The Art & Science of Foodpairing: 10,000 flavour matches that will transform the way you eat

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The omnivore's dilemma - Including the conflict between playing safe and boredom, and the search for variety and novelty; learned food association; acquired tastes.

Group A shows three ingredients that share strong aromatic links. Chocolate, caramel and coffee all contain roasted, caramellic and nutty notes. A dessert made using these ingredients would be an example of what we call ‘overtoning’, in which variations of similar-smelling ingredients result in a more subtle complexity than combining chocolate with the fruity, citrus and floral notes of raspberries would. Overtoning allows us to incorporate plenty of herbs, spices or other closely related ingredients in a dish without it turning into a cacophony of contrasting elements.

Aroma - Including the importance of aroma to our flavor experience; how we change aromas by cooking; how ingredients create different or similar results; building your aroma library. A large dot means that the main ingredient and the complementary pairing share a specific aroma molecule for that particular type. How to begin pairing While the science is intricate and often overwhelming for the non-scientific reader, there is plenty of good, practical information as well. The origin and history of each ingredient is explained, and there are many useful facts. For example: why roasted cauliflower has more flavor than boiled, that chopping garlic changes its aroma, and the reason why your vinaigrette could end up bitter. As well, there are offbeat nuggets like why and how Nutella was invented.

The Art and Science of Foodpairing provides a fascinating, thought provoking, palette-teasing read for anyone interested in food.” There is a world of exciting flavour combinations out there and when they work it’s incredibly exciting”– Heston Blumenthal Without getting too carried away, try to incorporate at least two of the five contrasting tastes—sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami—to balance your dishes and drinks. In the diagram to the right, the arrows indicate which tastes work to counterbalance one another. Salt, for example, can be used to reduce bitter tastes. That is why some chocolate chip cookie recipes call for a pinch of salt to balance the bitterness of the dark chocolate. Salt also works to balance sweetness, as in sea salt caramel. Following the same principle, you can reduce the intensity of a sweet dessert by adding a sour contrasting element. Food pairing makes it easy to discover new ingredient combinations based on their aromatic matches, but that is not all there is to creating tantalizing dishes that will pique your palate. What can you do to take your recipes to the next level? As you make your selections, don’t forget to factor in taste and texture. Balancing the elements of flavor (aroma), taste and texture will add interesting depth and dimension to your dishes. Striking the right balance may sound simple in theory, but it is often the most difficult part of the job when you are in the kitchen. The basics in brief

In Flavor Matrix, the team of authors, James Briscione and Brooke Parkhurst have fashioned a visually stunning book that suggests flavor pairings of fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, and other protein sources with other fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, etc., and also with herbs and spices, liquids, etc. Crafted for ambitious home cooks, chefs-in-training and food writers, a wealth of food data fits into a graphic image which I think of as a flavor wheel. The wheel displays at a glance the top choices for numerous variations or possibilities on a single ingredient.