That Final Touch to Elevate a Dish

[Peter the eater]

So the food is on the plate. It looks, smells and tastes outstanding. But which little sprinkle, what microplaned shaving, what dust or spritz can tweak it out of the park?

I wouldn't recognize a French white truffle if you gavaged me with it, only because I've never tasted one. I hear it's awesome. Usually, I just crack the black pepper or shave the nutmeg to add something special on top of dinner. Lately, I'm favoring a smear of pure maple butter on top of pretty much everything. If you've not tried it please do -- it's like real 100% maple syrup, without the water.

What else is good?

[heidih]

I am a fan of adding just a touch of acidity. There is a topic about acid here.

[Peter the eater]

I am a fan of adding just a touch of acidity. There is a topic about acid here.

Forgot about that topic, thanks. A few drops of vinegar or lime juice can really make a difference. It's funny, I've been watching the earlier seasons of Top Chef and just tonight one of the judges said something like "people odd excess salt when a splash of acid will do". That said, I often like a visible flake of salt on the top.

[Tri2Cook]

A bit of piment d'espelette is a nice touch in a surpisingly wide range of applications.

[jk1002]

Microplaned lemon-peel. In one of the river street cookbooks they did that over some sort of chicken soup and it turned for me at least the dish from "meh" to superb.

Edited January 19, 2010 by jk1002 (log)

[inductioncook]

Peter, you were probably just kidding about the French white truffle, but in case not: no white truffles from France. But top French truffle merchants have started, and chefs have followed suit, shaving their black truffles raw over dishes, in the Italian white truffle style. And black truffle dishes often have shavings on top as well as small pieces cooked in.

[Peter the eater]

Peter, you were probably just kidding about the French white truffle, but in case not: no white truffles from France. But top French truffle merchants have started, and chefs have followed suit, shaving their black truffles raw over dishes, in the Italian white truffle style. And black truffle dishes often have shavings on top as well as small pieces cooked in.

Thank you for politely teaching me that in the truffle world, white=Italy and black=France. Is there really no overlap? given they share a substantial border. Truffles are so far off my radar, they're definitely going on my Life List.

I've seen many TV chefs wielding the truffle plane wherever possible without me knowing what good it does, or what difference fungus color makes!

Sincerely, Helpless in Halifax.

[scubadoo97]

For me the things that elevate at the end are; acids, finsihing oils, citrus zest and salt

[Peter the eater]

For me the things that elevate at the end are; acids, finsihing oils, citrus zest and salt

Those all sound like good ideas. What are some examples of finishing oils that do the job? I've tried flavoring olive oil with hot peppers, etc. -- not bad. Are there some fancy nut oils out there that put the proverbial cherry on top?

[scubadoo97]

Mostly it's a very good fruity California EVOO that adds a big punch of flavor. Nut oils are good also. I don't keep them around as much due to their short shelf life.

[Reignking]

I haven't tried it yet, but I just read about sprinkling powdered dried mushrooms on food -- it sounds like a fantastic idea.

[paulraphael]

I try to have the flavors balanced by the time the food goes on the plate. I'm not interested in correcting or enhancing anything at this point, because I can't taste it. The plating is about presentation, which is both esthetic and practical ... making the food like pretty / interesting / inviting, and making it easy to eat in a way that combines the flavors according your intent.

I have less natural aptitude for plating than probably anyone here, so I'm not going to lecture on techniques. But I generally think the final elevation comes from thoughtful arrangement of what you have, rather than the addition of some kind of secret sauce. And I hope the trend of splashing dry spices on the edge of the plate ("BAM!") has been burried deeply.

[JAZ]

I try to have the flavors balanced by the time the food goes on the plate. I'm not interested in correcting or enhancing anything at this point, because I can't taste it.

Sometimes, though, there's an element of a dish that pretty much has to be added right before service, such as gremolata on osso buco. Sure, you could serve the osso buco without it, but it adds a fresh note and some acid to the rich dish that couldn't be added in the cooking process. Also, crunchy elements like crisp bacon or toasted nuts often work much better added right before serving, so they don't get soggy.

