Secret of Great Taste

As a dietitian trained as a professional chef who loves to cook, I specialize in making creative, intense-flavored dishes that are low in fat and sodium. The secret lies in balancing the tastes from the ingredients in the dish. When a dish tastes good, it is because there is a balance between the sweet, sour, bitter, pungent and salty tastes, or the five flavors your tongue detects. A dish does not have to contain each of these tastes, but it will have at least two. The key to balance is choosing ingredients in the correct proportion to compliment each other.Sweet is not just synonymous with table sugar.Fruit, onions, winter squash, pumpkin, carrots, sweet potatoes, beets or parsnips can provide sweetness. Use high heat and a little cooking oil spray to caramelize the sugar in onions, carrots, squash, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and parsnips. This will change the tone of their sweetness. Adding caramelized vegetables to a sauce or soup will heighten the flavor as opposed to placing them in raw with the liquids to boil. Adding pineapple to salsa brings a more interesting condiment for fish. Chutneys made with fruits, spices and vinegars are a great example of balancing sweet, bitter and acid tastes.Thinking of sour brings tomatillos, lemons, limes and vinegars to mind.Experiment with the different tones between fruit and grain vinegars and those aged in wood.? Balsamic vinegar in a tomato sauce balances the acidity beautifully, even though a sweet taste is more commonly chosen. For a fat-free salad dressing that tastes great, blend 1/4 tsp rice vinegar, 1/4 tsp lemon juice and 2 Tbsp orange juice. You will create interesting levels of taste with the different acids added to this dressing.Generally, when one thinks of bitter flavors, it is to avoid them.However, the bitter taste, as found in many herbs, watercress, parsley, chicory, collards and mustard greens, adds dimension to a dish and serves as balance with the other tastes. A salad is a great example. The greens are bitter, while the dressing contains an acid and possibly a sweet taste (such as? carrots may be present); the pungency of ginger or garlic could round out the dish. That is why salads taste so good. Milk added to coffee or tea brings a more pleasurable sensation because its natural sugars soften the bitter flavor found in these beverages.Most spices generally add a bitter-pungent taste, while some are sweet-pungent such as mace, nutmeg and cinnamon. Other pungent flavors include: garlic, horseradish, ginger, mustard and radishes.Salty tastes are varied in origin and help enhance the flavor of a dish. Some of my choices include: light soy sauce, capers, anchovies, Parmesan cheese, and pickles. Mushrooms and tomatoes add a salt taste too. A little goes a long way; and the salt taste is not always necessary when you use the other elements.Tasting is 80% smell, so the aroma of ingredients really matters. Choose your fruits, vegetables and fresh herbs with your nose as well as your eyes. Choosing two or more of these five tastes is a sure way of forming a unique piece of work to be enjoyed long after the first bite.By Patricia Hart, MS, RD, Chef/Dietitian.Patricia is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has taught at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco.