Sea salt,
preferably coarse: Salt of the earth, grain of salt, worth one’s salt—there’s a
reason so many common expressions involve salt and that “salary” is derived
from the word. It’s a necessary mineral in the human body, not just an
ingredient, and offers sensual satisfaction as well. Unfortunately it’s often
applied with an indiscriminate hand, but a judicious amount of salt enhances
the flavor of just about anything, and can even be transformative. Think of the
difference between plain potatoes and potatoes with a sprinkling of salt…no comparison.
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Essential Ingredients
Now that the dust has settled in my kitchen
after the Thanksgiving frenzy, and the leftovers have dwindled to a pot of soup
in the fridge, it’s time to think about December cooking and baking. I’ve
written about some holiday favorites before, but lately I’ve been thinking
about essential ingredients—what goes into those favorites, what I cannot do
without. They break down naturally into the five sensations our tongue’s taste
receptors respond to: salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami. For those not familiar
with umami, a more recent addition, it’s the Japanese word for “savory
deliciousness” and is associated with foods high in glutamate, such as fish,
meat, specific vegetables, and fermented and aged foods. Although difficult to
define, it’s glaringly obvious when umami is missing. I found it challenging to
come up with a list of just ten essentials, but have narrowed it down by
limiting it to ingredients I never eat on their own.
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