Please read the concept behind Notes From The Kitchen HERE

 

Oh, sauce... According to the french there should be a sauce on every plate, and who am I to argue culinary concepts with the french. Truthfully you really do at least want one other flavor profile on any plate just to mix things up a bit. Sauces like salt will increase the flavor of anything if used correctly.
Not only do they increase flavor they really help add color to the plate and add another visual element. Don’t for get we eat first with our eyes! There are some dishes like risotto that have a built in sauce but most plates need something to take it to the next culinary level.

There are many types of sauce and of those types infinite possibilities. People get intimidated by making sauce but it is really easy once you get the basics down. And it makes the plate not only look good but taste good. Many people make the mistake of marinating protein for long periods of time and then cooking it hot. You lose most of the flavor that way. It is much better to just use salt and pepper then add a sauce to kick up the flavor. There are some dishes and some proteins that benefit from this process but they are usually cheap cuts that need to tenderize.

In its most basic form sauce can just be some butter on a steak or some really good olive oil drizzled over a fresh piece of fish. Classic sauces can be -aise sauces like béarnaise or mayonnaise (yes they are basicly the same), to gravy (a rue based sacuce), to a demi glaze, to a burre blanc, or even a basic vinaigrette.  But you can use sauces to really explore flavor. I am going to go through several different basic sauces then show a corresponding more complicated sauce and hopefully you will start simple and really change the way you cook.

 

Part one: Vinaigrette  

 

 

S

dd

 

 

excellent winter meal.

-- Robert