"Freshly cracked pepper?" A Poll for Culinary Finishing Touches

hi. i have a deep love for black pepper. and lemon is in my religion. but the idea of fresh chopped cilantro or parsley literally gives me goosebumps.

so i really don't know. those are my 3.

umm also freshly shaved parmesan is like nothing else. big pieces shaved on top of a salad or a bowl of pasta

i wasn't supposed to eat dinner tonight and now all i can think about is pasta

yeah parm is the correct answer

i though of making a black pepper / lemon / parmasean poll but went with an impulse to be more inclusive

HAHA.

voting lemon

squeezed lemon into the jus from the roast chicken tonight

feels like the right choice

Black pepper, but parm and red pepper flakes close behind. Most of these are circumstantially delicious, but those three I will put on anything.

xp it is the right choice. i would concur that red pepper desperately needs a mention.

parm is the most delicious
black pepper is the most versatile
lemon probably has the most potential to improve an otherwise dull food

I have gotten really into adding plain, whole milk yogurt to stews and spicy dishes though

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4DU8oiYGRk

i voted for other, ketchup and/or mayo really finishes a dish tbh

ketchup is sauce!

still haven't had dinner o_O where's the midnight pasta stand when you need one

anything except paula deen's "finishing butter"

(and i'll skip the whole lot of whipped cream -- just a tablespoon is fine)

i voted for red pepper flakes why because PIZZA

i have to tell you something. i have been in a sublet this summer. and i have ordered like 10 pizzas (i know because the boxes are next to the fridge). and i have not had red pepper this whole time. it was really hard.

wait am I seriously the only person here who is all SALT, OBVIOUSLY!

ugh point taken

i like really really really chunky salt. like ice blocks. or ice bars

bars as in establishments there is, where the bar is made of salt

I would cover my bridal bed with fresh chopped scallions

you almost got me at "shaved truffle" but I thought about the bill afterward, only chumps eat that foodstuff

i have not had red pepper this whole time. it was really hard.

have you asked the pizza place if the have any lil packs?

tomorrow. omg. exciting.

Man, I want to have a 10-pizza season again sometime soon. Haven't gotten that bold in nigh-on a decade.

Crushed red pepper flakes, for pizza and everything else.

This is probably black pepper for versatility but stirring cream or yoghurt into sauces beats pretty much anything.

this is pretty obviously fresh chopped herbs, nothing else will have as great an effect

lemon zest is a v good habit to get into tho, dish depending

Depends on the herbs really, coriander does a lot more than parsley, even when fresh.

yeah i wouldn't pretend to stan for parsley on its own but even still it will fill a plate with that fresh up-front ~life~

also mint motherfucker, mint

voted pepper but i do like a few pumpkin seeds roasted in soy sauce sprinkled over the top of things if i'm cooking for other people

the answer is salt, obviously, but everyone knows that

if the question is "which of these things do you put on your food more frequently than most other people," red pepper flakes, the good kind at any rate

the secret answer is "a fried egg"

sorry to be all "oh you forgot to include this poll option" but garlic powder would have been a good one.

lol no

Depends on the meal and what's needed to complement it. A squeeze of lemon juice on a paella. A handful of freshly chopped coriander on a curry. Black pepper on top of crab linguine. Malt vinegar with chips. It really varies.

Gremolata would probably float a lot of peoples' boats here, being equal parts chopped garlic, lemon zest, and parsley.

A grind of black pepper on a paella. A handful of freshly ground black pepper on a curry. Black pepper on top of crab linguine. Black pepper with chips.

I was with you until black pepper on chips.

What? Black pepper is the best chips/fries topping.

You're fucking crazy. The BEST chips / fries accompaniment is mayo, but we're not in the land of sauces here, so I'm not mentioning it. Apart from just then. But sans mayo, salt & vinegar wins.

No, no, no. Black pepper and then dip it in a strawberry milkshake! But as you said, we're not in the land of sauces here.

the secret answer is "a fried egg"

this is true though

first time i put black pepper on french fries was a revelation, they're potatoes duh

salt and pepper on chips is great, but chip shop chips need vinegar to cut through the grease

lol @ "some croutons" btw
I put a crouton on a french onion soup but I feel like most of my eating life has been picking out croutons.

I grated some parmesan on my soup, sat down at the computer and … no contest. It's salty *and* umami.

paprika on (really good) french fries is better than black pepper.

Look at what you don't bring to the table, iirc

Even the idea that you'd just "sprinkle salt" on something as a finishing move is so rong.

