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    The Flavor Matrix - The Art and Science of Pairing Common Ingredients To Create Extraordinary Dishes (PDFDrive)

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    TH MORE ADVANCE PRAISE FOR E FLAVOR MATRIX “This comprehensive book is great too! for any student looking to strengthen his lor her knowledge of ingredionts, flavors, and textures. The opporturity to study ‘and understand the science ofthese elements Isa great advantage to today's {generation of cooks. They should all make use of i!” Daniel Boulud, author of Letters to @ Young Chet and Danial: My Franch Cuisine “The Flavor Motrx isnt just a high-quality cookbook filed with delicious recipes and Insights. tis that. But more importantly, i's sure to be e requirement forthe professional and passionate home cook alike." Richard Blais, author of Ty This at Home and So Good “The Flavor Matrix is ful of interesting insights into the way chefs bull dynamic relationships between ingredients. Whether professional chefs or home cooks, we can alluse these diagrams as a stating point for endless creativity” “Michael Anthony, author of The Gramevey Tavem Cookbook and Vs for Vegetables “We may be decades away from unraveling exactly how flavor works, but inthe ‘meantime, Briscione has given anyone who cooks an approachable Source of vivid Inspiration and delightful recipes." All Bouzar author of Ingrecont TAE FLAVOR MATRIX JAMES BRISCIONE THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PAIRING COMMON INGREDIENTS TO CREATE EXTRAORDINARY DISHES Copyright © 2018 by James Briscione and Brooke Parkhurst Interior photography © 2018 by Androw Purcell Flavor matieinfographie design by Jan Willem Tulp Food testing by Brooke Parkhurst, James Briscione, and Carrie Purell ALL Ri HTS RESERVED For information about permission to reproduce ealectone from this book, write to trade.permistlons@hmhca com oF to Permissions, Houghton Mifin Harcourt Publishing Company, 3 Park Avenue, 19th Floor, Now York, New York 10016, HMHCO.coM Library of Congress Catalogingin-Pu ISBN 978-0-544-80096-3 (hbk); 978-0-544-81000-6 (abk) ‘Book design by Mark R. Robinson viorte ToBrooke, “Most peopl tellus they cant imagine working ona projet ke this witha spouse. |can'timagine acioving this with anyone else. Thank you fr your suppor, motivation (Goth gonte and less so), and, most ofall, your lve. —lemes For “amie Cho always. Brooke INT RO DUCTION The Art and Science of Flavor Pairing “The idea for this book eame to me while was cooking wth compute. “The year was 2012. and my kitchen companion was Watson, TBM famous supercomputer If youre lke mast people, you fist mot Watson when i cmpetod-—and domintod—on the 7V show Jeopardy! You might not have known thatthe com- puters talents extend beyond tra | certainly dat when | first met Watson | was in for a Supe ‘When IBM had appreached the Insitute of Culnary Eduea- tion, where | work, to collaborate ona preect that would mix ‘computing and human creatiity in away that had never boon attempted before, | was honored tobe asked to participate but Iwas also very skeptical How couléatvaplaying computer ‘teach me anything about cooking? After al, hed devoted my lie ta being at the cuting edge ofthe culinary ward. Besides, | thought, cooking is @cratt—an a, something that engages ‘the senses and requites a human touch, What coulda com- puter know about the way a ripe tomato yields tothe touch, ‘or whata stale sounds like ait szes ta perfect donenese? Ik wast long before | resized that Watson was capable of much greater things than simply answering questions Since Proving its revolutionary computing allies on Jeopardy Wate son had tuned ts prodigious talents to managing cae for ‘cancer patients, understanding financial markets, helping lew ‘enforcement sohe cold cases, even providing music recon mendations. Now Watzon was going to atept to help sea: soned chels become more erative inthe kitchen. Jeopardy? had provan that Watson cauld answer any question posed to Ibut what about the questions we dont even know to ask? ‘The callabeation would work Ike this: Watson would create alist ingredient that lor ancther ofthe chet instructors st ICE would then use to create a dish with ingredient combi= nations thet had rarely ver—een seen before. Tho foods Watson would select for us elton seemed random at frst lance, but woul be anything but rather, tough a sweeping nals of data puted rom academic articles, cookbooks and ‘ober sources, Watson would find combination of ingredients that predctad would taste good when combined—but that ‘4d not commonly appear together in ecpes | enjoyed cooking with Watson, We preduced some intrest Ing ashes: roast duck with tomato, sage, olves, and cherries; lobster wth pork, saffron, basi cats, and balsamic vinegar, chicken with stawberies, mushrooms, and apple. Those were combinations that | never would have come up with on my cn, snd ou work together lasped me to reconsider what creatity inthe kitchen actualy looks ke. But | know | had onl scratched the surface Wilson adit view ingredients the same way that | dd as 2 chef, When | aok ata tomato, | immeciatly think about all ‘he ingredients have tasted with tomato inthe past, too often focusing on those that are fariar and comfortable Ike bas, cheese, or olives. Watson. on the other hand, thought about combining ingredients based only on their inherent favors, uth 90 notions of which foods conventionally go together. The computer seemed to beable to see the ivisibleflaments that bound dierent ingredients together. For the moment the ability to See these connections was the exclusive domain of scientists and supercomputers. But | ‘wanted learn to see them for myself, nd to help athers do the same, None of my students at ICE. lot alone my fay or fiends, had acess to a supercomputer that coud help them this mor creatively about flavor paling as Watson had helped ‘me do, How could | share this amazing experience with them? Luckily, ther is avast body of scientific data out he about iyo, jst wating to Be explored Gut this information ent partof the language of chefs—hich is ashame, because the art and (yes) sconce of food paring in some ways te final Aron of moder cookng, “The wotld of food has been revolutionized by science in the past few decades. Since the concept of molecular gastono- my was verted in the late 19806, sophisticated new ingre- dents, devices, and techniques—trom sodium ciate to sous ‘vide machines to sphericaton—have moved from ele res- turants to fast-casial sence ccunters and home ktchens Many people now cook with en understanding of how thie offers are transforming ingredients at a molecular level. The impact that science has had onthe wold of fod cannat be overstated. Except in one regard nthe mide of thie epic deruption the \way we tink about combining ingredients themselves has re- ‘mained largely unchanged, “Tho old model of combining ingretionts, of pting their favor profies, etfectvely shackles chets to ingredients, favors, and ‘combinations they aready know. Many chots and ambitious home cooks have the ably top through amental Rolodex of ingredients, instanly recaling which ingredients and flavors ‘work well together. This ably the esut ofan intimate know ‘edge of food built up over years cookingand eating is called ‘taste memory. But even the most extensive laste memory has itslimtations ts eat frcalalogng what combinations have ben enjoyed in the past, but when itcomes to deciding what could go together, taste memory i ited by the cocks per sonal experience ‘Youcoue spendaitetme faring yourself ith the ens of ‘thousands of ingredions avaiable around the world Th cha- lenge's especial daunting given how many thee ae to choose ‘om ightin our own neighborhceds. Between 1980 and 2014, ‘or example, he number of ems in the average American gro- cary store tile, frm 15,000 to round 44,000, according to the Food Marketing Institute Farmers markets, mean, \which may be stscked with unique haicom fruts ane vag- ‘etabes that many of us have never heard af before, ae on the rise, USDA statistics show that in 1904 there wore 1,755 farmer! markets acre the United States. Twenty year ae, ‘the country had over 8260 active markets All of ths chole poses an acute challenge forthe madeen cook Whether were evecwhoimed bythe sheer volume of cur options oF simply confronting a mishmash of range ingred tents nan atherwise emply fide, how are we to dacide which ofthese ingredients we can put together in away that wil be inleresing_ and also taste good? There are other books that et ingredients commonly used in the same dshes, but few have ventured beyond convention to explore the untapped potential ot haw ingrediants cout be used together. This kind of mapping and explorations exactly what | im to doin the pages ahead And rather than rly on taste memory, Im going to rely on chemsty—spectialy, on an salsa of ingredients shared molecular structures one ot ‘he most exciting areas of food science toy (ve the past thy years researchers have changed he way we think about favor. Foes scientats have taught ches thet each ingredient has a complex network of chemical structures called vlate compounds that give each fond ts awn unique favor, These compounds are responsible fr 80 percent of hat we perceive when we take a bite or asip. A simple ingre- dent ie lettuce has about twenly such compounds Coffee has neatly 1,000. Think ofeach ofthese volatile compounds asa single ype of Pinolina photo—al th pink pisos, say Alone, these pics ae |ust isolated colored squares But when they‘e put together with hundreds of other colored squares, an image emerges. Create the image without the pink squares and your pictues wil be incomplete, no mater whether it shows a sunee, or @ forest orthe inky depths of outer spsce. In the same way, a single volatile compound does not give us the whe picture of the product in which is found. For example, mesfurane—s volatle compound prominent in stranberies—does not taste Ske frat at al thas the aroma of baked bread, buiter, and toasted almond. Yet if mes rane were removed from a stawbery the fut taste would change dramsticaly. Almond crossants with strauberry jam woul be the same, ether. MeSIFURANE: Volatile compounds such as mesiturane are the essential bul blocks of flavor, So you may be suprised to lea that thayhave ite todo with ast, “The words Yate" and “aver” are often used interchangesbiy Bun fact they refer to fundamental aferent things. Under- standing the