Celebrate your festival with typical recipes full of umami!

São Paulo, June 2025 – Have you thought about which recipes to prepare to make your June festivities even more delicious? The June festivals are marked by enchanting traditions, and gastronomy plays a fundamental role in this scenario. Valuing the typical flavors of this period through different recipes is also a way to reinforce affective and cultural bonds, and umami can be a great ally in this mission.

Known as the fifth taste of the human palate, alongside sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, umami contributes to a deeper and more prolonged perception of flavors. “The fifth taste enhances the natural characteristics of the ingredients and provides a more balanced and pleasurable experience. When we use corn, for example, which is present in a large part of the June festival recipes and is rich in glutamate, an amino acid responsible for conferring umami, we can further highlight the authentic flavor of the dishes,” says Lisiane Miura, chef of the Umami Committee.

Check out below the selection of recipes specially chosen for the June festivals:

PASTRY DOUGH

Preparation Time: 1 hour
Yield: approximately 760 g of dough
Developed by: Portal Umami

Ingredients

• 4 and a half cups (500 g) of wheat flour
• 1 egg (50 g)
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of oil
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of brandy
• Half a teaspoon (2.5 g) of salt
• Half a teaspoon (2 g) of monosodium glutamate AJI-NO-MOTO®
• 1 cup (200 ml) of ice water

Preparation Method

1. In a large bowl, place the wheat flour, make a well in the center and add the egg, oil, brandy, salt and AJI-NO-MOTO®. Add the water gradually and knead with your hands until a smooth, homogeneous dough forms. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for 40 minutes.
2. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough very thinly (approximately 2 mm thick) and cut into rectangles or circles. Distribute the desired filling, fold them in half, and seal the edges with a fork.
3. Fry them in hot oil for 1 minute on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.

Tips:

1. This recipe makes 16 small pastries.
2. With this pastry dough, you can prepare various fillings such as meat, cheese, dried beef, and hearts of palm.

CORN RIBS

Preparation Time: 25 minutes (+ 10 minutes in the air fryer)
Yield: 2 servings
Developed by: Portal Umami

Ingredients

• 2 small ears of corn (400 g)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (15 ml)
• Half a teaspoon of hot paprika (2 g)
• 2 pinches of salt (0.8 g)
• 1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter (15 g)
• 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese (16 g)
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (5 g)

Preparation Method

1. Carefully cut the corn cob into 4 pieces lengthwise using a knife and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, paprika, and salt, and mix.
3. Add the corn and mix until the corn is completely coated with the seasonings.
4. Place in the air fryer basket and cook at 200 degrees (390 degrees Fahrenheit), preheated, for 10 minutes, or until golden brown and the corn is cooked.
5. Remove from the air fryer, brush with butter and sprinkle with grated cheese and cilantro.
6. Serve immediately.

Tip: To make it easier to cut the corn cob into 4 parts, make a cut at the base of the cob for more stability.

SAVORY CORN PUDDING

Preparation Time: 2 hours
Yield: 10 servings
Developed by: Portal Umami

Ingredients

• 10 ears of fresh corn (2.2 kg)
• 1 cup (200 ml) milk
• 1 tablespoon (12 g) sugar
• 2 teaspoons (10 g) salt
• 1 tablespoon (15 g) margarine
• 1 cup (200 ml) soybean oil
• ½ teaspoon (2 g) baking powder
• 100 g grated Parmesan cheese
• Corn husks for cooking the corn puddings

Preparation Method

1. Remove the husks from the ears of corn and reserve them for cooking the corn puddings.
2. Grate the corn or remove the kernels with a knife and blend in a blender with the milk until smooth.
3. Transfer the blended corn to a saucepan, add the remaining ingredients except for the husks, and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
4. Wash and dry the reserved husks. Fold each husk into a cone shape, overlapping the sides and leaving the wider part facing upwards. Hold the overlap with your fingers and fold the bottom of the cone in half (upwards), forming a small cup. Fill it with some of the corn mixture, close it like a small package, and tie it with kitchen twine.
5. Cook in boiling water for about 1 hour, or until the husk changes color and becomes yellowish.
6. Remove from heat, drain, and serve.

