plating

1. Plating

4. Oneway to conceptualize plating is
to think of yourself as an artist, the
plate as your canvas, and the food as
your medium.

5. Choose your plate wisely by making sure it's big enough to
allow your food tostand out,butsmall enoughthatyour
portions don't look too small.

6. Thecolor of your plate is also significant. White
plates are popular becausethey create high contrast
andprovideaneutralbackgroundfor your colorful
creations. Utilize white space by thinking of the rim
as your frame, and consider using the rule of thirds
to highlight your plate's focal points. When applied
tocooking,theruleof thirds prescribes placing the
focal point of your dish to either the left or right
side of the plate, rather than the center
.

7. Plate with a clock in mind.As you
begin plating your ingredients,
picture the faceof a clock. From the
diner's point of view, your protein
should be between 3and 9,your
starch or carbohydrate from 9and
12,and your vegetable from 1
2and 3.

8. Another rule of thumb is to
plate moist or runny ingredients first, as
they tend to move during delivery if they
aren't held down by other foods. One way
toanchorrunnyingredients is by placing
other foods on top of them.For example,
youcananglesliced meator vegetables
against purees and mashed vegetables.

9. If you're serving small foods like
shrimp, scallops, or bite-sized
appetizers, always give guests
odd quantities.
Serving 7brussels sprouts instead
of 6creates more visual appeal, and
diners will also perceive that they're
getting more food.

10. Essentially, flavor bites are
forkfuls of food that combine all
of the ingredients in your dish
into one bite. Creating flavor
bites is the perfect
accompaniment to creative
plating as it pleases both the
eye and the taste buds.

11. Be sure to never overcrowd your
canvas, and keep it simple by
focusing on one ingredient - usually
the protein. Finding a focal point also
ensures that the accompanying
ingredients will play a
complementary
, supporting role.

12. Think about color and contrast.
One of the best-kept secrets to
beautiful plating is paying close
attention to the details.While your
focus will obviously be on the
protein, considering how the other
elements of the plate create color
and contrast is also very important.

13. You can create a beautiful
background for your plate by
adding green vegetables or
brightly colored fruits as accent
points.
Similarly, try to pair ingredients
with complementary colors as this
will further enhance your dish's
visual appeal.

14. Another way to catch your guests'
eyesis toutilizethepowerof
height. While compactly stacking
ingredients isn't as popular as it
was 5-10years ago,creatingatall
plate can go a long way towards
enhancing visual appeal.

15. Finally
, don't forget about texture.
Contrasting a smooth vegetable
puree with crunchy onion straws or
topping a steak with crumbled blue
cheese creates appealing texture
combinations that are classic in
high-end cuisine.

16. Onceyou'veplatedyour main ingredients,you're
ready to top your dish with delicious sauces. Don't
just pour the saucecarelessly all over the plate.
Instead, think of your squeeze bottleor spoon as a
paintbrush,and your sauceas a medium.Then,use
them to enhance your plate. One way to do this is
to create accent dots on one side of your plate
(while considering the rule of thirds) or by lightly
drizzling sauceoverthemainingredients so guests
get a little bit of saucein every bite.

17. Choose edible garnishes.As you
finish plating, remember that
garnishes must be related to
the dish and should always be
edible. Ultimately
, they're
designed to enhance and
complement the flavors of the
entree you've created, not
distract from them.

18. Placegarnishes purposefully. Similarly,
neverheapgarnishes in onecornerof the
plate. Instead, scatter them thoughtfully in
ordertoaddcolor or texture.Also, avoid
using unappetizing garnishes like raw
herbs,large chunks of citrus,and anything
with a strong odor
. Lastly, make sure your
garnishes arequickandeasy toapply,so
food still goes out piping hot.

20. As one of the most important
products in any chef's toolkit,
decoratingbrusheshaveavariety of
applications. You can use them for
both detailed linework and broad
strokes as you apply sauces,or
when plating purees and coulis
beneath meat or vegetables.

21. Garnishing kits come with
everything you need to garnish all
of your signature dishes, including
plating wedges, tongs, squeeze
bottles, and brushes.

22. Molds are also very important
when plating food.By cutting
ingredients to a specific shape and
size, you'll provide visual appeal
and keep your plate tidy
. Ring
molds also help you develop height
and structure when stacking
ingredients.

23. Last but not least,you'll want to
have precision tongs on hand for
placing garnishes or small,
delicate foods. Many tongs also
feature microserrations
for improved grip and stability.

24. Plating wedges come pre-cut with
flat, round, or pointed edges and
are perfect for smearing sauces
and other soft ingredients into
designs on your plate.

25. Shavers work well when shaving or
grating chocolate, hard cheeses,
or soft vegetables on top of
your finished creations.

26. You'll also wanttohaveavariety of
spoons on hand. Saucier spoons
help you drag smears of sauce
across your plate, and you can also
choose a utensil with a tapered
bowl that's perfect for drizzling
and pouring.Additionally,slotted
spoons quickly separate solids
from liquids as you complete your
presentation.

27. Squeeze bottles are ideal when
applying sauces or aiolis to your
finished plate. Many of these items
come with adjustable, precision
control tips that allow you to apply
the perfect amount of product.

28. Presentation Technique
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29. 1.Having the proper food presentation and plating tools is essential to high-quality
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2.Garnishing _
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_ come with everything you need to garnish all of your
signature dishes, including plating wedges, tongs, squeeze bottles, and brushes.
3.Ring _
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ingredients.
4.Many tongs feature _
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for improved grip and stability.
5.Plating _
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_come pre-cut with flat, round, or pointed edges and are perfectfor
smearing sauces and other soft ingredients into designs on your plate.

30. 6.Saucier _
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_helps to drag smears of sauces across your
plate.
7.Squeeze bottles are ideal when applying sauces or _
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plate.
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_spoons quickly separate solids from liquids as you completeyour
presentation.
9.Many items of squeeze bottles come with _
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,precision control tips that
allow you to apply the perfect amount for product.
10.Shavers work well whenshaving or _
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_chocolate,hard cheeses,or
soft vegetables on top of your finished creations.