distinction isa crucial ist step to mastering the artand scence of pang ingredients ‘Tere are fve—o si, depending on whom you ask—baslc tastes: sally, sweet, sou bit, umami and fat We perceive ‘each of thee tastes via chemical reactions tha ake place on ‘the tongue when we consume food. Chemica recapors,com- manly know ag tate buds ave deributed over the tongue as well asthe sot palate, upper esophagus, cheeks, and even the epigltts (the piece of cartiage that covers your wind- pe when you swallow). About half of our taste buds contain sensors foreach taste (while others are dedicated to speci ie tastes) and wit fre signals back tothe bain whenever t ‘comes in contact wth any ofthe ve—or she—tates, Contrary te popular wisdom, whe cera pats ofthe tongue may be mora sonive to specie tasos, any taste can be perceived ‘on any par ofthe tongue, But these tastes re only 20 percent of what we perceive a flavor. That right Just one of what wo exporionce \when taking a bite of food comes from tate buds. The other [80 percent i reported by the nose. And wil the tasto com ponent of favors created by familar molecular elements ln ‘ut food such as acids, sugars, fas and potens the aroma component comes from an enielydifrent cass of mole~ cus: hess volatile compounds | mentoned eae. vay bite of food contains hundreds if not thousands of vole tie compounds, uhich Iwill refer fo as sromatic compounds ‘Anas that ime suggests, itis the smell hese compounds that ctates favor. ‘Wien it comes to enjoying food, our sense of taste would be nothing without our Sense of sme, Tetthat for youl: Next time you sip your coffee pinch your nose closed and soo iit lossnt just taste ie warm, sight biter wate, Without your nose to sense the hundreds of aromatic compounds, cof- fee—or any substance—becomes nearly favors. [A aromas contribute ta flavor i the same way Bore a sn le bite enters your mouth, aromatic compounds make ther ‘way to receptor cells in your nose and thoat. When specie compounds rach thor uique receptor cos (imagine square, round, tienguar, and star-shaped 9299 looking tot into ‘hei corresponding holes), they bond with these calle and fre ‘signal tothe bin, There itis translated into the compounds? stincve aromas. This takes place almost instantaneous, and can happen at a get distance. Think about how much the aromas of burgers on gill you about the fonds vor asthe scent waft through the summer ai even i youte st ting onthe other side of s baseball rom where the food isbeing cooked. (Once the food enters your mouth, chewing It releases yet ‘more aromatic compounds; ver @ thousand individual com pounds may be found na single bite, These signals, oa reo- ist in your nase and throat. Your brain combines ths data with information from taste buds about what you are tasting. ‘Signals rom the vibrations in your jaw and eardrums report data ona food's texture to your ban rounding out your perc: ‘ion of fxorn controled experiments esearchershave shown that texture spacial affects prception of alt and sweet: ness but canals fet perception of for more general. Under the Microscope: Volatile Versus Aromatic Compounds Broadly speaking, an “aromatic” compound is any chemical that we can smell. For chemists, however sn aromatic compound has an even more specific definition. When they were first discovered, aromatic compounds such as benzene were noted because they had properties diferent from other hydrocarbons (see page 256). Specifically, they had a diferent. kind of odor then other compounds, and were named ‘aromatic because of their smell, A volatile compound, on the other hand, is any ‘chemical that moves into the air, whether it has a smell or not. Water is an example of volatile compound with no oder, while benzene is both aromatic and volatile. BENZENE FOUND IN GINGER, MUSSELS, EGGPLANT, AND MUCH MORE Both volatile and aromatic compounds play an important role in creating flavor in food. For our purposes, itis ofitle consequence whether e compound is technically ‘volatile or aromatic. What matters is that it has a smell—and therefore a flavor. For the sake of simplicity in this book | refer to all such compounds as aromatic. = Al tee factors—taste, aroma, and exure—hp form a.com- plete picture of flavor. But this one Sense, aroma, is fr more inoetia than the others Despite he crucial rle that aroma playsin cresting food's tar vor we tend to save descriptions oft for taking about wine: A sommelercan rate off more than s hundred dren descr tors forthe aromas found in wine. Although the same aromas, lus many mor, ae found in food, and aiough they translate almost directly int layers, out vecabulay for flavors in food ‘arly ventures Beyond the five or six base tstes we put the Same thoughtfulness into categorising the Havers |e find in fod that we use forthe aramas we find in win, ‘ur culinary experiences would be heightened immeasurably. ‘And if we gave the same care and attention to pairing ing dts ih each other that we ge to ping wine with meals, ‘the resulting shes could be tly revolutonary—to say noth- Ing of the resulting wine pangs! (Of course, categorng favors is far moce complicated than Cetogorzng tastes. Thee arejustso many more ofthe former ‘than the later The tastes we experience ae the product of @ limited numberof chorea recaps in our mouths, while the flvers we find in food are comprised of thousands of aromatic ‘compounds. Just as you could spend a Ifetme bung your taste memory. you coul spend a Metime (or seveaD studying alte diferent favors and aromas out here. Indeed, hee are bnliant scientists whe have devoted their entre cree to ‘exccty that lam notone of hese scientists. just chef who wants ta un- derstand how favor works s0 lean be a beter cook But wast gong taleta lace of acasemiccradeti stop me. My desire to mastar the science of aver paring lad me down arabs hl. | inmmesed myself in articles from academic ou nals enesin online chemisty databases, and the theories of the most briiant minds inthe wr of molecular gastonomy. Follow me while explain the basics of what found and how this aw information became the book you Holdin your hands ‘tor ging the maior some thought, | relzed that If org rized the vast rtumber of aromatc compoundsintomanageable categories and measured thse cstegores presanceina ange of cferert Ingredients | coud creat standardized favor pro fies of each ingredient tha | could then compare fo esch ater Essenaly would be dstiing the flavor ofa given ngreient— often the resut of hundreds of ferent. compounds—into vicual format that could be easy decpharod and compared to ‘othe Ingredients. Wh ths information I could begin creating ‘aor pairings based on science rather than opinion ‘As the fist stp in this process, Ist had Yo broad categor fae the ferent aromatic compounds that are most com ‘monly found in food. (You can see these diferent categories Inthe bsck ofthe book, stating on page 256) This is harder than it sounds; each group of aromatic compounds | ident ‘ied actualy contains thousands of derent compounds with 18 Wide range of scons. Assigning specific aroma profile to any group of compounds with complete accuracy is impess- bie Some sort af ectoriajudgmentis needed but that seems right and proper fora book witten bya hanan chet instead of bya scientist a computer, for that mati ‘An auitionl complication for this phase of my research was the fatthatcompeunds with very similar shapes can have ly ‘varying sromas. For example, the compound carvene exsts in two dro configuatens—the R isomer and S isomer. These ar exact miro images of one another (see opposite. The Risomer of carve has an intense spearmint roma; i i ‘the main flavoring in Wigley’ famous chewing gum. However, the S izomerhas the arma of caraay seeds. Their stutures are mirored images, yet the compounds have unique aromas Lucy, basic chemist offers solution to this pectlem of ‘alogerizaton. Although tho shape of a compound went nec- ‘essary tll us what it smels ke the properties of spectic groups of compounds can give us some clues about their ro- mas, This is because aromatic compounds can have distn- ‘guishing elements Known as functional groups Functional groupe help to classy aromatic compounds, The basic structure of any compound Is a chain of carton and Inetogen atoms Mary aromatic compounds are made up of more than just carbon and hyskogen, however these adainal _loms or groups atoms are the funciona groups (Anin-dpth Took at functional groups in aromatic compounds can be found bagining on page 255) When diferent functional groups are detected bythe receptor cel inthe nose snd tho, hase sensors signal speci scants tthe bran. Far example, hols (Gultuccontaning funciona groups) are stinky thigh con- centrations they smel of rotten eggs. ‘Afr reaching this tealzation abou the basic aromatic charac~ testes of functional groups set about elassiving the sels ‘of food that ate determined by these aromatic compounds | duided these smells Into primary aroma categories. When ‘applicable, | slo distinguished any notable ubcatagries of these aromas, (The lst of aroma categories and subcatego- vis l used iin the back ofthe book on page 260) In aditon to categorising the man groups of primary aromas ‘and thelr undering somatic: compounds, | also pinpointed the diferent levels of arematic compounds in roughly 120 ofthe most common ingredients in the moder kitchen rom groups ofingrecents such as alums Gtich include onions (are, chives and ramps) to spect, unique ingrecnts auch as ruff and varia Resoarch journals contain detaled aay 25 ofthe hundreds of aifeent aromatic compounds found in each of the ingredients but four the bulk of this data using ‘he Volatile Compounds in Food (VCF) database, managed by Tiskelion BY, a indepeent research fay located in the Netherlands. The VCF database is the most comprehensive listing of aromatic compounds i foods avalable in the world ‘ody | supplemented the information| found there with sion- tic papers on arama research and volatile compaunds, (Once | completed this process | was lft with spreadsheet ‘upon spreadsheet cataloging the significant aromatic com pounds in each ofthe ingredients that | wanted to study. Fal | could compare them to eachother ‘That comparison boled down toa single number: the prcent- age of aromatic compounds that two diferent ingredients (oe groups of ingredients) have in common. According to @ relavely cent culinary innovation called flavor pain theory, this simple merc ean allow us to judge the relate compat- ibily of ostensibly