Would you want to eat a plate of food that looks cluttered and messy? Most people who sit down at the dinner table prefer to see a plate of food that pleases the eye, smells good and anticipates an expected outcome. Wouldn't you?
You want to avoid food clutter for a few good reasons.
Maybe the sight of a nice looking plate of food would make it easier to encourage the family to gather around the table for the evening meal. Maybe it might even encourage both big and little kids to "eat vegetables." Who knows?
My children can tell you about the animal pancake shapes I made for them when they were young. It was great fun for me and for them, too. The way the pancakes looked on the plate was so appealing, they smiled and asked for more.
Of course, the examples are similar, but not actually pictures of mine from years ago. They illustrate that there's more to serving a nice-looking plate of food than just coaxing kids to eat. It taught the young ones a valuable lesson.
You don't need to be a Food Network Chef to present food on the plate in a pleasant, eye-appealing way.
Food should incorporate the senses, meaning sight, taste, touch, smell, hearing. Here is what I've learned to make the food I cook look so good... the first thing you do is smile. Your eyes bug out happily, your mouth waters and your tongue wants to hang out in anticipation waiting to take the first bite.
From a sensory perspective, food should have texture, taste and presentation. Something for your mouth as well as your eyes and nose and ears.
1. Texture: crisp, crunchy, hard, chewy, creamy
Texture refers to those qualities of a food that can be felt with the fingers, tongue, palate or teeth. A plate of food should have balanced texture, meaning you want something crunchy to contrast food that's not crunchy; hard versus soft; chewy versus smooth; something crisp and something not crisp.
2. Taste: sweet, savory, bitter, salty, sour or tart, tangy, sour
Taste refers to the ability to detect the flavor of food. A plate of food should have a balance of flavors, meaning sweet, as well as savory, including salty, sour or tart, tangy.
3. Presentation: table, plates, placement
Presentation should appeal to your eyes and nose. Set the table with plates, flatware and glasses, but also consider how the table looks. Choose plates that go with the theme or cuisine. Choose table decor that doesn't detract or distract from the food on the plate.
Odd vs Even. A little trick I learned when doing design is to use odd numbers. For example, if you serve meatballs, put 3 not 2, or 5 not 4 on the plate.
High and Low. Create dimension. It depends on what your plan to serve, but you can add dimension to your plate by choosing food that sticks up higher than other foods on the plate.
Color. Put colorful food combinations on the plate. For example, You could add red and yellow bell pepper slices to a green salad.
You can even pretty the plate before you set down the actual food. It's really easy. There is no right or wrong. Food Plate Decorating is simply about adding sauces, syrups, condiments, dressings, whatever other liquid decoration and food compliment you can think of.
Start by putting your "liquid food" such as raspberry syrup in a squeeze bottle. Then, simply add dots from big to little on the edge of the plate. Leave the dots as is or drag a knife point around the plate, through the dots to form your circular design.
You can use two different sauces (be sure to put each in its own bottle) and do the same thing to vary the color on the plate. You can also drag the dots back and forth instead of around the edge of the plate.
There are numerous ingredients you can put in your bottles to add a design to your food plate. Be creative. Add some personal creativity to the plate before you present the food. Come on now. These examples are what the pros do. You don't have to "design" like a professional chef. Just make the food look nice on the plate. You know what I mean.
Never put something on the plate, such as a decoration, that you can't eat. You want to leave some "space" around food, too.
Food that looks nice on the plate, and smells good, too, makes the food more inviting, and more welcome.
Food experts call it, "Culinary Artistry." I call it a "good example." You see, I first got the idea when my children were young. I'm not even sure they realized it, but when the plate of food I served them looked and smelled good -- the message was and is, that they should, too.
It's a subliminal example that says take the time to consider how you look, what you wear, how you comb your hair, what you put on your face. It's one of the first lessons of life a child learns. It's about having pride in yourself. Respect for yourself, as well as, others. Not just at the dinner table, not just on the plate of food in front of you, but all the time, everywhere. Look your best. It matters.