Condiments, Embellishments, and Décor 17 Chapter Copyright © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All...

Condiments, Embellishments, and Décor17Chapter

Copyright © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Before Studying this chapter, you should already:• Have read “How to Use This Book,” pages xxviii-xxxiii,

and understand the professional recipe format.• Be proficient at rolling out and making up pastry

products.• Have mastered basic aspic techniques.

Chapter Pre-Requisites

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Condiments, Embellishments, and Décor

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:• Prepare ketchups, mustards, pickles, relishes, chutneys, and other

condiments, and use them to complement a range of foods.• Prepare handmade crackers, chips, croûtons, and pastry cases for

garde manger applications.• Make aspic garnishes and décor items.• Be proficient at basic fruit and vegetable carving.• Prepare savory ices and foams.• Be proficient at basic plate painting.• Create a simple ice sculpture.

Chapter Objectives

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In garde manger, finishing touches are divided into three main categories: condiments, garnishes, and décor.1. A condiment

2. A garnish

3. Décor• A décor item is a small piece of food added to a platter presentation

to make it more attractive.• A pièce montée is a large decorative food item. This French

term literally translates as “mounted piece,” and it means an object that rises or is elevated.

Finishing Touches

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• One of the first recorded condiments was garum, a sauce made from fermented fish that was a feature of the cuisine of the Roman Empire.

• All condiments have in common a strength and boldness of flavor. They are typically sour, sweet, salty, spicy, or spicy-hot, and many include a combination of these basic tastes.

• Many condiments are fluid, like sauces, but are classified separately from sauces for two reasons:1. They have strong, assertive flavors and are served in very small

amounts.

2. They are prepared separately from the foods they accompany.

Condiments

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Condiments can be divided into a number of categories. The most common condiment types are:

1. Ketchup (or Catsup)– A thick, smooth, sauce like condiment

seasoned with onions, vinegar, and aromatic spices.

2. Prepared mustards– Thick, smooth pastes made from ground

mustard seeds and an acidic ingredient such as vinegar or sour wine.

3. Pickles – Foods preserved in an acidic liquid.

Condiments

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The most common condiment types are (cont’d):4. Relishes

– In its broadest meaning, relish refers to any piquant or refreshing food item used to enhance a dish or a meal.

5. Compotes– A mixture of fresh and/or dried fruits simmered in sugar syrup.

6. Cooked chutneys– Fruits and/or vegetables simmered with sugar, salt, vinegar, aromatic

vegetables, and South Asian spices.

Condiments

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The most common condiment types are (cont’d):7. Raw chutneys

– Herbs, soft textured vegetables, or soft, ripe fruits that are ground into a purée.

8. Jams and confitures– Thick, rough-textured condiments made by cooking fruits

or vegetables until they are highly reduced.

9. Flavored vinegars – Vinegars in which herbs, spices, or aromatic vegetables

are steeped and soaked to create a flavorful infusion.

Condiments

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The most common condiment types are (cont’d):10. Flavored oils

– Oils prepared in the same way as flavored vinegars.

11. Dipping sauces– Highly seasoned liquid condiments.

12. Glazes – Flavorful, lightly sweetened liquids

brushed/basted onto foods as they cook.

13. Essences – Highly reduced flavorful liquids. May be used for plate painting,

which provides visual interest, and as a powerful flavor element.

Condiments

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Crackers, Chips, and Croûtons• Dishes that are soft and spreadable

are enhanced by a thin, crisp accompaniment such as crackers or chips.

• Many favorite hors d’oeuvres and appetizers depend on a base of toasted or sautéed bread, properly called croûtons, for structure.

• Without croûtons, there would be no canapés or bruschette, and no crunchy counterpoint to salads and cold vegetables.

Embellishments

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Pastry Containers and Accents• Various types of non-sweet pastry can be used as containers for a

range of savory preparations. • High-quality commercial pastry is available for purchase in three

basic forms.• Frozen pastry doughs.• Prefabricated pastry shapes.• Fully baked pastry containers and accent pieces.

Embellishments

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Aspics, Foams, Ices, and Plate Painting• Aspic Garnishes and Décor Items

– When enough gelatin is added to an aspic that it becomes firm enough to slice, it can function as both garnish and décor.

– Firm aspic may be cut freehand into cubes or punched out into shapes with cutters.

– Aspic fleurons , or fluted crescents, are typically used to decorate platters.

• Foams– A culinary foam is an aerated liquid—in other words, a liquid filled with air.

– Whipped cream and beaten egg whites are examples of culinary foams.

Embellishments

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Aspics, Foams, Ices, and Plate Painting1. Savory Ices

– Savory frozen products are divided into still-frozen ice cubes and churn-frozen sorbets.

• Savory ice cubes are nothing more than highly seasoned liquids frozen in ice cube trays.

• When added to cold soups, they maintain an icy temperature without diluting the soup’s flavor as they melt.

– Savory sorbets consist of semisweet syrups, vegetable juices, or fruit juices frozen in an ice cream machine.

• They add both flavor and visual interest to cold soups and keep them cold without diluting them.

Embellishments

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Aspics, Foams, Ices, and Plate Painting2. Plate Painting

– Plate painting can be described as the art of using sauces to create images on a plate. One way to think about plate painting is that the plate is the canvas and the sauces are the paint.

Embellishments

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String of hearts Starbursts Zigzags Houndstooth


Flat Décor Items for Aspic and Chaud-FroidWork

• Most flat décor items are made from vegetables because they are our most colorful foods.

• Before they can be cut into the necessary shapes, they must be fabricated into thin, flat slabs and are typically cooked in some way. Most are blanched and refreshed.

• Be sure the vegetables are thoroughly dry before proceeding.

Décor

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Carved Fruits and Vegetables• Fruit and vegetable carving is an art that requires years of practice

to master. This text offers an introduction to the art of food carving.

Décor

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Carved Fruits and Vegetables

Décor

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Carving an Apple Bird


Butter Décor• Garde manger decorative arts include forming and sculpting butter

into attractive shapes. • Most butter décor is used as table butter, and can be presented in

several ways:– Pressed butter is packed into a butter chip or ramekin and chilled.

– Molded butter is packed into decorative silicone forms, frozen, and then popped out of the forms.

– Shaped butter is formed into decorative shapes with scoops and butter curlers.

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Décor


Ice Sculptures

• Traditional Ice Sculpture– For centuries, garde manger chefs used the same tools as artisan stone

sculptors and wood carvers: handsaws, hammers and chisels, and picks.

• Modern Ice Sculpture– In the 1970s, ice sculptors began using power tools tomake sculpting

faster and easier.

– The introduction of lightweight electric chain saws and an array of electric woodworking tools in the 1980s revolutionized ice carving.

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Décor


Ice Sculptures (cont’d)• Molded Ice Sculptures

– Operations with ample freezer storage, but without a skilled ice sculptor, can prepare molded ice sculptures.

– Single-use ice molds are filled with water and placed in the freezer until the water is frozen solid. Then the mold is cut away from the ice.

– Reusable ice molds are manufactured in sections that seal during filling and freezing, and then come apart so the sculpture can be removed.

– Ice-molding machines use glycol to rapidly freeze the water inside the molds.

17Chapter


Décor


Condiments, Embellishments, and Décor 17 Chapter Copyright © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All...

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