A NOTE ON FLAVOUR BASES

Flavour bases come with many names and disguises, although essentially they all serve the same purpose - to add flavour!

In some asian cooking garlic is added to very hot wok, then stirfried until golden brown, this then adds a nutty note, which is essential to some dishes, but not all. In other dishes this nutty note, would be a very dominant flavour that would not be desirable.

Flavour bases worldwide, have different names, in the dessert world a sugar syrup is a form of flavour base - a simple combination of sugar and water!

In france a flavour base is often referred to as THE TRINITY-(meaning the state of being or a group of three). The trinity consists of three ingredients onion,carrot and celery. Cajun and Creole cooking have a similar combination, named THE HOLY TRINITY- a slight variation consisting of onion,celery and green bell pepper, with the carrot omitted. This would be found throughout cajun and creole dishes. The italians have there version the soffritto, translated means sauteed. A spanish version might consist of garlic,onion and tomatoes cooked in olive oil. Although i have mentioned four different countries the onion remains constant.
A french culinary term MIREPOIX is often referred to when talking of flavour bases, this would sometimes contain onion,celery,carrot- (the trinity) plus cubed ham or sometimes bacon. All these bases add wonderful flavour to stocks and sauces or individual dishes.
A mirepoix or savoury vegetable base can start with any number of different vegetables, including leeks,shallots and garlic. Herbs are sometimes included, parsley and thyme being the most popular.
By cutting the vegetables into very small dice we increase the surface area to be cooked therefor maximising the extraction of flavour. Small diced vegetables are more suited to shorter cooking times, meanwhile large cut vegetables have a place,especially in stocks and stews. The larger area being more suited to the longer cooking times.