Reductions can add pizzazz
By Personal Chef Brenda Palmer
As a restaurant chef, I've used reductions for flavoring, garnishing plates and making sauces. As a personal chef I've thought and experimented a lot about how I can bring this chefly talent to food that’s being reheated.
What am I talking about you ask? By reducing such liquids as wines, vinegars and juices, you concentrate the sugars and flavors while thickening the liquid into something that you can decoratively drizzle on a plate giving contrast or definition to what otherwise might be a plain piece of chicken or fish.
Vinegar reductions: Vinegars are surprisingly sweet when reduced. You'll find balsamic vinegar reduction in the kitchen of most mid-range-and-up restaurants these days. It is made by heating 2 cups or more balsamic vinegar in a sauté pan over med-high heat until it is reduced by 3/4 or so of what you started with. It will get thicker as it cools. Taste it and you'll see why it’s used sparingly on plates. It has a wonderful, but intense flavor that is great for the client to drizzle on the food after it is heated, and before serving. It can be stored in a small plastic container at room temperature.
Wine reductions: Another well known reduction is port wine. Reduced in the same way, it's wonderful with poached pears. As with the balsamic, reducing a half a bottle of wine or more for just a taste on the plate sometimes is not very practical in a client's kitchen.
Take note that, vinegar and wine reductions don't need to be refrigerated because the acid content is so high and you aren't finishing them with any butter. Once you add fat, (butter in the case of the juice reductions that follow) then it will need refrigeration.
Juice reductions: Juices on the other hand are easily made into sauces and can really make a dish without denting your wallet appreciably. Tangerine is a favorite of mine because it’s so sweet, but you can use orange, apple, pineapple, mixed berry, passion fruit and many others.
To make the basic juice reduction, put 1 cup of juice into a small sauté or frying pan, straining out any seeds. Boil juice uncovered until it is reduced by 3/4. Tilt the pan to see how much liquid you have left. Keep a close eye on it after it reaches the halfway point, boiling as it is, it may dry up quickly. After it is reduced by three-quarters, add a tablespoon of butter and swirl the pan so the butter gets incorporated as it boils. Just as the butter is completely melted, remove the pan from the heat, swirling a few more times. Your reduction should be slightly thickened and glossy. Taste it to see if you want to add salt and pepper. After it cools pour into a plastic soufflé cup, scraping with a rubber spatula so as not to waste any. This will only give you 1-2 oz., enough to drizzle on two portions of fish. Refrigerate juice reductions until serving time.
Instruct your client to warm the sauce in the microwave at 60% power and shake the container (the sauce will separate in the fridge) then it can be poured on a broiled chicken or fish fillet. I think it is especially good on Orange Roughy.
Once you've mastered the basic technique try experimenting with new tastes. Try adding ginger, sesame, apples, cranberries, fennel, apricots, hot peppers, or pinenuts – you’re only limited by your own imagination! You can make this sauce creamier and thicker by adding 4 oz. of cream when the juice as reduced by half. Let the cream boil hard and it will thicken in a few minutes. Don't worry, it won't burn unless it boils dry.
TIPS:
- Don't salt your reduction until it is done or you may wind up with a very salty sauce.
- Yes, you can use margarine instead of butter, but it won't be as good.
- Don't use olive oil.
- You don't have to use a fat at all, but it will be thin. If it has to be fat-free, double the juice, add a spoon of sugar and reduce it all the way down to 2 oz. (1/4 cup).
- You can use bottled juices. Some orange juices seem to get bitter. Try it at home first to make sure it turns out the way you want it.
If you have questions, you can email Brenda at blpalmer@pennswoods.net.
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