What Goes Inside My Head When Creating New Dishes

We all admit, there has been an instance in our lives when we accidentally dipped our finger(s) into something a bit too deep and immediately put it in our mouth to taste. And yes, we are talking about food and nothing else. With astonishment, your eyes grew instantly and stared at the person in front of you—the one who made your food. Puzzled, befuddled, baffled, mystified, perplexed, bewildered, abandoned and confused, you ask,

“This is so good, how did you do it?”

“How did you come about this dish!?"

“This reminded me of my grandma’s… but how!?”

While there is no rocket science or mathematical formula (at least in home cooking, not unless if it’s pastry!) behind whipping up something in the kitchen, there is though, an element of inspiration behind every dish. Cooking is a very emotional ritual, and it runs deep into an individual’s upbringing, culture and history. Your emotions affect your inspirations, and your inspirations affect your emotions. When was the last time you recalled the smell of your most favorite dish that mom makes for you and used that as inspiration to create a derivative? Whatever you do, you just can’t nail it the same way, it may be better or worse. But when people ask you how you came about it, you tell them, “It was inspired by something or someone.”

At the restaurant, whenever I touch tables, I get this question asked a lot. I believe it is a good sign, which means that guests are engaged in the experience—we triggered a bull’s eye for them to be as curious as they are of how we’re able to create the flavor combinations that we come up with.

You see, let me explain to my readers that good food, has one solid flavor profile or theme, a straight line, if you may. I would associate good with let’s say, clam chowder (creamy, umami and rich), a steak (meaty, savory) or roasted chicken (the infusion of roasted meat with all the aromatics). AND THEN… you have… REALLY PHENOMENAL FOOD where different flavors unfold and unravel as you consume it. It’s like a line full of zigzags (the good ones) that take you to different realms but in the end, still takes you to your destination. THESE ARE THE KEYWORDS, AS. YOU. CONSUME. IT. These are your ceviches with two or three different sauces, your avant garde fine dining salad, taco or whatever that just leaves you feeling abused after eating it. The food raped your taste buds and you liked it. Every time you take a bite, it feels like the flavors just keep on digging deeper and deeper into your tongue’s cellular structure. From just being peppery, you begin to taste sour, sweet, salty then bitter. You look at the person in front of you again… puzzled, befuddled, baffled, mystified, perplexed, bewildered, abandoned and confused—you’re just speechless.

I’ve been cooking for a decade now, and it still excites me to answer this question all the time. While there is simplicity in the question presented, the answer, is complex as the roots of a tree (I’m being sarcastic). In order not to get lost in the sauce while answering, I always have a consistent approach to the question.

I first explain where I get the inspiration from

>Inspired by travel

Travel experiences are very strong sources of inspiration and emotions. When you get reminded of a very special time during one of your journeys, it triggers a lot of emotions and you begin to use words that are associated with that experience. Chefs draw inspiration in creating new dishes from certain instances or moments that stood out. From there, they can recollect and remind themselves of how things tasted in that particular time, recreating the dish that is almost as perfect as they want it to be.

>Inspired by childhood

Anything nostalgic of our childhood days, is like French fries and ketchup, they just work. When remembering childhood dishes, I believe that it has to do more with the way we remember the smell rather than the taste. You smell something first, and when it reminds you of something from the past, then that link lets you create a bond immediately.

>Through Experience

Chefs have had their fair shares of making mistakes in combining flavors. When those mistakes eventually turn into recurring opportunities for development (depends on how you look at it, but normally, mistakes start as frustrations and chefs eventually become in-tune with their behavior and they start to see mistakes in a different way) then you find that “Aha!” moment. From then on, you just remember and expect that you’ll be able to connect ideas together even if it’s still just a thought inside your head.

I then check which things are available and what is in season

Cooks must know their geographical location well and at the same time be able to decipher the seasonality of products that will be utilized. What grows in your country and what doesn’t? What are accessible and what aren’t? What are of quality and what can be skipped? These criterias will help you become a better chef that makes better dishes than the rest. Your concept will set you apart if you allow nature to dictate what you create.

I start to brainstorm the best possible way to process the products

This will involve questions like, “Should I pan sear the scallops or slice it raw and thin?” “To pickle or not to pickle?” It depends on what I’m trying to achieve. We route our brains differently, but we have a destination in mind. The more preparation styles or cooking methods you know, the more creative you can be.

How will I present the dish?

You eat with your eyes first. You’re there taking photos of the food, not realizing that the people who are with you can’t wait to plunge their forks in to get that first bite. Presentation is key, and it enhances the overall taste of something. Something that looks good is pretty much going to taste good too (70% of the time). And something that looks sloppy will make people get up from their seats and order Dominos. I don’t know which one is worse.

When I plate, I always think of the words: French, Timeless, Elegance, Sophistication. I open my eyes and it’s already done.

lastly,

I start to ask myself, If I like it, will others like it too?

This is the make or break of the creation process. As a chef, you must have a level of confidence that people around you will appreciate what you came up with. BUT, you cannot be overly confident, there will always be a helpful opinion that will be pointed out by somebody to help you improve. Here at Consentido, whenever I create a dish, I always let my cooks taste it first. If they say yes to it, I then present it to my front-of-the-house team and they help me out as well. Once it passes with flying colors amongst the team, then we’re locked and loaded to offer it as an item on our weekly special menu. ONLY when people have good feedback on a particular special dish, will I even consider putting it on the main menu.

As an example

Chicken Roulade

Take for example this dish that I created during the summer. It’s called Chicken Roulade. Roulade in english means “roll”. Now, experience taught me how to roll the chicken like this. Don’t ask me how. hahahaha. When I came up with this dish , I immediately thought about Morel mushrooms. Morels and chicken work well together. It was summer and morels are fresh and in season. Creamy, earthy and umami. I came up with a nice sauce using the mushrooms that perfectly paired well with the juicy protein. And then, I wanted an element of crunch, but not too much. I then thought of making crispy coral tuile (butter, water and flour). It just adds a certain elegance and avant garde aspect to the dish. Then, I decided to have a little bit of color and flavor contrast of bitterness, hence the green pea puree at the bottom. Peas are also in season during the summer, then it all made sense. When you order it, we pour the sauce table-side. This was a crowd favorite.

Hamachi Caviar Crudo

Another favorite amongst our clients is this Hamachi Caviar Crudo. I thought of having a very refreshing crudo with hamachi. It was 105F outside and nobody wanted to eat something heavy and rich. Hamachi is very delicate and cannot be overpowered by strong flavors. I opted to use our versatile leche de tigre. But the surprise happens at the bottom. Underneath, what you can’t see, there is shallot confit—shallots that have been cooked in oil, low and slow. It adds a nice buttery and nutty flavor. Also, there is avocado mousse for richness and acidity to contrast the lean fish. Lastly, slices of apples and brunoise of apples to add crunch to the dish and lift the dish to have a little bit sweetness and refreshing after taste. We then add truffle, shallot and huacatay oil after. The caviar? Oh, who doesn’t like that?

And that is all, I hope I was able to clear out the mystery on how we come up with dishes. So go and grab your apron and whip something up in the kitchen. Let the people around you taste where your imagination will lead you to. When all else fails, there is Doordash.