Developing a palate

[octopi]

Recently, I've started concentrating more on the different textures, flavours and feelings food can provide me with. However, it's become terribly apparent my palate is a bit immature. What's the best way to refine it, without having a $200 meal every other week, or even spending horrendous amounts of money on very specialized, pricey grocery items?

My partner recommended reading about foods and flavours in cookbooks and reference books, on food and cooking. While Googling, I found a book titled "Tasting Club (http://www.amazon.com/Tasting-Club-Gathering-Together-Favorite/dp/0756620597)" by Dina Cheney which gives ways to have tasting parties and how to pair things. Anyone read it?

I've tried to be particular about tasting singular items when cooking (different olive oils, herbs, cheeses etc), smelling things, and have considered wine tasting classes. But are you born with a good palate? Is a person limited in how good they can become? What are the benefits to having a refined palate (beyond becoming a food snob)?

[Aloysius]

Octopi -

imo the best way is to cook alot and read cookbooks. You learn / discover what different flavor combos work, what doesn't, and what base ingredients, top notes, etc. are going into your food and producing the flavors you enjoy.

Going out to restaurants a bunch... for me expensive restaurants are obviously a fantastic experience, but I've always lived in a city with a really great range of cheaper, ethnic foods. I find this is the best way to really improve your palate, as far as eating out goes. But truly, I don't understand people who are "foodies" and barely cook - how do you have such strong opinions on food when you prolly don't even know half the ingredients that went into the dish?

Another thing (kind of the Alton Brown way) is that understanding the science behind taste and the foods you eat is pretty good info. I'm in the middle of reading:

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen (http://www.amazon.com/Food-Cooking-Harold-McGee/dp/0684843285)

Reads a bit like a textbook, but the info in there is great and it really helps you understand what you are cooking, how best to cook it, and how good / bad flavors are produced during the process.

Oh and I don't believe anyone is born with a good or bad palate. Food is so subjective and contextual (e.g. I have a couple friends very into food, but hate cilantro? I don't get it, but I doubt this means they have a "worse" palate than me).

I'm just glad I basically like everything, so my eating options are not very limited. So really the best bet is just expose yourself to as many different cuisines / dishes as possible, cook the things you like at home, and read about other aspects of food to deepen your knowledge and appreciation of what you put into your body every day.

-Al

[octopi]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm in the middle of reading:

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen (http://www.amazon.com/Food-Cooking-Harold-McGee/dp/0684843285)

Reads a bit like a textbook, but the info in there is great and it really helps you understand what you are cooking, how best to cook it, and how good / bad flavors are produced during the process.

Oh and I don't believe anyone is born with a good or bad palate. Food is so subjective and contextual (e.g. I have a couple friends very into food, but hate cilantro? I don't get it, but I doubt this means they have a "worse" palate than me).

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Thanks for the thoughts. Interestingly, I got the McGee book for my boyfriend as a present, but have only read it in passing, really. Mostly the bits on baking and spices. I'll pay more attention.

I guess I don't mean that people have a good or bad palate, but I definitely think that some people are far more skilled at picking up notes in wine, spices in cooking or these sorts of things. I'm not sure if they've made a concerted effort to become 'good' at this or it's just natural. Either way, I'm jealous. I love to analyze things and really be thoughtful about them. I think picking up on flavours is fun and would really add to an already wonderful event; eating!

[Tartufo]

I'm not a specialist, but I know that your palate (more precisely, the sensory cells which pick up taste signals) is something which adapts over time. This is how you learn to appreciate certain flavors (think coffee, or olives) which you initially may find abhorrent.
I'm convinced that, with concentration and a bit of effort over time, you can become quite good at recognizing various flavors/ingredients. There may be an innate component, but I think it is smaller than what most people would think.

It's interesting how learning about wine is, to a certain extent, also learning a vocabulary. Without specific terminology it would be difficult to describe a wine beyond whether you like it or not; but once someone draws your attention to the fact that chardonnay often smells like tropical fruit, while sauvignon blanc smells more like citrus, it becomes a lot easier to categorize and identify wines. Once you know the main characteristics, you can start paying attention to subtle details, and so on.

I highly recommend tasting parties with friends. Talk to knowledgeable store owners (cheese store, wine store). Buy a piece of the best brie your cheese specialist has and buy a piece of the cheapest one in the supermarket and compare (blind). Cook as much as you can, and be critical about the outcome. Does it have the texture (flavor, color) you want it to have? Is it a harmonious dish or is one of the ingredients overpowering? Of course this is not supposed to undermine your enjoyment of the cooking or eating, but only to draw your attention to the various dimensions there are in a dish.

[KJS]

I am trying to undertake the same exercise as you and a friend lent me Culinary Artistry (http://www.amazon.com/Culinary-Artistry-Andrew-Dornenburg/dp/0471287857/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-1035900-0916140?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1173680667&sr=8-2)

It has a great catalogue of flavor combinations which I hope to incorporate into my cooking and also use to help me understand why it is that things go together. I will add a review in my cookbook review thread when I am done with it.

KJS

[Aloysius]

KJS - book looks pretty cool, thanks for the rec.

Octopi:

[ QUOTE ]
I guess I don't mean that people have a good or bad palate, but I definitely think that some people are far more skilled at picking up notes in wine, spices in cooking or these sorts of things. I'm not sure if they've made a concerted effort to become 'good' at this or it's just natural. Either way, I'm jealous. I love to analyze things and really be thoughtful about them. I think picking up on flavours is fun and would really add to an already wonderful event; eating!

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Gotcha - I just have a knee-jerk reaction to the concept of "foodie-ness" - find it lame, and don't begrudge / judge anyone for their tastes or preferences - I mean, c'mon, it's just food /images/graemlins/smile.gif

If you read any profile on Robert Parker... yeah definitely suggests that some people are born with much more discerning palates and olfactory senses (and this makes sense to me).

Tasting parties as both you and Tartufo mentioned seem like great ideas - eating things with good contrast would, I think, really help develop taste memory and help detect the differences between certain flavor combos (or similar food products).

But really - cooking alot really seems like the best way to develop a more discerning palate, and as many different tasting cuisines / dishes as possible.

-Al

[Dominic]

My father has always been a bit of a gourmand, so while I was growing up I was always exposed to all sorts of foods...so I guess I was lucky in that regard. I do think it's a learned thing...if you're raised on macaroni and cheese and hot dogs, it's going to be tough suddenly get into caviar and pate when you're twenty. But you can do it...I think the classes and wine tastings are a great idea. If you have a Whole Foods type of grocery store near you,. you can try a couple of cheeses or breads or meat without it costing you too much, too.

[turnipmonster]

smell is a huge component of palate, it may help a lot just to pay a lot more attention to the smell of something. most spices have no flavor at all, the only thing they add to a dish is in the aroma. realizing this was pretty important to me in terms of using and appreciating spices.

[GTL]

[ QUOTE ]
smell is a huge component of palate, it may help a lot just to pay a lot more attention to the smell of something. most spices have no flavor at all, the only thing they add to a dish is in the aroma. realizing this was pretty important to me in terms of using and appreciating spices.

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this is somewhat misleading because smell makes you taste things. if you eat an apple and smell an onion, the apple will taste like an onion. so the spices do add flavor through the smell.