dissimilar ingradionts Flavor paring theory—which, ke all great thooreg i elegantly simple—tels_ us thal two ingredients share significant quan- ties or concentrations of aromatic compounds thy wi Hey taste good together when combined a dish, Spots fans can think of hiss the analytes of flavor (and flavor pang thoo- at the me ae you Billy Beane This powerful theory originated in 1999 with the pioneering chef Heston Blumenthal and his research team at The Fat Duck, a restawant in By, England, with its own dedicted research kitchen (which is mor ikea ab than mast kitchens youve seer. Blumenthal and his calleagues stumbled upon thai theory while experimenting wih sally and sweet foods. They combined caviar and white chocolate, discovering to ‘hel surprise tha he paring tastes dlcous, Ingredient Groups ‘You may come across some unfamiliar words in this book, especially n the flavor ‘matrix Infographics. This is because in certain cases it was advantageous to ‘view a group of ingredients by their higher classifications, Many ingredients have nearly identical flavor compositions, a quirk that allows us to categorize them as @ group rather than as individual ingredients, For example, if you can see past the bitterness of one and the sweetness of the other, you wil find that cranberries and blueberries have essentially the same flavor. Therefore, throughout this book Til refer to cranberries and blueberries by their genus, Vaccinium. I've done this sort of tion with the following classifications. ‘conden: ALLIUM: & GROUP OF AROMATIC PLANTS THAT DERIVE THEIR FLAVOR FROM, SULFUR COMPOUNDS, THE ALLIUM GROUP INCLUDES: GARLIC, ONIONS, SHALLOTS, LEEKS, SCALLIONS, CHIVES, AND RAMPS. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ALLIUM, SEE PAGE f8, CAPSICUM: THE ENTIRE CATEGORY OF PEPPERS, FROM WiLD BELL PEPPERS TO SPICY CHILES. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON CAPSICUM, SEE PAGE 58 ‘SOUTHERN PEA: ALSO KNOWN AS FIELD PEAS, THIS GROUP INCLUDES BLACK- EYED PEAS, LIMA BEANS, CROWDER PEAS, ZIPPER FEAS, AND MORE. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SOUTHERN AND OTHER PEAS, SEE PAGE 182 \VACCINIUM: THE GENUS OF SHRUBS THAT GROW A VARIETY OF CULINARY BERRIES, BERRIES CLASSIFIED UNDER VACCINIUM ARE CRANBERRIES, BLUEBERRIES, SILBERRIES (WHORTLEBERRIES), LINGONBERRIES (COWBERRIES), AND HUCKLESERRIES, FOR MORE INFORMATION OW VACCINIUM, SEE “BERRY” ON PAGE 22, Flavor paling theory can be used to dscover wid new eom- binatons like white chocsale ard cava, o to hp explain 0d favottes ihe pizza Tomatoes, mozzarella, Parmesan, and baked wheat all share over 100dferent aromatic compounds; among them, the pronounced floral aroma of 4methypenta- oie acd fe one ofthe mos significant. Al of these shared compounds ate the flavor equvalent of an oxchesta paying together in perfec ime. Each compound has a unique aroma ‘hati contibutesto the hamonious favor of pez, much the same way that cell and flute make ofrent sounds but both ‘conibute to the ful ich sound of « Beethoven symphony. “emer PENTANOIC ACID COMPOUND ‘According to flavor paling theory, finding the percentages ‘of compounds shared between ingredients would alow me ‘a jsge how well certain ingredients par together relate to ‘obvers—tut generating this percentage was only the nexio- {inal stp in my research procass. Te last one involved organ- ing this information na way that would be quickly and easily undorstandeble—that you could use, at lance in your own kitchen | have consolidated all of my frdings about favor patings Into what | all flavor matrix making one for ei ingred ent or group ofingredionts that | studled. The flavor matric is an enhanced pie chat that looks @ bit ike an artist's color ‘heel. Instead of showing how primary colors can be blended together, however, flavor matrixes show how aromas combine to ge each ingredient its unique favor. Each flavor mali is essential the aromatic fingerprint ofthe ingredient it depicts; Itreveas the true aromatic ‘dently’ ofthat ingredient and no two ingredients—or matixes~are exactly the ame, Crucial tals reveals which other Ingretints par best with the con- tral featured ingredient, based on ts aromatic identity. aduton How to Use This Book Inwting this book. | have been fortunate to have an excelent colabortor: my wife and creative partner, Brooke Parkhurst ‘Our goal in this book is twofold We want ofeach you about the science of fsor as we hope use started to do aleady ‘We aso want you to experience this revolution fox yours to master it and put ito use in your own ktchen. In our home, Brooke and | have put favor pang theory into practice with ‘the hep of hard data about aromatic compounds in fod, it has revolutionized the way we coke Inthe pages ahead, wo wil prosert you with a series of tools to help you determine which ingredients pair best with one another, bated on the science and theory of flavor paring Everyone ofthe ffyeight sections wil focus on arent ingredient or group of ingredients, covering roughly 150com- mon ingredients nal ‘The conterpece of each section is its flaoc mati, an ifo- ‘gr=phic containing al ofthe data | was able to assemble about agen ingredient’ aromatic compounds and thse of is. com- patible ingredient, Atthecenterof each mati the