The 5 Basic Elements of Plating.

1.      Create a Framework. Start with drawings and sketches to visualise the plate. ...

2.      Keep It Simple. Select one ingredient to focus on and use space to simplify the presentation. ...

3.      Balance the Dish. ...

4.      Get the Right Portion Size. ...

5.      Highlight the Key Ingredient.

 

1. Choose the Perfect Plate

Selecting the right plate for your meal is key to attractive food presentation. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Choose the right plate. One way to conceptualize plating is to think of yourself as an artist, the plate as your canvas, and the food as your medium.

Choose the right size plate. Choose your plate wisely by making sure it's big enough to allow your food to stand out, but small enough that your portions don't look too small.

Choose a complementary plate color. The color of your plate is also significant. White plates are popular because they create high contrast and provide a neutral background for your colorful creations. Utilize white space by thinking of the rim as your frame, and consider using the rule of thirds to highlight your plate's focal point(s). When applied to cooking, the rule of thirds prescribes placing the focal point of your dish to either the left or right side of the plate, rather than the center.

2. Placing Your Ingredients

Here are a few of the most important aspects to consider as you build your dish:

Plate with a clock in mind. As you begin plating your ingredients, picture the face of a clock. From the diner's point of view, your protein should be between 3 and 9, your starch or carbohydrate from 9 and 12, and your vegetable from 12 and 3.

Use moist ingredients as your base. Another rule of thumb is to plate moist or runny ingredients first, as they tend to move during delivery if they aren't held down by other foods. One way to anchor runny ingredients is by placing other foods on top of them. For example, you can angle sliced meat or vegetables against purees and mashed vegetables.

Serve odd amounts of food. If you're serving small foods like shrimp, scallops, or bite-sized appetizers, always give guests odd quantities. Serving 7 brussels sprouts instead of 6 creates more visual appeal, and diners will also perceive that they're getting more food.

Place food to create flavor bites. Essentially, flavor bites are forkfuls of food that combine all of the ingredients in your dish into one bite. Creating flavor bites is the perfect accompaniment to creative plating as it pleases both the eye and the taste buds.

Don't overcrowd your plate. Be sure to never overcrowd your canvas, and keep it simple by focusing on one ingredient - usually the protein. Finding a focal point also ensures that the accompanying ingredients will play a complementary, supporting role.

3. Pay Attention to the Details

As you plate your dish, you'll also want to pay attention to the details:

Think about color and contrast. One of the best-kept secrets to beautiful plating is paying close attention to the details. While your focus will obviously be on the protein, considering how the other elements of the plate create color and contrast is also very important.

You can create a beautiful background for your plate by adding green vegetables or brightly colored fruits as accent points. Similarly, try to pair ingredients with complementary colors as this will further enhance your dish's visual appeal.

Create height on your plate. Another way to catch your guests' eyes is to utilize the power of height. While compactly stacking ingredients isn't as popular as it was 5-10 years ago, creating a tall plate can go a long way towards enhancing visual appeal.

You can also balance out taller ingredients by leaning long, flat items against them. For example, you can plate your steak on top of polenta and lean asparagus spears against them at a 45-degree angle.

Use texture to enhance your dish. Finally, don't forget about texture. Contrasting a smooth vegetable puree with crunchy onion straws or topping a steak with crumbled blue cheese creates appealing texture combinations that are classic in high-end cuisine.

4. Design and Create with Sauces

Once you've plated your main ingredients, you're ready to top your dish with delicious sauces. Don't just pour the sauce carelessly all over the plate, though. Instead, think of your squeeze bottle or spoon as a paintbrush, and your sauce as a medium. Then, use them to enhance your plate.

One way to do this is to create accent dots on one side of your plate (while considering the rule of thirds) or by lightly drizzling sauce over the main ingredients so guests get a little bit of sauce in every bite.

5. Use Garnishes Purposefully

In the past, chefs casually threw a piece of kale and an orange slice onto every plate as it left their kitchen. However, these garnishes didn't add anything exciting to the dish, and few guests even ate them in the first place. Here are a few examples of smart garnishes and how to incorporate them:

Choose edible garnishes. As you finish plating, remember that garnishes must be related to the dish and should always be edible. Ultimately, they're designed to enhance and complement the flavors of the entree you've created, not distract from them.

Place garnishes purposefully. Similarly, never heap garnishes in one corner of the plate. Instead, disperse them thoughtfully in order to add color or texture. Also, avoid using unappetizing garnishes like raw herbs, large chunks of citrus, and anything with a strong odor. Lastly, make sure your garnishes are quick and easy to apply, so food still goes out piping hot.

 

 

 

1. Create a framework

Start with drawings and sketches to visualise the plate. Find inspiration from a picture or object. Assemble a “practice plate” to work on executing your vision.

2. Keep it simple

Select one ingredient to focus on and use space to simplify the presentation. Clutter distracts from the main elements of your dish and might make it confusing for the diners to figure out what to focus on.

3. Balance the dish

Play with colours, shapes and textures to ensure diners are not overwhelmed. The presentation should never overpower flavour and function.

4. Get the right portion size

Ensure that there is the right amount of ingredients, and that the plate complements the dish – not too big or small. Strike the right proportion of protein, carbohydrates and vegetables to create a nutritionally balanced meal.

5. Highlight the key ingredient

Ensure the main ingredient stands out, but also pay equal attention to other elements on the plate such as garnishes, sauces and even the plate itself.