September 21, 2009 Gourmet Plating Techniques
by Chef Noche
If you watch any food show on TV, presentation is as important as the smell and taste when it comes to gourmet dining. Think of the sizzle of perfectly grilled filet mignon with its crunchy crust and its "melt in your mouth" middle. It is easy to make an argument that all five of our senses can be used to create ultimate dining experiences. This week, let's talk about how you can incorporate some simple plating techniques you can try at home and get more enjoyment out of your meals.
Home Bistro Sous Vide Meals
Aside from writing our company newsletter, I also do most of the photography. One shot might require me to use four meals, so this gives me an opportunity to routinely get "hands on" experience with reheating meals. Home Bistro meals are prepared by a French method of cooking called sous vide. Sous vide is French for "under vacuum," meaning the food is vacuum-packed and cooked in a low temperature water bath for a long period of time. In this country, we do Southern BBQ with the same idea: Cooking long and slow so the meat falls off the bone, but that is a newsletter for another time.
 Home Bistro Reheating Tip
Home Bistro meals can be reheated in a microwave or on a stovetop. The last thing you want to do is boil these meals! If the water temperature exceeds boiling, the product is very likely to become dry. How does it become dry when it is in water? The heat will dry out the meal, not the water. Here is my tip to reheating Home Bistro meals.
I have every kitchen gadget known to man, and this one works great for reheating Home Bistro meals. It is a multipurpose deep-fat fryer with a thermostat. It brings the water to a boil in about 3 minutes, which is much faster than boiling a pot of water on the stove.
Once the water comes to a boil, I reduce the heat to warm and toss in four meals. The frozen meals will instantly bring the water temperature under boiling. The result is that the meal reheats in the same manner in which it was prepared, and always comes out perfectly. This unit sells for about $40. I see it on sale at Macy's a lot, so watch your local newspaper.
 The Simple
Here is a plating of our Tilapia Meal. This is a very good meal with hearty portions. This is probably how you plate your meals at home now. It is a very simple design. The entrée, side, and vegetable are laid out in thirds on the plate. Now, let's have some fun stepping out of our plating comfort zone.
 The Slice
The next step of plating is the slice. Simply, the entrée is sliced on a 45 degree angle and spread out to fan over 40 to 50% of the plate, which gives it center-stage presentation. Look at how wonderfully pink the center of this steak is. Drizzle the morel sauce between the slices, and plate the side and vegetable last.
 The Stack
Instead of dividing the entrée, side, and vegetable over thirds, with the stack you plate your side and stack the entrée on top of it. This works best when you have a sauce that complements the entrée and side. Rice and mashed potatoes can make good bases for stacks. This Grilled Salmon meal is perfect for it.
 The Stand
Our Stuffed Pork Chop Meal is a perfect meal to stand. Mashed potatoes work the best as a base. Simply place your side dish over 60% of the plate and spread the vegetables over the remaining 40%. Then stand your entrée in the potatoes. It makes a great presentation.
The Uncommon If your creative juices are really flowing, you can try the uncommon. Basically, you are creating a plate you have never seen before. Let your imagination make a picture out of the meal components you are plating. One technique you might try is putting the sauce on the bottom of the entrée, instead of the top, like I did with this Crab Cake Meal.
 Complete Cuisine Meals
Unlike Home Bistro and DineWise Chef Selection meals, our Breakfast meals come packaged in single-serving microwave containers. This makes them especially easy to take to work, but these meals can be plated just as easily as all of our other meals! The Stuffed Pepper Meal and the BBQ Turkey Burger are my favorites.
Your Homework Assignment
I would love to see some of the plate designs you can create with these simple guidelines. Take a picture and send them to me at ChefNoche@DineWise.com. Maybe I'll even publish some of them in upcoming newsletters. If I do, I'll send you a $50 Gift Certificate!
Sincerely,
Chef Noche
Executive Chef
DineWise.com
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