How Do You Plate?

I was recently accused of running a restaurant instead of a home kitchen. Reason: The way I plate meals.

I plate individually, and try and make the plate as visually appealing as possible; by arrangement of the dishes, use of garnishes, etc. Although there are just the two of us, now, I did it that way when the kids lived at home. For me, food should be a feast for all the senses.

I know I'm in the minority on this. Most people don't bother being fancy except for holidays and special events. But I'm curious if you even plate, at all? Or do you serve family style---putting the serving dishes on the table, and everyone helps themself? Or something in the middle?

As part of that, do you serve in courses? Or does everything go out at one time?

Old habits are hard to break in the home - even with my strong restaurant background! We serve family style - everything on the table most of the time. When I do plate - it's the Italian way - HOMESTYLE. Don't get me wrong - the food looks delicious - it is not slopped on - but it is not art on a plate - that is not allowed in our family. Garnishes??? The Italian men in my family would throw it across the room! You want parsley??? Cook with it! A piece of lettuce and a slice of tomato?? If it's not good enough to go into a salad then there must be something wrong with it and they'd throw it! AND THEY WOULD NEVER LET YOU LIVE IT DOWN - YOU HEARD IT TILL THE DAY YOU DIED (or they did!) That's the way they are. With the men in our family - family style is best - and if you plate - make sure you put enough on there - or you'll hear about that throughout eternity too! And the spoiled ones (which is most of them anyway) not only do they want you to plate - but they want the food still homestyle on the table - regardless of whether they go back for seconds or not. (I'm surprised they don't ask for us to eat it for them too!)

Oh - and by the way - you just gotta love the ones that sit at the table with their empty plate in front of them - everything on the table homestyle - and you have to fill their plates in front of them FIRST! The only exception to that - CHILDREN's plates come first - then the one who thinks he rules the roost. No wonder many Italian women are too pooped to enjoy a meal! Then they have to clean the hands and faces of the little ones, put away the food, push in the "kings" chair (the kids have more brains and push theirs in!) then start to clean the kitchen while he "digests".

Now you know why I would never marry an Italian man!

When I grew up, all our Italian neighbors had two kitchens. Sauce was too messy to be made in the upstairs kitchen, and had to be made in the basement.

I wonder if it isn't a imigrant thing? All the great Italian chefs are men. Go figure.

But you're not alone. Most ethnic people---especially if they're first or second generation Americans---are pretty much the same. A woman's role is to take care of her children, first, her man, second, and then, if there's time and energy, herself.

The southern tradition is even worse. The women eat standing in the kitchen, the men eat at the table---with all their whims taken care of first. It's incredible to me, in today's world, how many young southern women still believe that's right and proper.

Garnishes

Talk about a controversial topic; even some professional cooks object to garnishes. Why use something that nobody eats, is their feeling.

Well, yeah, if their idea of a garnish is to slap some parsley down, I agree. You know the old off-color joke that ends, "nobody eats parsley?"

Garnishes, in addition to prettying up the plate, should have some connection to the dish. And, of course, be edible.

A lot really depends on your talent, time, and, as you note, the inclinations of those you are feeding. In my case, I have plently of the first two, and the people I feed appreciate the effort. And I really enjoy the visual aspects of food prep. So for me, garnishes are a pleasure, not a chore.

Our table usually consists of my wife and myself, along with our young twin boys. The table seats 6 and is rather long. If we had to wait for those two idiots (I say that in a loving sense ) to pass the food, we would go hungry.

9-10 times I usually just plate the food myself and try to make it look decent. I rarely garnish anything. Special occasions? Ok then I might throw some mint on the side of a cheesecake, etc.. But garnish on meatloaf night is overkill.

It is just my husband and I so we usually plate the food in the kitchen and carry it out to the table to eat. We do not use garnishes to make the dish artful. We do usually have homemade dishes not all this new boxed dishes that are available in the grocery stores.

If people read labels I don't think anyone with the brains God gave a turnip would touch those boxed things. Lots of sodium. Lots of high fructose corn syrup (read "sugar"). Lots of preservatives. And little nutritional value.

