One cook’s opinion: it’s all in the sauce
After 10 years in the culinary industry, I’ve learned a lot about food and wine, where the food I cook comes from—and a lot about myself.
I believe the most important part to any dish is the sauce. If the sauce misses the mark, the whole dish will suffer. Too salty, not salty enough; too thick, too thin—taste, texture as well as aroma and the way the flavours match the protein make a dish a winner or a loser. It’s about creating a balance of all those elements. Your protein could be cooked perfectly, but if the sauce has a bland flavour, is too heavy and smells like rotten feet, it will make the dish less desirable. (There’s nothing worse than a bad sauce to destroy a juicy piece of tenderloin!)
I always use fresh herbs and vegetables, meat from a butcher and fish from a fish market. The quality of the ingredients used will show in the food, especially when making sauces. I like to build flavours while I’m making a sauce, from the vegetables I use to herbs like basil or oregano and spices such as cayenne or paprika. Whenever I’m asked for the secret to my cooking, I always say, “It’s all in the sauce.” I like to cook with different ingredients, going on instinct and tasting everything I make.
I have several rules when making a sauce: Start with a well-flavoured stock (it’s harder to get a sauce that tastes good when you have a weak stock). If you’re deglazing, use a wine that you like to drink. Add seasonings in small quantities, tasting until you like the flavour. If you wouldn’t eat it, don’t make others eat it!
If you put some time, a little love and the best ingredients you can find into a sauce, you just might amaze yourself.