SAVORY CORN CAKE

Preparation Time: 25 minutes (+ 20 minutes in the oven)
Yield: 8 servings
Developed by: Portal Umami

Ingredients

• 4 eggs (200 g)
• 1 teaspoon of salt (5 g)
• 2 cups of milk (400 ml)
• 1/2 cup of unsalted margarine (100 g)
• 1 cup of wheat flour (110 g)
• 1 1/2 cups of cornmeal (195 g)
• 1 tablespoon of baking powder (12 g)
• 200 g of cubed curd cheese

Preparation Method

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, place the egg whites and a pinch of salt, and beat until foamy. Add the yolks, milk, margarine, and the remaining salt, and continue beating until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and gently mix in the wheat flour, cornmeal, and baking powder.
2. Place in a greased and floured rectangular baking pan (30 x 20 cm), spread the curd cheese and bake in a preheated medium oven (180 degrees) for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the surface comes out clean.
3. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Tips:

1. If you don’t have a mixer, use a blender to mix the ingredients, except for the wheat flour, cornmeal, and baking powder, which should be gently mixed separately.
2. If you prefer, add pieces of smoked and fried Calabrese sausage to the cake batter.

SWEET PAMONHA

Preparation Time: 2 hours
Yield: 10 servings
Developed by: Portal Umami

Ingredients

• 5 large ears of corn with husks (2.2 kg)
• Half a cup of milk (100 ml)
• 1 tablespoon of melted unsalted butter (15 g)
• 1 and a half cups of sugar (225 g)
• 1 pinch of salt (0.4 g)

Preparation Method

1. Using a large knife, cut the ears of corn at the base and separate the husks (reserve them for assembly). Cut the ends of the husks and discard them.
2. With a knife, remove the kernels from the ears of corn and transfer them to the blender. Combine the milk, butter, sugar, and salt, and beat at medium speed for 2 minutes, or until creamy.
3. Wash the corn husks, boil them for 3 minutes, and dry them with paper towels. Fold each husk into a cone shape, overlapping the sides and leaving the wider part facing up. Hold the overlap with your fingers and fold the bottom of the cone in half (upwards), forming a small cup. Fill it with some of the corn mixture.
4. Wrap the top of the cup with another husk and fold the remaining part (tip) of the husk towards the center, repeating the same process to close the edge of the first cup with this second one, in the opposite direction. Tie with pieces of kitchen twine.
5. Cook the pamonhas in boiling water for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until firm.
6. Remove from heat, drain, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Sustainable Development Goals

Ajinomoto do Brasil develops projects and actions aligned with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), defined by the United Nations (UN), which aim to achieve a more equitable and sustainable world by 2030. Click here to learn more about these projects.

The dissemination of this material directly contributes to the following SDGs:

UMAMI

It is the fifth basic taste of the human palate, discovered in 1908 by the Japanese scientist Kikunae Ikeda. It was scientifically recognized in 2000, when researchers at the University of Miami found the existence of specific receptors for this taste in the taste buds. The amino acid glutamic acid and the nucleotides inosinate and guanylate are the main umami substances. The two main characteristics of umami are increased salivation and the persistence of the taste for several minutes after ingestion of the food. To learn more, visit hmg-new.portalumami.com.br/wp/

About Ajinomoto do Brasil

Present in the country since 1956, Ajinomoto do Brasil is a benchmark in amino acids and widely known for its retail products, such as SAZÓN® Seasoning, MID® Soft Drinks, VONO® Soups and AJI-NO-MOTO® itself, in addition to operating in the food service segment (food away from home). The company offers high-quality products both for consumers and as inputs for the food, cosmetics, sports, pharmaceutical, animal nutrition and agribusiness industries. Its purpose is to contribute to the well-being of society, people and the planet using its expertise in “AminoScience,” the science of amino acids, from production to application, through a sustainable food system. To this end, it works with products developed from the Biocycle – a circular process of sustainable production – with less impact on the environment. With four factories in the interior of São Paulo and headquarters in the capital, it employs approximately 3,000 people and serves domestic and international markets. Globally, the Ajinomoto Group employs more than 34,000 people, has 117 factories, and its products are sold in over 130 countries. In 2024, it had global revenue of US$10.2 billion and national revenue of R$3.6 billion. For more information, visit www.ajinomoto.com.br.

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