It's not about correcting the flavors, it's about adding a necessary layer of flavor or texture that can't, for various reasons, be done in advance.

[paulraphael]

Janet, I think we agree ... you're mentioning things that are intrinsic to a dish that have to be added at the time of plating. I understood the question as more about all-purpose additions (like maple butter that you add to just about everything).

[Peter the eater]

Janet, I think we agree ... you're mentioning things that are intrinsic to a dish that have to be added at the time of plating. I understood the question as more about all-purpose additions (like maple butter that you add to just about everything).

Paul, everything is better with maple butter, it's the new bacon. What I'm wondering about are those small touches at the last minute that add a little something. A nasturtium flower, some fennel fronds, oil droplets, whatever. Stuff that's not on the table at Pizza Pizza.

[nickrey]

You mentioned oil droplets. You can use them to enliven both presentation and taste.

Check out this dish that I did. The green oil droplets in the sauce are parsley oil.

To achieve it, get a quantity of parsley. Freeze dry it in your freezer. Put it into a food processor and process until powdered (the freezing makes this step possible). Add to oil. In this case as it was going with fish, some salted capers were rinsed and drained, freeze dried and processed with the parsley.

I used an eye dropper to place the oil in the sauce.

This process gives colour in terms of plating and also flavour.

Edited January 23, 2010 by nickrey (log)

[Lapin d'Argent]

Especially with dishes that are braised, or intentionally cooked in a way so that their flavors marry, I find a sprinkle of ONE fresh herb can perk things up and add a nice contrast. Parsley is the heavy hitter here, but basil is a close runner-up, depending on the dish. And combined with the afore-mentioned citrus rind...well, that's just fabulous on a brisket, for example.

[nakji]

Sometimes the dish itself is a blank canvas onto which people's personal flavour desires are drawn. I'm thinking especially of dishes like pho. When it's set down in front of you, it's a bowl of beef noodle soup. It's what you do to it after that elevates it to something crave-worthy. For example, mine always gets herbs,lime, and pickled garlic slices for a more acidic note. My husband always adds onions and bean sprouts because he doesn't want to correct the flavour, just the texture. My friend wouldn't consider eating it at all without two spoons of good, pho-house-made chili sauce. The original dish is just a jumping-off point, a beginning for deliciousness, that ecumenically allows for people of varying tastes to enjoy the same dish.

Am I correct in thinking that a lot of good pasta recipes call for a drizzle of fine olive oil at the end, just before serving, as a seasoning?

[Peter the eater]

Flax seeds are nice on top of soups, deserts, yogurt, etc. The variety I get comes from CanMar in Saskatchewan. The seed gets washed, roasted and milled, then flavored and bagged. Loaded with omega threes.

[technogypsy]

Salt! Yes!

Especially when I cook, I find a touch before serving makes a difference. I forgot what exactly it was that mt 17 year old made and just the dash of salt took it from eh to wow.

And lime down here is used more than lemon. Or a dusting of chipolte.

Kevin

[Jenni]

I like lemon juice, black pepper and ground nutmeg add at the table. I think if you cook these things into the dish, it has a completely different flavour.

Could ghee also be counted? A dab of ghee on top of a steaming plate of khichari is divine, to say nothing of its effect on a fresh chapati.

[LoriZig]

I'll be honest- unless it's seafood, a light dusting of romano, parmesan, goat cheese or feta crumbles almost always adds another wonderful dimension. But then, I'm pretty sure I would eat just about anything with cheese...

As far as finishing oils go- yes, a good olive oil is nice although I've found that avocado oil is a rich, delicious change of scenery. And of course, truffle oil is a WAY less expensive way to get the knee-weakening flavor of truffles. I especially like it drizzled on mashed potatoes or even baked mac & cheese.

[mig]

seconding parsley oil. i also have made an infused oil with spanish paprika - delish. i learned both these oils in a single recipe in Anya von Bremzen's Spanish tapas cookbook; both were included as finishers for a garbanzo bean soup.