featured ingretlent Surounding that ingredient are is primary aromas and their subcategories, each of whichis represented by @ ‘ehe”of the inner part ofthe pie chart These aromas and thee subcategories are explained beginning on page 260. ‘Around the perimeter of the flavor matin, extending beyond the inner ting of primary and secondary aromas, adional slices ofthe pi chart represent aloft ingredionts in each aroma group that pai well wih the central ingredient The length of each of these sices indicates the percantage of ‘compounds that the complementary ingredent shares with ‘the featured ingredient onthe mati Feroxample.on the alive ati, youl 3 that bask ovage and parsley extend father from the center of the matrix than other herbs in the Vegela/Herbaceous aroma group. indicating that these ingredlens ze the best choice to ai with the featured ‘one, cles, Peaches and nectaine are the biggest ses ofthis partcularmatix extending farther fom the conta ofthe matric than any other section, Tis i a flection ofthe fact that obves shave over TO paccent of thei aromatic compounds with the ‘rus. Indeed of allingredonts olives have he stongest affinity for thelr dose botanical lave, Wee huts charactorstcthat ie vievsedon he favormatix ‘A guickglance atthe olne favor matixwll ge you someldeas bout specific ingredients te pair wth olvs. you want to mix and match, however its worh keeping in wind that some Me ver groups go better together than others. Te help guide your choices about combining multiple ingredients that all com plomant the featured ingredient, but which may er may sot complement each other, ve created favor paling guide (age 14) This ool wi help you create more complex com binations of ingredients by matching three or more ingrod- ents together. “The tru vale ofthe favor mates isnot snply to show which Ingredients pair wall Flavor maxes can alo tach you how to tink about favors in ood They wil help you to understand Ingredients and flavors that complement ne another, aloning yout pair foods and create dshes a new and innoratue ways For earpl, the fact hat oles are goat with citus tke lm ons, orange and grapefut ao tls us that oles par walt the fever of ciue-mesring that caiander seed, pasion rut ‘Sichuan peppercoms or lemongrass could be incorporated into shes itholes ifyoure stout of emons—er even fyovarest ‘Strong pairings na favor matrix ke ers and olives, signal ‘more than the mere fact that two ingredents wil taste good ‘ahen combined in a dish, indeates there may Be a greater Connection betveen the ingrecnts, one that isnot always apparent It shows thatthe ingredients have something in Common. Maybe they are native tothe same area or have 8 botanical lationship ora similar favr profile. Complementary Ingredients Featured Ingredient Stronger Pairing Those shared charactrstes help o explain aver compatii- iy, but they can also help you be more fleale and ereatve in your use of ingredients. Te ake just one example, 0 percent ‘ofthe compounds found in lemongrass are also found in go- ge sagestng hey taste real when combined ina dish Ik also indicates that they have very sir flavor profes ancl thus can be easly interchangedin recpes, Lol a hate mtives with a etic eye in short, and you ssl begin to understand the way that flavors and tases ave ‘constructodn short eda this understanding wil mak you a mote creative cook ‘Along vith the favor mats in each section | Est some quick ‘acts about the featured ingrodint including some tps on how to best useit Ae that you fle a Best Pakings list of ingre- donts that pair especialy wal with th festured ingreiont, as ‘well asa short Ist of “Suprise Patings'—combinations that hve rarely come across in my carer, even though the ingred ‘ents show tong affinity forone another. out also fd list ‘ofingrecents hat can be aubststed for the main nese. Each ofthe sections inthis book ends wth an eign recipe that weave created using the information in each aor ma ‘tic For example, inthe alive secon, youl finda recipe for sing this classic hors Coouwe ingrediont to make nique ‘inale for any meal a dessert of amon curd wth oie ai and ‘crunchy aves, Sweetened with honey and dehydrated inthe ‘oven for an extra intenee favor and a delightful eipy tex ture, these olives vil blow your mind But even Ifyou ony use the recipes Yor aspiration aout how you ean incorporate the a4 Sesame Seed and Avocado Salad with Fig Vinegar eee ee eee ey een ete eee ee ae Ce eR oe ie ne Cee ee ae eee ee Pere er] To Cerro) eee ees] eee ee eee et] coer ee eo) a ee ed eee eet ened Ce eee eas an Ce ene Ts ee eee er Se cerns Cee eee ee era ra eS Eone Nene Cee eee rd eee oes ees ee ee) ees Ded ee eee Eas Dee ee es ene eee ee coer DCE ‘Beefs favor is detemined in part by the breed of cate {om wtich comes and oan even greater extent iy the animal's cet and fatty acids derived tom the animals dt Specially Inclenic, oleic and capoic acids are ‘the main contibuto to favor in raw best. Linoleic acid ives beet a clean fatty taste; lec and linolenic acids both prowde a at, ted flavor; and caproic ac is esiable in beet fr the choosy flavor it provides. Grase-ed cattle have higher concentrations of frolic ‘acid in their sh; gained cat develop more oleic ‘and ince acid com-rished cai, meanwhile, velop