How do you decide what to make for a meal

SteveM_20803

I am fairly confident in my abilities to cook food – I can handle the mechanics, but I am feeling like I want to step it up a bit. Normally, I will figure out what I want as a protein or maybe something that I want to be prominent in the meal, and then I would rummage around the fridge, freezer, pantry and/or local store to come up with items that are going to join it on the plate. The decision centers mostly on what I am in the mood for, what is in season, or what is traditional, (i.e. steak and potatoes).

So the more I follow the conversations on Chef Steps, the more I am thinking about playing to the senses, like sweet, salty, bitter, and sour. (Can’t seem to get my head around umami). I’ve also read about food pairings and the unusual combinations research has come up with. All of this led to the realization that people must think about harmony and contrast on the plate.

Recently, I found an interesting recipe for a spicy pickled peach. Normally, I would just make it, then plunk it down on the plate when the opportunity arose. This time I started thinking about what I would pair this with… chicken – no, steak – no, pork…. Ok, then pork rib -no, tenderloin – hmmm, loin – pork loin would work, now - how to prepare the pork loin….and so on.

So the question is, how do you decide what you are going to serve at a meal? What is your process? What do you think about? Am I totally missing something?

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Brendan_Lee_56950

I'm chinese-vietnamese so I've grown up with the basic premise that every meal should be a balance of sweet, salty, sour/bitter, spicy, and savory. So I take that principle into every meal regardless of what it is in front of me. I typically go to the store at the beginning of each week for proteins, grab whatever looks good/is on sale, and then rely on my well stocked pantry to go from there. I typically will do at least 1-2 asian meals a week because that's my preference but the thought process is always to keep all of those flavors in balance.

For example, Sunday night grocery shopping landed me a whole chicken, a 2.5" thick ribeye, 2 bone in 1.5" pork chops, eggplant, zucchini, scallion, parsley, garlic, and ginger. Monday night we did a roasted eggplant with gochujang (savory + spicy), shallot/garlic/scallion/ginger sauteed with sweet soy (sweet + salty), baby arugula (bitter), raw fresno chili, and a garnish of charred scallion whites and baby bell peppers (sweet + savory + smokey) dressed with toasted sesame oil (savory).

It seems like a lot but I didn't really have to think too hard about it. I had the eggplant, knew I wanted to use that so I opened the fridge and saw the gochujang and that satisfied the spicy + savory requirement. Added the sweet soy to the veg to satisfy the sweet + salty requirement. Added the arugula for the peppery/bitter kick and color, and then just made use of the veg I had left over.

Even though it's an asian sensibility, I apply it to all flavor profiles. Tonight I have to use the ribeye so I have it cooking SV @55C and then I'll give it a hard sear and it's being paired with a makeshift chimichurri (parsley, sherry vin, cayenne, sweet paprika, olive oil, S&P), and I have some tomatoes from a friend I need to use up so I'm going to make a basic caprese with balsamic to go along with it but sub arugula for basil. So once again each flavor group is hit and balanced.

tshewman

This is an excellent question as I tend to struggle with it quite frequently. Personally, what I try to do is start with one ingredient (doesn't always have to be a protein) and build the meal (or sometimes just a plate for a meal). Take for example the roasted carrot, I ask myself what do I think goes with carrots, arugula in a salad? Yup, it's on the list, lemon? if in a salad, possibly in the vinaigrette, so it goes on the list, green beans (because we just picked a bunch from our garden), yes green beans and carrots....and so it goes. Then I mentally play with "how" to bring them in......the lemon in with the lemon thyme, the beans, I juiced and combined with pistachio oil (because nuts go well in a salad) and a nice white balsamic....and the arugula played it's usual role. I also look at other books and recipes for ingredients that are different, or presented different and see what else they bring in and try to think of a different disguise. That's the fun part about cooking (to me).

Tim_Sutherland_52834

About once a month I walk into markets where, I stand out due to the colour of my skin (white) and I can't read some of the signs (I only know Australian and a little bit of 'merican), then proceed to buy stuff that I don't know what it is or how to cook it. I have been known to talk to little old ladies in the supermarkets asking what various things are and how to cook them.

In normal Americanised mainstream supermarkets, I head to the protein areas to see what is the best value, ask for the fishmonger/butcher to bag it and I'll be back, head to the produce area and pick up what looks good, back for the protein then out.

Most weekend meals for me end up with a proof of concept part (e.g. crispy duck heads, stuffed pigs trotter, SV brains, etc) and left overs from the fridge. Weekday meals end up being samples of the dishes I cook for clients (I work as a private chef to two large families 6-10 & 5).

Menu ideas come from cookbooks, restaurants and the web. I look at the flavours that are going on the plate, then think of different ways to present those flavours and/or other like flavours to have different texture.

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I start with some protein as everything I do is a daily dinner, then I've talked quite a bit with @Brendan so I tend to follow that asian concept, next I have to avoid a few things I know my wife or daughter won't eat, lastly I look a bit at time available and how much effort I want to put in.

Jack_Mayer_85396

Wow, really cool thread! In addition to the great suggestions here, you might want to check out a book called "The Flavor Bible"