Recently I've been really interested in the presentation of food—the one thing that separates my chicken in wine and mushroom, say, from one served at Caprices de Nicolas. Obviously, when I cook spaghetti for myself, I don't put an artful chiffonade of basil leaves on top, but when it's for someone else, I've been thinking that my cooking needs to go to a new level.
Most of the time you don't even eat the garnish. How many sprigs of parsley have gone untouched back with the busboy on your plates? And you don't lap up that squeeze-bottle squiggle of cilantro-lime reduction after you're done with the Thai Grilled Chicken, do you, but you're kind of glad that it's there. Those small touches always add that indefinable element to your restaurant experience.
A sprig of parsley is a tiny thing and you just don't think about it, but it's really like the curly holly ornament on a Christmas present. It doesn't need to be there, but it makes the whole thing more Christmasy.
Thus, my newfound interest. However, I think that unless you're going to be getting paid for it at your next soirée, making cucumber petunia clusters or radish mice is not an art form you're going to be needing much.
Yet I've been able to find spectacularly little information on the subject. Can you put a thin slice of lemon on a halibut, and will it make the fish taste better? Why not a handful of long-cut spring onions? Or maybe you put the halibut on a single leaf of crisp romaine and drizzle chili oil on top?
I realise that these things are individual choices that make up recipes, but isn't there a general guide to garnishing for the home cook that eschews grand soliloquies that involve melon ball-mushroom flower cutters in favor of some simple, eye-pleasing presentations that will make anyone's cooking look like it was made in a restaurant? What goes well with what? How to make those squeeze-bottle squiggles?
I won't bore you with a list of books on the subject matter that I've looked at, precisely because none of them fits the criteria I just outlined.
Maybe someone should start a webpage on the subject . . .
. . . whadda you looking at??
oh nick - could you recommend one or two of those food presentation books which you've read and which you think are better to read? i am interested in the topic too and need to brush up on my skills - look at my salmon dish that other night and the disproportionately big and thick lemon slice!! HAHA! and i was so hungry, my hands were trembling holding the tiny digital camera and i still couldnt decide where on earth and at what angle i should be putting that lemon slice!!! how miserable! nor did i have the mood to cut another smaller and thinner slice to give another go!!! although i should also say once in a while doing (attempting to do) some elegent food presentation even just for oneself is indeed v fun (that is, when one is not hungry and is not desperate for the food)=P
ReplyDeleteIngrid, once I brined some chicken for a dinner but left it waaaay too long. I thought it would make tastier chicken, but it was so salty it was almost inedible. Unfortunately that was for a showcase dinner for a couple of friends . . . as we sat down I loudly proclaimed how salty the chicken was, but one of my (so considerate!) friends hissed "NEVER criticise your own food--they might think it's supposed to be that way!" and we went on with the meal without anyone mentioning the bad chicken.
ReplyDeleteWhich is why I remark--the lemon slice was what made the picture! Only you knew that it was too thick :)
Yes, when you're an idiot about food like I am, which means that the process of making it becomes more important than the eating of it, then stuff like the orientation of the lemon slice becomes an issue. But I swear, I'll look for a good therapist . . .
I tossed around a couple of ideas before I committed but I actually ordered "The Book of Garnishes" by June Budgen. I haven't received it yet, but I plan to put it to work when I do.
It's kind of goofy to admit, but the reason I've been doing videos for this blog is because my digital camera died about a month ago, so I've had to rely on the camcorder for images. But now that I've purchased another digicam, I'm reconsidering . . . video is much more work but I'm swiftly getting addicted to it!
I should get the garnish book next week. I'll surely dream up a project to use it for, and I'll post it here.