Spices and Flavorings

Seasonings vs Flavorings A seasoning is something that enhances the flavor of an item without changing the primary flavor of the dish. They must be used with care to prevent overuse, but seasoning generally should be added at the start of the dish to create a depth of flavor. Flavor refers to the way a food tastes, as well as its texture, appearance, doneness, and temperature. There are four basic types of seasoning ingredients: Salts Peppers Sugars Acids A flavoring should enhance the base ingredients of the dish, or it can also bring another flavor to the product.

Herbs and Spices Herbs and spices are important ingredients used to enhance and add to the flavor of food: Herbs are the leaves, stems, or flowers of an aromatic plant. Spices are the bark, roots, seeds, buds, or berries of an aromatic plant. Storing spices and herbs properly helps to keep them fresh and flavorful. Heat, light, and air all speed the loss of flavor and color. Add volatile spices and herbs toward the end of cooking to provide the full benefit of their aromas and flavors. Some herbs and spices must be used carefully because their dominant flavors can overpower the flavor of the dish. Use salt and pepper at the beginning of the cooking process to ensure that sauces, butter, or other liquids will not wash off the seasoning.

Flavor vs. Taste The terms flavor and taste are often used interchangeably, they are not synonymous. There are 4 tastes: sour, sweet, salty, and bitter. Flavor is a combination of the tastes, aromas, and other sensations. There are many flavors: strawberry, chocolate, lemon, chicken, etc.

Flavoring vs. Spice Herbs and spices are used as flavorings. Herbs refer to the large group of aromatic plants whose leaves, stems or flowers are used to add flavors to other foods. Most herbs are either fresh or dried. Spices are strongly flavored or aromatic portions of plants used as flavorings, condiments, or aromatics. Spices are the bark, roots, seeds, buds or berries of plants. Spices are almost used in their dried form.

Herbs