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Scientists Confirm Soup Tastes Better the Next Day
Confirmed
In Short: Scientists at Deakin University in Australia have confirmed what many home cooks and food enthusiasts have long suspected: leftovers, particularly soup, can taste better the next day.
Scientists at Deakin University in Australia have confirmed what many home cooks and food enthusiasts have long suspected: leftovers, particularly soup, can taste better the next day.
The study, which is currently a preprint and has not yet undergone peer review, involved recruiting 30 university staff and students to rank 25 dishes based on their belief that these foods improve overnight.
Participants were asked to taste and compare fresh dishes with their day-old counterparts in a blind test to eliminate any bias.
According to Chef Greg Garrison, 'Soup tasting better the next day is very real,' echoing the sentiments of Chef River Hill, who stated, 'The saying 'soups are always better the next day' is absolutely true.
The research team found that only one dish lived up to the reputation of tasting better the next day, and it was soup.
The study highlights how aroma, taste, texture, temperature, and even memory all contribute to the perception of deliciousness, as explained by experimental psychologist Charles Spence from the University of Oxford.
While apple crumble was the most popular dish overall, the study's primary focus was on the myth of leftovers tasting better.
The team noted that when storing and reheating meaty dishes, a phenomenon called 'warmed-over flavor' can occur, giving the food a stale or cardboard-like note.
The specific joy of finding leftovers waiting in the fridge, like a gift from a past self, is a common experience for many people.
The study's findings add scientific backing to the common belief that certain foods, especially soups, can indeed taste better after a day in the fridge.
What this adds
The study confirms the popular belief that leftovers, especially soups, can taste better the next day, providing scientific evidence for a long-held culinary notion.
What's confirmed
- Scientists at Deakin University in Australia have confirmed what many home cooks and food enthusiasts have long suspected: leftovers, particularly soup, can taste better the next day.
- The study, which is currently a preprint and has not yet undergone peer review, involved recruiting 30 university staff and students to rank 25 dishes based on their belief that these foods improve overnight.
- Participants were asked to taste and compare fresh dishes with their day-old counterparts in a blind test to eliminate any bias.
- According to Chef Greg Garrison, 'Soup tasting better the next day is very real,' echoing the sentiments of Chef River Hill, who stated, 'The saying 'soups are always better the next day' is absolutely true.
- The research team found that only one dish lived up to the reputation of tasting better the next day, and it was soup.
- The study highlights how aroma, taste, texture, temperature, and even memory all contribute to the perception of deliciousness, as explained by experimental psychologist Charles Spence from the University of Oxford.
- While apple crumble was the most popular dish overall, the study's primary focus was on the myth of leftovers tasting better.
- The team noted that when storing and reheating meaty dishes, a phenomenon called 'warmed-over flavor' can occur, giving the food a stale or cardboard-like note.
- The specific joy of finding leftovers waiting in the fridge, like a gift from a past self, is a common experience for many people.
- The study's findings add scientific backing to the common belief that certain foods, especially soups, can indeed taste better after a day in the fridge.
What's still developing
- Your suspicions are right: soup really does taste better the next day.
- There are few dishes as wholesome and nourishing as soup.
- Whether it’s a simple chicken noodle soup or a creamy white bean soup, flavors seem to deepen overnight.
- "You have a takeaway curry one night, then eat the leftovers for breakfast the next morning, and somehow it seems even better," Keast told James Woodford at New Scientist.
- Crucially, nobody was told which was which, so there was less chance of anyone's 'leftovers are better' bias influencing their taste buds.