Food Garnishing Ideas

Garnishing food is the art of decorating food or drinks to make them visually appealing and appetizing. It requires the use of simple edible ingredients like vegetables, chocolates and fruits that complement the food dish well and make it appear interesting. The garnish can also be used to add some flavor to the dish or drink. You may assume that garnishing foods creatively may require quite some time and effort, but it is not so. With the help of some garnishing techniques and tips, you can easily garnish food dishes and drinks and make them look spectacular. You should also equip yourself with some of the essential food garnishing tools and with a little practice, you will soon be a pro at food dressing.

Ideas for Food Garnishing

To garnish food creatively, it is essential that you make use of appropriate food garnishes that complement the texture, color and taste of the food dish or drink. You can use different ideas for food garnish, depending on the food dish or drink that needs to be garnished. For example, soup recipes have a uniform texture, that may appear quite boring if they are not garnished. You can make use of cream, yogurt, flavored oil or grated cheese as soup garnishes. To garnish vegetable dishes, you can make use of mint or coriander leaves, citrus peels, grated ginger and nuts or seeds. For meat garnishing, you can make use of different sauces, herbs and spices as the garnish. Desserts can be garnished using fresh fruits, dried fruits, whipped cream, various forms of chocolate, powdered sugar and edible flowers. Carrots, tomatoes, mint leaves, bell peppers, nuts, oranges, lemons etc. all make good drink and food garnishes.

Tools Required

The various tools that you would require for garnishing food and presentation include tools such as a parchment cone, apple corer, citrus stripper, a grater, cookie cutters, toothpicks, skewers, knives, and vegetable peelers. These tools are easily available and are easy to use as well.

Once you have equipped yourself with the tools and food garnishes, you can begin garnishing foods with the help of the following ideas.

• If you are using citrus fruits like oranges or lemons as food garnish, you can use a citrus stripper to cut out strips, wedges, and twists. These can be used to garnish drinks, fish items, or desserts.
• While using bell peppers, you can make use of all the colors in equal quantity and they can be either sliced or diced.
• Chocolate can be used for garnishing in the form of chocolate chips or you can also grate it and sprinkle over dessert. Melted chocolate can either be sprinkled over the dessert or on the plate before serving the dessert. Chocolate sauce goes well with other garnishes like fresh fruits and nuts.
• Carved fruits and vegetables can be used to decorate the centerpieces. You can also use the top portion of a pineapple as a decoration for a fruit platter.
• Carrots can be grated, sliced round, or shredded to use as garnish for meat dishes. A carrot rose can also be used to decorate a salad platter.
• You can use a tiny bunch of mint leaves as garnish, or you can cut them and sprinkle them evenly over the food dish.
• Make use of different colored syrups, sauces, and chutneys to add a hint of color to dull and bland looking food items.

Along with these food garnishing tips and ideas, remember to use fresh food garnishes that go with the color, temperature and taste of the food item to be garnished. Avoid over garnishing the food item and make sure you arrange the garnished items appropriately and that they complement the table decoration.