less caproic aid Aging alo plays a significant ‘ale in bee avr; bet has very Ite flavor when freshly slayghtored, so retail uts of meat typically undergo 2 minimum of seven days aging-the time it akes for beefe distinctive "meaty fevor ta begin fo develop, This process has a chemical effect: Afr fourteen days the aromatic compound I-octen-3-l, akey pat ‘of beets fav, can increase inthe meat by more than 1,000 percent Best Patings: Nut, ed rt, btter, cram, mustard alums, ‘Surprise Pairings: ‘Cocca, grapes, did curant ‘Substitutes: Venison, ab, bison, tuna ™_ Cocoa and Chile-Rubbed Beef Pee Ce ec tency Ce Cen ee ee coer a) ‘more flavor int the beet. Serve with Sesame Seed and Avocado Salad with Fig Vinegar (page 39) coon Coreen Retest) Sree nn eee eet neerenney Fenn ncrTd ec eee cere ee ened eee Ce as sesame seeds (using), and pepper in a small bw! oes ‘Season the steak on both sides withthe rub. You may eee eo es ee es eee nary Cert eae eno fret eee nto eee ee ee oes ee ee ed ee ere oy Title boets—as opposed to suger beets hich are grown tomake sogar—have a variety of culinary uses. Like most oot vegetables, they may be eaten ether ‘a or coked Reasting brings out the natural sugarsin bets, ging them a ver pleasant earthy-swect favor (Geosmi the aroma compound most responsibe for bets earthy favor. s also responsible forthe earthy ‘aroma that fis the ar when rain falson dry soi) ‘hough beet leaves are eaten less often, they Yoo have excatent favor Young leaves may be added to sade or eaten re larger leaves may be sautéed tke spinach or other greens or chopped and added to soups and stows just ike char, whichis also a member of the beet fami Best Pairings: Crus, toate nuts, cheese, yop, eesood, aaa M Surprise Pairings * Lychee, oto, lon balm, tea, apple Substitutes: Cart, pari, cabbage eM Lee, reece nee, x Deen LEENA LH mene is wae gaceocucenastss Lee BM re UN RAAT EEE ELLE EET EEE am AsO a Sheer E eames utnteto:/. eamrun SE OSS ete cecaua tines cc stontcs ems nna SECS TRONS CoRR EE NNN EEE SESS AE SS A SST | Wee TTT Tier Lice) eT L with Orange-Hazelnut Vinaigrette Cee et ee et eee ees swell as ingredients with t-tke aromas, The unique favors and estore in this salad ae also Ce eae ee a er Re ol Peete eee peers ee corn pron ened Cee rn Coe eed aeons ees Cee eos ee rs Ck nore Ce ed om coon Coenen Sd oa eny ee eter cee ee ee ppeorinanennery ee ene ec eet erent ea) eee Ce ed ee es Det Ce ee ee ees anand place over medium heat. When the nuts begin en eee ees Unt cooled to room temperature, De ee eocne ee es Cee eo ee ean en Cee eee eens een enon eats Cees Main Subtypes: ‘Streweo, bluabony,backbery, aspbory, Best Pairings: (Carus, melon, apricot, peachhnecarine, chocolat, arugula, wing, vinegar, cram, yogut ‘Surprise Paiings: Basi mushroom, cuin, ove Substtutes: Other bores, currants, grapes, kn, Pomegranate Berry isa wide category: Botanicaly speaking i covers ‘rust is the pened ovary of plant—that enclose ‘seeds. By this dofintion, bananas, avecadoos, tomatoes, eagplants, watermelons, and pumpkins areal berties, but strawbertosraspbersies,Hackberis, and such ae ‘not they ae aggregate Fults each made up of many smaller rts. wil focus hare on popularly defined eres lke strawberries and blackberes, Grouping ‘hese fut into thea main genera helps us to focus ‘on the similares among al bres and identiy the paticulr characterises in each genus. Pagar is a genus ofthe rose family that produces strawber- +s including cultivars and variates such as Honeoye, Eariglow, Altar and aes des bois. Rubus is a separate genus ofthe oes family that produces caspheries blackberries, dewteres,loganberes, and ‘boysenberies, Vaccinium s a genus inthe heath fay thatincludes blueberries, cranberies, and Ingonbeties (The spaces inthis genus ae often refered ton this ‘book by ther genus, and sometimes indvidually) Note that when it comes to pang bares wth other ingred cents, al tree groups have sila affntes, Chicken and Mushroom Burgers with Strawberry “Ketchup” This pang has traveled around the word. Combining chicken, mushrooms, and strawberries was eee eno Le en hae Cee ee eo ee ee ented recipe) became the subject of atk I gave Se rr ee od con Cee eee) [een nees ed ey eeetoeeny eet Cece) Cree Peery Se ny Se ed See eee ees ee ene ees cot Ce es Ce ey eee een eae Ce for about 6 minutes per sido ipping once, unl eee Se ee ed ee ee ees eee eed oe Cee eer ee ens eee ae eee Amar earn one ee rent econ eee) need ee recon eer ert tas pon rd ees erence) PCC Re ee ne Se ee ees ee ee Se eed eto Se en ne eee) Ce ad te ee Cee eee! Ce ee ee Se Ceca Pees Co of sugar (f necessary) Transfer toa glass jar or pe eee eee ee eee ocr Makes 2 cups Main Subtypes: Broccok caulilower, emanesco Bost Pairings: Ctr (cepecally amon, 29, milk cram, cheese, cocoa cur, lant, eh sauce Brocco cauliower and romanesco are members Surprise Pairings: ofthe Brassica oleracea species. Bu have ther own Peanut fg, cocoa unique characterstics that aistingush them from their leafer cousins, mainly the colors and the shape of thor flowering heads. The ferent shapes of each of hese thvee varieties affect both thee appearance and texture ser cooking. The tightly formed heads ofcaulitower ‘and romanesco resultin a firmer texture when cooked, while the higher water