Food for the senses
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe a range of different ingredients used to flavour dishes from around the world.
Key learning points
- Herbs, spices, fruits and aromatic ingredients have a range of smells and flavours.
- Different cuisines around the world are associated with different smells and flavours.
- The sensory attributes of ingredients can be described and rated (measured).
Keywords
Cuisine - a style or method of cooking in a certain country or region
Senses - sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch
Herbs - leafy green parts of plants which are used in cooking
Spices - the seeds, roots, bark, or dried fruit of plants
Aromatic - other fruit and vegetables that add aroma and flavour to dishes, e.g. garlic, fresh ginger
Common misconception
Sensory evaluation can only help us decide whether we like a food or not.
Sensory evaluation can help us decide whether we like foods, but also allows us to describe and compare foods.
Teacher tip
This lesson involves pupils tasting and describing a range of foods. Have the food samples, such as citrus fruits, herbs, spices, garlic and ginger, cut into small pieces before the lesson, so that time is not wasted. Encourage pupils to handle, smell and taste the foods. Always check for allergies.
Equipment
A range of ingredients (pre-prepared) for sensory testing. Paper towels.
Licence
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these is a lime?
Q2.The __________ is used to detect the taste of a food.
Q3.Match the following senses:
it looks green and lumpy
is has a sweet and buttery smell
it has a very spicy taste
it is crunchy
Q4.Which of these cuisines traditionally uses lots of rice in their dishes?
Q5.What word best describes this fruit?
Q6.Sort the following into the correct order for tasting a food:
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.__________ come from the seeds, roots, bark, or dried fruit of plants.
Q2.Match the following cuisines to their popular foods:
pizza, lasagne, risotto and focaccia bread
dhal, tandoori chicken, naan bread and biryani
sushi, ramen (noodle soup) and tempura
jollof rice, fufu, peanut soup and waakye (rice and beans)
Q3.Match the following ingredient types:
mint, coriander
cardamom, cumin
garlic, lemongrass
lime, pomegranate
Q4.The process of describing or rating food, using our senses, is called ...
Q5. is used in Middle Eastern stews and, in the UK, apple crumble.
Q6.True or false? Sensory evaluation can only help us decide whether we like a food or not.
To help you plan your 5 cooking and nutrition lesson on: Food for the senses, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 cooking and nutrition lesson on: Food for the senses, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 cooking and nutrition lessons from the Our rich global food cuisine unit, dive into the full primary cooking and nutrition curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.