Balancing the 5 tastes to create flavor and texture
Before I leave the topic of the 5 tastes and balancing them to achieve endless dishes, I’ve got one more on the subject in an attempt to put a bow around it. I ran across this video on making risotto. I’m sorry for the length because it’s fifteen minutes long, but it makes so many great points. I would like to emphasize that this lesson is not about risotto. Forget about the risotto. It’s not the point. What’s he’s doing and talking about is.
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He doesn’t use a recipe. Instead, he is relying on methods. We will be discussing cooking methods next so take notice. First, he sauté’s (a method), the onion and garlic, he toasts (a method), the rice, then he uses the risotto method to cook the rice. He never measures a thing. Possibly the rice, but if he did, it was for portion control. Don’t get me wrong about recipes. They are great and have a place, but they are often quite unnecessary. I’ll be discussing this as well in the future.
Please take notice, too, his comments about layering flavor, balancing the tastes, and relying on our other senses. These are the things that will have you cooking like a pro in no time. Now … let’s get to the video.
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