content of broccoli equ ear {ul cooking fo prevent rom becoming mushy Al ee ative their feor fom sutur compounds as do other brassicas—although these three have stenger green, vegeta and crus aromas. ‘Substiutes: Brocco cauliflower, and romanesco can substtte foreach other Alo: asparagus, Brussls sprout, broocol abe, tale PEE [er-) tele Tae fale) iy YE nn i ==N LeTielofofe) | At ELM ul) dum) ea Ce ee ee ee ee eee eats Cee ee ee ee Se Ces Peart) cy eet (@bout 1% pounds) enone errr) Eee eetes ‘tablespoons vegetable ol ered Eee eed en een Aid eee] eed eos ee eer nel eer) coon Cee era oe eed Cer es ee ee ees eee ers ee ee ead Ce ee Ee ee eee es en ere ed Cee ne ee Ce ed Roast the vegetables for about 12 minutes, wt they ee ed eee ees et tenes ee eee CO ee Cen eee constantly to prevent browning. When very aromatic, ee cs tiring. When the miure begins to sie rapily, add ee ree Cena eee) ce Main Subtypes: (Cabbage, Bustle sprout, Koha kale, colar sens. Best Pairings: “onsted mis, cheese, mushroom, grin, Surprise Patings: Coconut canto, eggplant Substitutes: ‘Any Brasses oleracea o Bra may be substituted for another, including breccol and Lice mest brassicas the lealy members ofthe alraces specieseabbage, Brussels sprouts kaha kal and collard greene—derive the majority of their avor ‘tom sulfur compounds. The cstinctve smal of boiled ‘cabbage or Brussels sprouts is due to the elease of sulfur compounds during cooking. Green aromas are also found throughout the species, whl the dark green leat varstes (kale, collard greens) contin iter pheno compounds as wel TEES [or] Oleracea: G y Umami Vinaigrette TE en pe oe Ree een Cee eee ee eee ; ene Seer y cone nee) 4 anchovy tts eo Cee no) eer ees Speen incre] Coen Ce ee ee ee eens er ee ene errs een es ee es eer ee ae ete eee eee nes CCC Brassica apa sa govp of plants witha numberof subspecies, om tuips to bok choy that are grown forboth culinary uses and ol production. (The seeds of Brassica rapa plants ae pressed to create canola 10) When cooked, most Brassica raps havea favor dominated by strong-smeling sulfur compounds, ‘Among these compounds is aly isothiocyanate, which is also found n radishes, howsoradsh, ed mustard and sin Stele which hasaspiciness sir to that of he compound Napa cabbage bok choy, broccol abe tip mustard groons capesiin, found in hot peppers Best Pairings: Borie, bate, cream, chooses alums ‘Surprise Pairings: Melo, camomile, hazelnut Substitutes: Spinach, kale, rocco cauliflower 7 / AY V Te Tier] St] or) ia Raps Pan Roast of Turnips, Apple, Chicken, UMC um mr This is ono of thos lovely meas that comes together in just about 30 minutos and leaves Se er ee eee ene eee ee Combination of favor and textures, andi just as delicious without the chicken and served Peers Cena Teena 6 branches fresh thyme, plus 1 teaspoon leaves oer! eed ernment) precmeccrstee errs ee eo 8 wosees Cee eee) contend ene Ere) ees ee ad ee ee ees eer ee es Cee ee ened pan over high heat. Place # wite rack over a rimmed Ss Re eo ed ene ee Ce ee cd eee Cee ee coon Ce ee ed Peet oe eee ee See ee Ce a eee eee eee Pee eet erent See eee Cee ee eee os eee ees Cee ee Cee eee ee en ee eee to the sauté pan and ati well over low heat to deglaze. ea Cn ee ny eee ee een ees Ce eee Main Subtypes: Bet pepper chile Best Pairings: ‘Stor fit aromatic spies, cits, mint, win, choose, sour cream, yogurt Surprise Patings: Pumpkin, peach, ll ramon, tuba Substitutes: Most peppors may be ubstiued for one nother, depending on het lav Capsicum are members ofthe nightshade fam, ich also inclades tomato, eggplant and potlo—so its not suprising that bese three ingrednts have a patcular affinity for one another The favor of capsicum is mainly detves fom ft and foal aromas but the favors ot paricular vrei can range rom highly vegetal and green (green bel peppers) to sweet and bert (a ppanca fiom Par whoce avr i elton ovorchadewed byintense hea). The spiciness of chess derived ‘rom capesicn a flavress compound that produces 3 burning sensation wherever it comes in contact with the bodys soft issues. Capsicnis hydrophobic, meaning cannot be rinsed away by water. Butt wil bond with {at-tich is why drinking mik or even downing shot of bue cheese dessing isthe best way to eliminate the bin of spicy foods. = ef c] ry rm a tS) eae: KOK ¥ Bete 9 20 PO OOO OSS ae rar, Beceeeaceenes POL OSOS eee SON ALG AY, f ETE Us| Collett) ‘This recipe makes the mest ofthe ruty aromas found in capeicus—and it des goin a most ee ee eee ee eee eee Se cee cay eee eee eee ee ee Ce ec pees enn ney arn poet eee) ey eee peered Sper tenn eer ne teed porter) Se a Ce ene ee eee ee ned ene een ere ed ee ee ens ened eee er) Se than Ce te ae eal eee ee eed Pony Cd eee ee) Donne co ‘Simaar to sugar syrup (seepage 230), the favor of caramels derived largely rom Mallard reactons Toasted, roasted, and nutly romes ae crested as sugars and proteins break down unde the stress of heat The i. Jongersugari et exposed to high empratires the darker and more favertul it wil become. However, Malar reactions have thei it; wth prolonged ‘exposure to heal, sugars wl burr, creating bites, acrid flavors. Unike sugar syrup caramel has very te in the way of vegetal and bery aromas. Caramel favors

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