Palate-pleasing appetizers
Ever wonder why some people gobble Gorgonzola while others think mozzarella is as exciting as a cheese should get? While it's tempting to attribute these differences to upbringing, it's actually the size, number and shape of your taste buds that determine the type of foods you like.
Accordingly, the world is divided into three types of people—super-tasters, medium-tasters and non-tasters.
Super-tasters are extremely sensitive to temperature, bitterness, sourness and textures; they enjoy balanced, subtle food and find strong flavours and hot spices unpleasant. If super-tasters revel in mild cuisine, non-tasters seek the bold flavours their sensitive counterparts avoid. And medium-tasters? They like it all, but in moderation.
Shari Darling, a Peterborough, Ont.-based wine pairing and tasting expert and the author of Orgasmic Appetizers and Matching Wines, herself a non-taster, has created recipes with all three tasters in mind.
With a 25/50/25 per cent distribution between super-tasters (delicate), medium-tasters (moderate) and non-tasters (strong), respectively, chances are guests at your next party will span all categories. Since no one dish will please them all, Darling offers appetizers with a mix of flavours, spices and salt levels to please every palate.
Super-tasters
Crab & Shrimp Cakes
The delicate, unimpeded flavours of crab and shrimp make this the perfect super-taster dish. With only a couple of fresh herbs, mild mayonnaise and unflavoured bread crumbs to hold the seafood together, there's nothing overbearing to interfere with a super-taster's appreciation of the subtle sweetness.
Non-tasters
Caramelized Onion, Rosemary & Stilton Flatbread
This dish appeals to non-tasters' love of big, bold flavours. While all types of tasters are drawn to the sweetness of caramelized onions, strong, salty Stilton and slightly bitter rosemary boost this bread into non-taster territory.
Wild Mushroom & Brie Bruschetta
Non-tasters love their food loaded with garlic, and this bruschetta delivers. Layered with slightly earthy, ripe brie, full-bodied shiitake mushrooms and some extra sea salt, this appetizer is aimed at people who want full-on flavour.
Medium-tasters
Meatballs in Camembert Sauce
White wine and bouillon add depth and balance to this appetizer, making it a good choice for medium-tasters. While mild enough for an adventurous super-taster, young Camembert has a fruitiness that works well with the pork. Fresh-cracked black pepper brings the dish back into the medium range.
Sassy Mexicali Salsa
Green avocados, yellow tomatoes and red onion create a dish that's pleasing to the eye as well as the palate. With a modicum of garlic and enough ripe sweetness to counteract the tang of lime, this salsa drives straight down the middle, just where medium-tasters like it.
This article originally appeared in the December/January 2010 issue of More
