Much of how we feel about a meal or just a single
dish is determined at first sight. The way in which you present
the food you prepare can make a difference. While the
professionals might spend hundreds of dollars and numerous hours
to make food look perfect for photo shoots, every cook can take
simple steps to make the presentation of their food special. It
doesn’t take a lot of time or equipment to make a plate
extraordinary. Often, all you need is your imagination and a
paring knife. Keep these presentation and garnishing tips in
mind.
Serve
food in dishes that complement the food.
Fettuccini Alfredo, with its white sauce
would look better in a colored dish than in
a white one. At the same time, beware of
serving food in or on very decorative
dishes, as the food may “get lost.”
Combine colors in a pleasing manner. Like
colors work well. Yellow, orange, and red
in a fruit salad, for example, blend
nicely. Complimentary colors also make a
nice presentation, like spaghetti sauce
next to a green salad.
When combining foods, strive for contrast
in texture, too. Combine soft, crunchy,
chewy, crisp, etc. That’s why sandwiches
and carrot sticks or potato chips are a
good combination. Soup is great accompanied
by crisp French bread, too. Can you think
of other good combinations?
Be creative with ordinary foods. Use a
melon-baller to serve melon in balls
instead of cutting it into regular
bite-sized pieces. Slice apples
differently. Cut out sandwiches with a
cookie cutter for shape variety. In
addition, there are a number of ways to
arrange foods on plates or platters in a
pleasing manner. Try a concentric, or
bull’s-eye, pattern. A radiating pattern
separates foods into sections as if they
were divided by spokes on a wheel.
Use simple garnishes, like an ingredient
from the dish. For example, a sprig of
fresh basil is a great garnish for a plate
of spaghetti. Sliced oranges, lemons, or
limes make an attractive garnish for
poultry dishes. There are great books and
web sites where you can get more
information on making garnishes like tomato
roses, carrot curls, etc. With some
instruction, you can make quite impressive
garnishes.