What really amuses me are those Crockpot Classics. Apparently, it's really inconvenient for some people to take ten minutes to prep meat and veggies and toss them in a slow cooker. So now, in the frozen food section, is something with all that done for you (as well as the sodium--sugar--preservative mix that is de rigeur). At a real hefty premium at that.

I'm not big on slow cookers in the first place. But, my God! How hard can it be to do a little prep work first?

LOL - those frozen crockpot crappies! Sorry - homemade is my style. Been like thtat all my life - too old to change now - and not interested in changing! Crockpot cooking is such a no-brainer to begin with. I'm not putting down anyone who needs to cook like that - but - it doesn't take long to prep veggies for the crockpot - and - it sure doesn't take much to put a meal together - HOMEMADE!

You mentioned A stove in the cellar for making sauce. Sauce is not messy - only the cook making the sauce is. I cannot stand anything splattered - I wipe immediately and I take the stove apart and wash with the dishes - that is how it has been forever in my house. We had a stove in the basement and one in the kitchen and you ran your butt off cooking meals and using both stoves and ovens at the same time. Cripe - we have 2 stoves now - one upstair and one down and cooking and baking keeps you running! Someday I will have a kitchen with a large stove with a double oven, also a 5 burner cooktop, and a double wall oven - then it will be easier on the legs!

It's not unusual to have several tables set up for large family dinners and have men at one table and women and children at another. Sometimes the kings will even fill and re-fill their own dishes that way - sometimes. But a woman is used to running around the kitchen while trying to eat anyway!

Another thing about crockpots - it kills me when people make cakes in the crockpot. OMG - 20 - 30 minutes in the oven and its done compared to 2 1/2 - 3 hours in the crockpot! Makes no sense to me!

I have never heard of using a Crockpot to make a cake...you got to be kidding. Cakes are so easy to make mix the ingredients together and pour in a pan and bake in the oven.

Crockpot's are good for couples who both work and they want to come home to a home cooked meal without the all the hassle of making the full meal when they get home. It especially works for cooking a corned beef with cabbage on low heat or perhaps stews. Of course I would only make a dish in the Crockpot if it was homemade with fresh ingredients.

For me, the main use of my crockpot is for cooking Chili and corned beef -n- cabbage..

aeiou - there are many dessert, cake and bread recipes for the crockpot - and I just don't understand it - they are cooked in just a couple hours - so it is not like putting a meal in the crockpot and going to work and it's done - the desserts would be so overcooked! - so why use it for that??? I dunno - maybe it is me....

Plating food is an art.. along with cooking it. I spend 10-15 minutes fine-tuning, making the meal look wonderful.. but the proof is always in the pudding. =)

goodshyqtgurl said:

Plating food is an art.. along with cooking it. I spend 10-15 minutes fine-tuning, making the meal look wonderful.. but the proof is always in the pudding. =)

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Nothing like serving a cold meal! Not in my house! Homestyle - period. And the dishes look very appealing! We do not believe in "art on a plate".

Mama, why are you assuming that taking the time to plate artfully equals a cold meal?

Not in my house. And not in any other place---restaurant or private kitchen---I know of. Food is served the way it's supposed to be. Hot food is hot, cold is cold, and room temp is room temp. But how it's arranged on the plate, and what is arranged with it, makes all the difference.

goodshyqtgurl said:

Plating food is an art.. along with cooking it. I spend 10-15 minutes fine-tuning, making the meal look wonderful.. but the proof is always in the pudding. =)

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KY - you didn't get my point - and I have run plenty of restaurants in my day - and I come from a long line of chefs, bakers, pastry chefs, cooks, etc. Our family has been in the food business throughout eternity - all phases of it - including owning everything from fine dining to delis. And NO ONE spends 15 minutes on one plate for presentation. Spend 15 minutes on each plate for a table of 8 - I don't think so. Dishes can look quite appealing in much less time.

You're right, Mama, I did miss your point.

Still and all, I don't think Goodshyqtgurl is talking about that much time per plate, but, rather, spending ten minutes extra on the entire meal.

And my guess is, if she actually timed it she's not spending near that amount of time on plating.

