A salty taste enhancer of the present invention includes a finely ground plant tissue product in which at least a part of cell walls are destroyed and which passes through a size of 140-mesh, and a flavor component including a Maillard reaction product and a sulfur-containing compound. In particular, when the finely ground plant tissue product includes a sterol or a sterol fatty acid ester shown by the following general formula (1), an excellent salty taste enhancing effect is exhibited, and even if an amount of a salt used is reduced, the impact of a first taste and the retention of an aftertaste can be enhanced, and the amount of the salt used can be reduced without impairing a taste of food and drink. (Provided that in the formula (1), R 1 represents a hydrogen atom or a fatty acid residue, and R 2 represents a hydrocarbon group including no double bond.)
