Culinology - December 2019 - 22

FLAVOR trends

"There are a number
of things to consider
when making reductions."
Jerry McDonald, chef and vice-president of culinary, Midas Foods International

Houlihan's cauliflower
stir fry features a
General Tso-style
reduction.
Photo credit: Houlihan's

With plant-based meals becoming increasingly common, the company is broadening its
use of vegetables and started including lotus
root in meals. Its tender texture and bite is
perfect for applying layers of flavor through a
reduction made with sesame seed oil, ginger,
maple syrup, tamari, garlic, sesame seeds
and sambal.
Leawood, Kas.-based Houlihan's
Restaurant made the glaze the star of its fall
menu specials. The new crispy cauliflower
appetizer features a General Tso-style reduction, while the firecracker shrimp are cooked
in a chile aioli. The short rib lasagna entrée
features slow-roasted short rib and sherry
demi-glace sauce layered with herb ricotta
and Italian cheeses.
Farm-to-table gastropub Graze, Madison,
Wis., serves seasonal dishes featuring locally grown and raised foods. This autumn,
Executive Chef and Co-Proprietor Tory Miller
created a pork tenderloin entrée served with
potato puree, sweet and sour cabbage,
bacon lardons and caramelized apples that
was garnished with an apple cider reduction.
The apple pulp solids give the reduction a full
body, with a slightly creamy mouthfeel that
adds an element of richness to
the dish.

"The key with vinegar reductions is to pair it
with a sweet juice to balance sweetness and
acidity with a bold concentrated flavor," Ms.
Greene said. "One of my favorites is an apple
cider vinegar reduction mixed with honey and
fresh rosemary over pork belly. The acidity of
vinegar cuts through the fatty mouthfeel of
the pork."
The Honey Baked Ham Company, Atlanta,
has added The HoneyBaked Sandwich to
its lunch menu, which features ham topped
with sweet honey glaze, Swiss cheese, house
pickles and crispy onions.
"The sweet honey glaze sauce on this
sandwich was specially formulated to recreate the taste experience of the sweet glaze
topping found on our ham," said Debbie
Domer, senior director of brand and integrated marketing.
Chef Austin Null of Three Blondes Brewing,
South Haven, Mich., produces onion jam using the art of reduction cooking. The jam is
spread over flatbread that's topped with prosciutto, arugula, poached apple slices, brie
and shredded parmesan, and finished with a
balsamic drizzle.
"We julienne a lot of yellow onions and
cook them up with bay leaves, rosemary
sprigs and some salt. This is over medium- to
low-heat for around half an hour with a few
stirs in between," Mr. Null said. "Then we add
brown sugar and let that melt into the onions.
No stirring occurs during this process. The
brown sugar begins to slowly caramelize. 
"At just the right point we add some balsamic vinegar, cooking the mixture to reduce
it by half," he said, adding that reductions
have many uses in recipes. They may serve
as a base to other condiments and sauces.
"It's great when ingredients share their
qualities and flavors and give you multiple
uses with little effort," he said. "I like to take
the reduced liquid from our house-made
candied jalapenos, for example, and use it
as a base for a vinaigrette. I also reduce it
way down and use it as a wing sauce. It's
sweet, sticky and spicy." 

Gastrique and agrodolce
A term trending in the culinary world is
gastrique, which is basically a reduction
of vinegar and sugar infused with bits and
pieces, as appropriate for the application. In
Italian cuisine, it's referred to as an agrodolce,

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Culinology | DECEMBER 2019
Culinology - December 2019

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