Here's an example of different styles plating the same meal. The key word here is "style." It's never a right/wrong thing. Just how you and the people you feed are oriented.

We're going to assume a meal consisting of broiled lamb chops; butternut puree, and roast asparagus.

My mother would have plated this in three piles. A couple or three chops laying flat in one place; a scoop of puree to one side; the asparagus to the other side.

I, on the other hand, am more likely to create a conical pile of the puree, centered on the plate, and sprinkle it with shallot chips. The chops would be stood upright against the puree, equally spaced around it. The aspargus would surround this "mountain," forming a diamond pattern, with the heads of each leg overlapping (and hiding) the stem ends of the next.

The difference in plating time betweenn me and Mom? I dunno; 30-45 seconds, maybe? Certainly no more than a minute. And is it really extra time if I do the puree and asparagus while the chops rest?

Or, here's a real-life example. Yesterday I made Ana Sortun's incredible "Ladies Thighs in Red Pepper Broth With Peas." Basically, these are lamb balls, using Turkish flavorings in both the meat and the broth.

I could have merely made round lamb balls. But, instead, took the time to shape them into "thighs." And when I plated, instead of just tossing them in a bowl with the broth, I arranged them in a trefoil design, and carefully poured the broth over and around them.

Mom would never have thought to take the extra step of shaping the meat. And, for gosh sake, spend extra time plating what amounts to being a soup with meatballs? No way. She'd have added the lamb balls to the pot of broth, and what the ladle brought up is what went in the bowl.

Like I say, merely a difference in style. The food would have tasted the same.

KY - don't get me wrong - foods can be arranged quite attractively on plates - and I think we both agree on that. That is something I can do with some family members - but not with others. Those old Italian men want it one way and that is it! No changing. I could just picture Uncle Frank being served your mom's way and accepting it. But if she were to plate it your way - he would throw it across the kitchen! And he would complain about it all day, every day until he died or you died! It's quite unfortunate that these men do not agree with art on a plate. And the kids in the family prefer everything separated - some of them - do not want any of it touching on the plate! (For that reason I have separated dishes for them - they cost more and I had to order them from the china company - but at least their food doesn't touch!)

When they want their meatballs in one spot on the dish - you do it. They are spoiled and that is it. No change. I often wonder if it is just another way they have of abusing everyone!

I don't take a whole lot of time plating dinner up nicely. It's just hubby and myself (and a toddler, but his plate is his highchair tray) and it tends to be more family/homestyle type service around here. It doesn't have to be pretty to taste good. And garnish - not in this house!

There are always 6 for dinner - 2 of them very tall teen boys - and often there are 10 or so if the other kids or their friends are here. Lot's of time, I don't get much advance notice so I tend to make extra for every meal. I do plate in the kitchen and then everyone takes their plates to the dining table. Mostly I do this so that everyone gets at least one full serving of everything. Everything remaining is left on the work table after plating and all are welcome to return to the kitchen for seconds when they are ready. Also, the 5 year old is rather messy with serving utensils but if everyone is serving themselves at the table, he insists on it, too.

I try to make the plates attractive by choosing colorful dishes to go together. I often serve some fruit (canned or fresh) as a last minute addition to make the plate more appealing. But I don't know much about garnishing so I don't do that.

It's funny mama, I also indulge the ones that don't want their food touching. My feeling is that what one eats and how they enjoy it is up to them and none of my business. If touching food bugs them, I'm happy to oblige. If they don't care for most of the foods served, no problem. I never make anyone eat anything they don't want to and if they tell me ahead of time they don't like something, I don't put it on their plate. But I only prepare one meal. I try to make sure there is at least one thing I know everyone likes, but if someone doesn't care for most of it, I'm not offended if they make a p-nut butter sandwich or a bowl of soup or whatever they want to make. It seems to work for my family and no one has developed an eating disorder or a serious weight problem or malnutrition. (Maybe I feel strongly about this because I was a picky eater as a child and my parents felt I should eat everything served. They were well meaning, but I just couldn't do it. Meal times were awful and I dreaded them. So in 35 years, I've never made anyone eat anything ever.)