mixing two or more single-variety food additives with or without auxiliary materials by physical methods in order to improve food quality and facilitate food processing.

2 Are “ odor enhancers ” safe?

All legally used "odor enhancers" are permitted for use and have been evaluated and approved for national safety and are safe when used appropriately.

Some people may worry about what happens if you use too much? Will it be harmful? There is no need to worry about this. Because in actual application, it is impossible to use too much fragrance.

One characteristic of flavors is that they are " self-limiting ", which means that a small amount will smell good, but too much will smell bad, so bad that you may feel sick or cough. This is why the staff of the Chengdu Municipal Market Supervision Bureau was so badly smelled by the smell of the snail noodle shop's odor enhancer that they coughed and wore a "pain mask". He actually demonstrated the self-limiting nature of flavors to us in person, so you don't have to worry about overdosing.

There are no limit requirements on flavors and fragrances in the world, but rather they are self-limited.

Image source: Screenshot of news report, staff members were smoked out of "pain masks" by odor enhancers

This is not only true for snail noodle "odor enhancers", but also for all flavors. The perfumes that many people use now are also flavors, and if the concentration is high, they will also smell bad. So even if you go to the perfume R&D workshop, you can't smell it, it's particularly smelly.

3What are the flavoring substances in snail rice noodle ? How is it different from the odor enhancer?

The soup base of Liuzhou snail rice noodle is mainly boiled with snails, shanks, spices, etc., and is served with sour bamboo shoots, chili oil, etc. The rich raw and auxiliary materials during processing and consumption create the unique flavor of Liuzhou snail rice noodle: fresh, sour, spicy, and with a special "stinky" smell. The freshness mainly comes from the snails, the main raw material of the soup; the sourness and "stink" come from the fermented vegetable sour bamboo shoots added when eating; the spicy taste mainly comes from the added chili oil.

Therefore, the flavor of snail noodles is actually the combined taste of all the ingredients. It has many aroma components and is very complex, which together constitute the unique and irresistible taste of snail noodles.

The so-called "odor enhancer" is actually a product that simulates the aroma of snail noodles through a variety of raw materials and flavors. Concentrated soup base and stinky sauce are a form of "odor enhancer". Their ingredients are not exactly the same, but there is usually not much difference, and most people can't tell them apart.

Some people say that the special flavor of traditional snail rice noodle is not that strong (stinky), but the commercialized one feels more smelly. In fact, the market development is to make the product recognizable, and the result is that it is constantly strengthening in one direction (stinky).

4. Are all the base packets of snail rice noodle thickeners ? Has the reputation of snail rice noodle also collapsed?

In fact, the two have been forcibly equated and stigmatized by the media.

"Odor enhancer" is actually a common name derived from the Internet. From the perspective of food additives, compound food additives management and product classification, there is no such thing.

Thick soup base and stinky sauce are the product names of the seasoning packets in snail noodles. They are essentially compound seasonings that use a lot of raw materials, including "drinking water, snail meat, sour bamboo shoots, etc.", as well as some essences and spices. The purpose is to increase its aroma and give snail noodles a unique flavor and taste, making everyone feel it tastes better.

The ingredient list of a certain instant snail noodle base and the ingredient list of the "stinky sauce". Image from: Internet

Current media reports all describe them as "odor enhancers", which is actually suspected of misleading and stigmatizing, making people think that this thing is bad, making it more likely to "collapse".

However, although the soup base packet of snail noodles contains some seasonings and spices, as long as it is a regular product, food manufacturers follow relevant food safety standards and regulations and use them reasonably, there will be no food safety problems, and snail noodles cannot be considered a "collapse" at all.

On the same day when the news fermented, Huang Jiapeng, secretary general of the Liuzhou River Snail Noodles Association, also responded to the existence of "odor enhancers" in river snail noodles, pointing out that it is "mainly processed and produced using pickled sour bamboo shoots, seafood sauce and spices" and "conforms to the production standards for solid or semi-solid seasonings." He also emphasized that "odor enhancer" is a daily colloquial term, and the standard name should be "seasoning."

Image source: News screenshot

Of course, the real problem of some snail noodle shops reported by the media is that they are dirty, messy, and have poor sanitary conditions. This is a common problem in many small restaurants, and snail noodles are no exception. However, all small restaurants will have dirty and messy manufacturers/restaurants, but there are definitely manufacturers/restaurants with standardized production. When you dine out, try to choose a regular restaurant with good sanitary conditions.

References:

Qing Mingyi, Ye Yinfeng, Li Yuchan, et al. Research progress on flavor substances of snail rice noodle[J]. Cereals, Oils and Food Science & Technology, 2023, 31(06): 91-97. DOI: 10.16210/j.cnki.1007-7561.2023.06.012.