Seasonings, Herb and Spices
I focus on three primary elements when cooking or developing new recipes for my
clients. These elements are appearance, taste and texture, as these three can
(and should) affect all five senses. All three elements are critical to fine dining
experiences. Let us focus on a small area of the element of taste - seasoning.
Over the last few decades, seasoning mixes have become extremely popular
because they are very convenient allowing us to save a little time, and produce
reasonably consistent results. Many prepackaged seasoning mixes have excellent
balances between the ingredients, allowing us to optimize what we do in the kitchen
with no in-process tasting or adjusting. Years ago, I used a taco-seasoning mix
producing consistently excellent results in several of my dishes. However, when I
consider the cost of those little packets against buying the individual ingredients, the
cost was more than 20 times higher than if I made it myself from the individual
ingredients listed on the little packet. This is why I now produce my own line of
seasonings and dry-rubs.
Cost aside, there are also potential risks of using pre-packaged mixes for people
who have Celiac disease. Many of the mixes, of course, use flour as a thickener or
anti-caking agent, as it is cheap and readily accessible. Some mixes use “caramel
coloring” ingredients that come from barley malt, a no-no for people with Celiac
disease. “Natural flavors” is a catch-all not scrutinized by our labeling laws at this
time. For this reason, use caution when purchasing items that contain “natural
flavors,” UNLESS the package is specifically labeled as “Gluten-Free.” There are
many differing definitions of what “natural” means. Our government agencies don’t
agree on how to handle this debated issue.
My solution: Make it yourself. You have control and you KNOW exactly what is in
your final product. For those who frequently use prepackaged mixes or have a
small menu repertoire, a common challenge is that they do not know how specific
herbs and spices affect flavor. This is not surprising since there are so many herbs
and spices. Learning how to season your dishes is no small task, but it is doable if
you are willing to spend some time and a little money. It is all about learning how
specific herbs and spices taste and how to layer flavors. Remember, you may not
like the taste of a specific herb or spice, but when blended with others, a completely
new dimension may be added to your food.
Here is a good starting place for common herb and spices. When blended in
appropriate proportions, these will produce wonderful results. Kosher salt, pepper
(fresh ground black), onion powder, garlic and garlic powder are of course the most
common. Add to this the common herbs, thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, Herbs
Provencal and parsley. All the above will provide you with a good foundation for
what is considered “savory.” To wake things up, consider crushed red pepper,
cayenne pepper and chipotle powder. These will add the “spicy” element of taste. I
use organic sugar, maple sugar and molasses to balance acidity and heat. All of
these mentioned above will serve as a strong foundation to flavoring many dishes.
I have about 60 herbs and spices in our home. When cooking in my clients’ homes,
I typically limit myself to about 24 herbs and spices, and take additional small
amounts of specific spices as dictated by the menu. Herbs and spices are
expensive, so do not plan on buying them all at once, or you might be surprised at
the cash register.
From where should you purchase your herbs and spices? For dried herb and
spices, I typically use Simply Organic, Morton & Bassett or McCormick. These
manufacturers are all GF and produce high quality and consistent flavors.
Take some time to read up on different herb and spices and how they are used.
You can wake up your favorite recipes making a few subtle changes with the proper
seasonings.
Bon appetite.
BACK
clients. These elements are appearance, taste and texture, as these three can
(and should) affect all five senses. All three elements are critical to fine dining
experiences. Let us focus on a small area of the element of taste - seasoning.
Over the last few decades, seasoning mixes have become extremely popular
because they are very convenient allowing us to save a little time, and produce
reasonably consistent results. Many prepackaged seasoning mixes have excellent
balances between the ingredients, allowing us to optimize what we do in the kitchen
with no in-process tasting or adjusting. Years ago, I used a taco-seasoning mix
producing consistently excellent results in several of my dishes. However, when I
consider the cost of those little packets against buying the individual ingredients, the
cost was more than 20 times higher than if I made it myself from the individual
ingredients listed on the little packet. This is why I now produce my own line of
seasonings and dry-rubs.
Cost aside, there are also potential risks of using pre-packaged mixes for people
who have Celiac disease. Many of the mixes, of course, use flour as a thickener or
anti-caking agent, as it is cheap and readily accessible. Some mixes use “caramel
coloring” ingredients that come from barley malt, a no-no for people with Celiac
disease. “Natural flavors” is a catch-all not scrutinized by our labeling laws at this
time. For this reason, use caution when purchasing items that contain “natural
flavors,” UNLESS the package is specifically labeled as “Gluten-Free.” There are
many differing definitions of what “natural” means. Our government agencies don’t
agree on how to handle this debated issue.
My solution: Make it yourself. You have control and you KNOW exactly what is in
your final product. For those who frequently use prepackaged mixes or have a
small menu repertoire, a common challenge is that they do not know how specific
herbs and spices affect flavor. This is not surprising since there are so many herbs
and spices. Learning how to season your dishes is no small task, but it is doable if
you are willing to spend some time and a little money. It is all about learning how
specific herbs and spices taste and how to layer flavors. Remember, you may not
like the taste of a specific herb or spice, but when blended with others, a completely
new dimension may be added to your food.
Here is a good starting place for common herb and spices. When blended in
appropriate proportions, these will produce wonderful results. Kosher salt, pepper
(fresh ground black), onion powder, garlic and garlic powder are of course the most
common. Add to this the common herbs, thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, Herbs
Provencal and parsley. All the above will provide you with a good foundation for
what is considered “savory.” To wake things up, consider crushed red pepper,
cayenne pepper and chipotle powder. These will add the “spicy” element of taste. I
use organic sugar, maple sugar and molasses to balance acidity and heat. All of
these mentioned above will serve as a strong foundation to flavoring many dishes.
I have about 60 herbs and spices in our home. When cooking in my clients’ homes,
I typically limit myself to about 24 herbs and spices, and take additional small
amounts of specific spices as dictated by the menu. Herbs and spices are
expensive, so do not plan on buying them all at once, or you might be surprised at
the cash register.
From where should you purchase your herbs and spices? For dried herb and
spices, I typically use Simply Organic, Morton & Bassett or McCormick. These
manufacturers are all GF and produce high quality and consistent flavors.
Take some time to read up on different herb and spices and how they are used.
You can wake up your favorite recipes making a few subtle changes with the proper
seasonings.
Bon appetite.
BACK
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Waking up Your Palate Without Prepackaged Mixes