Markers in cooking
When it comes to cooking, there is only one real rule, and that is that there are no rules!
By that I mean that everything is possible, everything can be combined, everything or almost everything can go with everything, but you have to like it, you have to find it good.
I have friends who regularly make brown sugar pasta, just the idea makes me jump up and down, but they love it, I respect that, tastes are not debatable!
That's why the dogmas, or the canons of cooking can be shaken up when you cook and at any time, in other words you make a recipe of this and you want to put that in it? But why not, nothing should stop you, if you like it.
By that I mean that everything is possible, everything can be combined, everything or almost everything can go with everything, but you have to like it, you have to find it good.
I have friends who regularly make brown sugar pasta, just the idea makes me jump up and down, but they love it, I respect that, tastes are not debatable!
That's why the dogmas, or the canons of cooking can be shaken up when you cook and at any time, in other words you make a recipe of this and you want to put that in it? But why not, nothing should stop you, if you like it.
12 K 5/5 (16 reviews)
Keywords for this post:CookingTasteMarkersEssentialLast modified on: July 3rd 2021
Markers in cooking
Of course, if you deviate from the basics of a typical recipe, it would be better not to call it by its original name, and especially not to publish it anywhere, as you might get a lot of flak if some guardians of the recipe in question spot you.
Basically, it's potatoes slices cooked in water, put in a gratin dish with a mix of onion, lardons and dry white wine, from Savoie if possible, cooked separately, the whole thing is topped with fresh cream and covered with half-reblochons before being put to gratinate.
A pure winter delight.
All this to tell you that we can, with a certain look, define what the cooks/pastry cooks call the markers of a recipe, that is to say the 2, 3 or 4 or more, indispensable tastes to deserve the name of the original recipe, even if it is completely revisited.
Let's go back to our tartiflette, its markers are: Potato, onion, lardon, Reblochon (or even cream?)
A sweet example, the Black forest cake: chocolate, cream, cherry, kirsch
Tarte tatin: apples, caramel, acidulous
Carbonnade: Beef, beer
Bœuf bourguignon: Beef, red wine, carrots
etc. etc.
You can see that it's sometimes quite simple to determine, sometimes a bit more tricky ( cassoulet?), but it allows you to target a recipe you want to revisit while keeping its tastes and therefore its spirit, and at the same time to allow yourself one or two liberties by changing 1 or 2 markers. I say 1 or 2, because beyond that you risk doing something completely different, which is not dramatic either, but it will probably not deserve the original name.
To sum up: The markers of a recipe, i.e. its essential basic tastes that characterize it, allow you to know if, when revisiting or adapting it, you are still in the spirit of it, or if you are doing something very different, which may not fit with the original name. But who cares if you like it...
Basically, it's potatoes slices cooked in water, put in a gratin dish with a mix of onion, lardons and dry white wine, from Savoie if possible, cooked separately, the whole thing is topped with fresh cream and covered with half-reblochons before being put to gratinate.
A pure winter delight.
All this to tell you that we can, with a certain look, define what the cooks/pastry cooks call the markers of a recipe, that is to say the 2, 3 or 4 or more, indispensable tastes to deserve the name of the original recipe, even if it is completely revisited.
Let's go back to our tartiflette, its markers are: Potato, onion, lardon, Reblochon (or even cream?)
A sweet example, the Black forest cake: chocolate, cream, cherry, kirsch
Tarte tatin: apples, caramel, acidulous
Carbonnade: Beef, beer
Bœuf bourguignon: Beef, red wine, carrots
etc. etc.
You can see that it's sometimes quite simple to determine, sometimes a bit more tricky ( cassoulet?), but it allows you to target a recipe you want to revisit while keeping its tastes and therefore its spirit, and at the same time to allow yourself one or two liberties by changing 1 or 2 markers. I say 1 or 2, because beyond that you risk doing something completely different, which is not dramatic either, but it will probably not deserve the original name.
To sum up: The markers of a recipe, i.e. its essential basic tastes that characterize it, allow you to know if, when revisiting or adapting it, you are still in the spirit of it, or if you are doing something very different, which may not fit with the original name. But who cares if you like it...
Lasts posts
A tablet holder
Perhaps you too cook by consulting your recipe on a tablet or phone, and putting it down on your worktop? It's practical, but not the best solution. Here's a look at how you can make an inexpensive, almost universal stand.March 14th 20266465
Pre-calibrated pastry dough
When making pie dough (shortbread, shortcrust, sweet...), it's always a good idea to make a lot at once, and then divide it into pieces, which you can freeze. I've already pointed out the mistake not to make, which is to form a ball before freezing. It's difficult to roll out afterwards because...March 9th 20269055
Butter vs. grease
We often read in a recipe where a pastry is put into a mould that, just before pouring, the mould should be buttered or greased. But what's the difference between these 2 terms?December 1st 20252,9755
Getting out of the fridge early
Very often when you're cooking, you need to take food or preparations out of the fridge, to use them in the recipe in progress. There's nothing tricky about this: you just take them out of the fridge and use them, usually immediately, in the recipe. But is this really a good method?November 24th 20251,9365
Who's making the croissants?
When you look at a bakery from the outside, you naturally think that in the bakery, the bakers make the bread, and in the laboratory, the pastry chefs make the cakes. It's very often like that, with each of these professions having quite different ways of working, but sometimes there's also one...November 23th 20251,756
Other pages you may also like
Herbs and temperature
I have already talked to you about herbs in cooking, and about their great power of "seduction". The example of a salad is a great classic: on its own, it's a salad, which is normal, but the same salad in which you have added finely chopped fresh herbs, just before serving, you have much more than a...April 25th 202012 K4.8
Circles vs. moulds tins
If you like to bake or make quiches, pies etc. you must surely have one or more pie pans at home, in different diameters and perhaps materials. They are indispensable, without them there is no way to make beautiful pies, and they work very well, but you have another option, instead of moulds,...October 2nd 202017 K5
Choosing a chopping board
It's a no-brainer, surely? If you want a chopping board, just find a piece of wood, and Bob's your uncle! You can happily chop away with a knife and not damage the table or worktop. But in reality, it's a bit more complicated than that. You need to be careful what you are buying, in particular the...May 8th 201251 K4.6
Preserving egg yolks
If you're using only the egg whites in a recipe (such as meringues ), you'll need to store the yolks until you're ready to use them again. There's nothing very complicated about this in principle - all you have to do is chill them, but there are a few pitfalls to be avoided in practice.June 18th 20248,9545
The 3 kinds of meringue
Meringue – what could be simpler? Just beaten egg whites with sugar added. This makes a fairly stiff mixture which can then be cooked in a cool oven to create those lovely, light confections. But in the world of professional patisserie, meringue comes in three different kinds. Even if the...June 14th 201366 K4.5
Post a comment or question
Follow this page
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.