What if you were playing mortal kombat against a slug

Delicious lol

Even the idea that you'd just "sprinkle salt" on something as a finishing move is so rong. I corrected the seasoning already. There is no salt on my table.

friend I love you but the chefs who disagree w/you on this point are some pretty remarkable cooks

"Add salt" is as generic as "oil the pan", "preheat the oven" or "turn off the burner". Could we put "turn off the burner" as a culinary finishing touch?

The idea that it's a "finishing touch" is like suggesting that underwear is an "important accessory to your outfit"

we aren't talking about like, morton's iodized salt

maybe I am

lol

no but the most discussed foodstuff itt is fries, so

i finish off my fries with a topping of soup crackers, personally

fiore di sale imo

a dollop of creme fraiche or a sprinkle of herbs will routinely get acknowledgement but if you think your diner is gonna be transported to new culinary dimensions because you have Maldon's or whatever on your green beans you are sorely mistaken

xp lol

fries and pizza are the world's greatest foods but "culinary finishing touches" suggests to me that we're talking about how you finish your soup, steaks and sides

also, an option missing from this poll that is sorely sorely missed is chopped nuts.

I do not sorely miss that option.

Salt should be part of the cooking process, but that only adds one layer of flavor. I like the mix of cooked in salt and also fresh salt on top. It's a distinct difference in taste.

"fresh salt" !???!?

lolll

very easy to ruin something with too much salt, and hard to correct

i have literally never seen this happen outside tv shows where the housewife can't cook or the kids make a special mother's day breakfast in bed and confuse the sugar for the salt

I ruined guac once with too much salt

did your husband get mad or just say 'don't worry, honey, tonight can be pizza night!'

If you over-salt a soup or stew you can sort it out a bit by chucking a whole potato in the pan, then fishing it out before serving. You're welcome.

we went out and bought more avocados but the avocados were not ripe and wouldn't mash into the existing guac and it was ruined and a terrible night was had by everyone involved.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

well.

tbh would've voted montreal steak seasoning if i could, i don't know what that suggests about me

never had oversalted food????

montreal steak seasoning is so good.

omg that looks really nice. I live in a jewish neighbourhood,I wonder if I could find it in a deli here.

I love how Julia Child likes to talk about "a slice of foie gras" as a finishing touch. "Serve topped with freshly ground black pepper, braised asparagus, capers, or, if available, a slice of foie gras".

Yer kosher (coarse) salt added to a non-soupy, undersalted dish is unlikely to ruin anything. It has nowhere near the dish ruining capacity of, say, cloves.

For fellow health nuts, capers have crazy amounts of the flavonones kaempferol and quercetin. As I've found the liter+ sized containers of capers at my local food importer warehouse, I've taken to snacking on them, adding them to salads, probably ruining dishes if others with less kooky priorities were joining me.

a sprinkle of maldon on ice cream is A++++. that doesn't ruin anything.

also, good olive oil, cf. big gay ice cream.

Even the idea that you'd just "sprinkle salt" on something as a finishing move is so rong. I corrected the seasoning already. There is no salt on my table.

The idea that it's a "finishing touch" is like suggesting that underwear is an "important accessory to your outfit"

It is fundamental, so maybe "finishing touch" isn't right. More like a preference for long johns, boxers, or briefs.

Dictating salt level is not like having the final word on whether you include cardamom or not or how much. Taste for salt varies a lot by individual. Food that you think is appropriately salted as prepared might seem oversalted to another person, and for me might taste like you forgot to add any salt. It's like the difference between deciding the temp on your thermostat during your dinner party and deciding whether a guest gets to wear his sweater if he's the setting you choose is colder than he likes.

Or going back to the underwear analogy, a dictatorial attitude toward salt is like deciding everybody wears briefs with their outfits. I'd probably be comfortable, but my frail elderly aunt would be cold and want to add a layer of long johns.

First he showed up with lousy wine, then he called me a dictator

The wine was lousy but the dictate good

Near miss with Godwin's Law there.

ya it almost got natsy

Saltin

Musselini

Pan Pot

robespierrewhite

idi amin, i'm not quite ready to order yet

[post withdrawn on advice of counsel]

Thats not fuckin true

counselconscience

A lot of people said lemon juice, but I don't recall anybody saying lime juice, which is clearly the way to go. You could put lime juice and salt on your toenails and have a passable snack.

I said "lemon/lime juice" and expected it to be taken as read that the latter is preferred

otm re: limes, wth re: toenails