The Chef’s Desire to Produce the Best Tasting Food

After doing some field research observing people eating food they enjoy. I started wondering why people choose certain foods when dining out. Being a chef and business owner, this lead me to realize why I want people to eat my food. As a chef many of my goals include producing good tasting food and healthy food using high quality ingredients. I also want my guest to return to my restaurant regularly. The bottom line is, and I believe most chefs agree, we should produce irresistible food. What is irresistible food? Irresistible food is food my guests want to eat on a regular basis, food that taste good, easy to eat, easy to swallow and easy to chew are factors that influence the quality of irresistible food as well as;

• The way the food feels in your mouth as you chew, is it hard, crisp, soft, crunchy, creamy or will it melt in your mouth.
• Flavor dynamics, which is the variety and complexity of flavors, most popular flavors are; dairy, grilled, herbs, tangy-spicy, fruity sweet, and seafood. Flavor intensity is also a factor.
• The way the food is transformed in the mouth such as; does the food form a doughy mass, or does the food melt completely away.

In addition to the above qualities I want the textural components of my food to create a positive effect on mood by making my guest feel less tense and more energetic. Textural components may also consist of food that is crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, it’s warm, it can be gooey, stringy, and if you have to use your fingers that is a good thing because all these experiences help create a fun experience eating food.

From an analytical view point I and other chefs are focusing on producing food that taste great and healthy for you? Finally, my goal as a chef when cooking is to find that optimal point in a set of ingredients that is stimulating, easy to eat with just enough chew and the benefit is my food helps generate repeat visits.