Condiments Rule the World
Condiments brighten up dishes. They are there to make your taste buds tingle either by introducing a totally new flavor or enhancing an existing one. Best known examples include mustard (everyone’s favorite), ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressing, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, pickle relish, and not to be forgotten, salt and pepper. While rarely do they add any nutritional value—as the amount is usually small—condiments are the icing on the cake, so to speak.
Last week, I had some work done on my refrigerator. When I told the chatty repair man, Haig, that I was blogging about condiments, he immediately put down his tools and without any prompting rattled off his favorites. In an authoritative tone, this hefty fellow in baggy jeans and sturdy work boots proffered in a broad Cuomo-Queens’ accent, “It’s a matter of where I’m putting them. For me the choice is easy: Mustard for hot dogs, ketchup for hamburgers and mayo for sandwiches.” End of question. Back to work Haig went.
A FAVORITE CONDIMENT FROM YOUNGER DAYS
My retired tax accountant and Italian class buddy, Joan Ross, goes in another direction. She prefers pickle relish. When asked why, she replied as if it were the only choice possible. “Because pickle relish is sweet, salty, tart and bitter. The only flavor missing is umami. I like it juiciness, too, as when added to tuna, salmon or egg salad it lightens up a dish and reduces the amount of mayonnaise needed,” explained my perpetually pencil-thin friend. Continuing, Joan added, “Throw it into a mixture of mayonnaise and ketchup and you have Thousand Island dressing.” Which brand? “I use Heinz as it is the brand from my childhood and the only one I know,” she replied nostalgically.
When I queried Joan Brower, one of New York’s top communications experts, what her favorite condiment was and why, she replied, “I'd really love to know why and how I became focused on caramel and anchovy paste (of all things) as my favorite, yummy condiments. Honestly, I don't have a clue, let alone a good story. I'm sure there are others who can fix the dates and reasons when they developed a condiment craze. Sadly, I cannot,” she answered but still defended her yin and yang of flavors choices.
A CHEESEMONGER’S ENTERTAINING TIP
Michael Binetti—manager of Ideal Cheese Shop in midtown New York—is passionate about pairing his cheeses with condiments. His two favorites are both from Spain: Membrillo, a dense quince paste, and Mitica, a fig and honey combination. The cheese monger was happy to expound on the classic sweet-salty combination for cheeses and how serving it never fails to impress guests. “And, it couldn’t be an easier course to prepare,” he offered authoritatively. Move over Martha. Yet another tip on adding flair to your entertaining repertoire but still keeping it simple.
In my home, given that I am an addicted cheese lover, dessert is often replaced with a cheese course. My frig is filled with an array of condiments just for this purpose, such as pear and saffron mostardo, mango chutney and even a cherry tomato jam, too, discovered on a recent cycling vacation in Sicily. These condiments, along with an array of honeys for drizzling, are all part of my arsenal for partnering with cheese from delicate chèvres to hard cheeses such as Comté, Tomme de Savoie, and aged Goudas. The best choice for my palate, however, are blue-veined cheeses—Roquefort, my fave Fourme d’Ambert and Stilton—which are made even more delectable with an addition of a sweet, tangy condiment.
HOT STUFF
Jan Hazard, former food editor of Ladies Home Journal, has a refrigerator stocked with condiments which rivals mine. No, in truth, hers surpasses mine as it takes up one quarter of her Sub-zero. As such, I figured she’d be a good one to question about her favorite. To my surprise, she responded “Tabasco sauce, either the original or jalapeño.” According to her, “Tabasco is great in scrambled eggs…. My dad always added it to his eggs. So, I learned it from an early age.”
What exactly is Tabasco, I wondered? I headed to the frig to check it out and discovered my bottle of smoked flavored Tabasco looking very tired. (Luckily, the stuff lasts forever as do most condiments!) After my conversation with Jan, I purchased a new bottle, this time selecting the green Tabasco which its outer box touts it as being “milder than the original Tabasco.”
FIVE GENERATIONS OF HOT SAUCE MAKERS
In the meantime, being curious about this particular condiment, I next headed to the internet. I learned that its name should be in all caps as TABASCO is a trademarked brand which dates back to 1868. What exactly is it? TABACO is a Louisiana-style hot sauce which five generations of the McIlhenny family have continuously produced at their facility on Avery Island. It is made from either chipotle (the original version) or jalapeño peppers (for the green pepper sauce) mixed with distilled vinegar, water, salt (also from Avery Island!) plus thickening agents and ascorbic acid to preserve freshness. TABASCO sauces are aged up to three years in Jack Daniel Tennessee Whiskey oak barrels. I was fascinated by this unexpected factoid until I read that the initial layer of wood is removed “to minimize the risk of an accidentally boozy batch of Tabasco.” Where’s the fun in that?
It appears that just about everybody loves TABASCO, with or without the extra kick, from our Astronauts to the Queen mother! When you think about it, bottles of TASBACO are on almost every diner table in America along with salt, pepper, and ketchup. The royal condiment quintet. Added to salads, hamburgers, pizza, pasta sauce, deviled eggs, chicken wings, and, naturally, guacamole, TABASCO’s sassy tang kicks up the flavor profile of whatever it’s added to.
KICK IT UP A NOTCH
But, move over TASBASCO. Other hot sauces are making headway onto your territory from Frank’s Red Hot, made from cayenne peppers, to the Vietnamese cuisine staple, Sriracha, to Mexico’s ever-popular, Cholula. According to Chandni Patel, former Cornerstoner and now President of 4 West Public Relation’s New York Office, hot sauces are trending and coincidentally her favorite condiment as well. “Hot sauce all the way - Cholula works, but honestly anything around will do.” I asked why? “I think it’s the Indian/Southern combination of my roots that always believes that no matter what, everything could use a hit of heat. (Chandni was born in Nashville to Indian parents.) She continued, “Runner up would be mustard, then salsa, which I know some people don't consider a condiment, but I do.”
THE OLDEST CONDIMENT ALIVE
Another front runner is mustard, the first condiment humans ever put on their food. Introduced by the Egyptian Pharaohs—who stocked their tombs with mustard seeds for their afterlife enjoyment—it was really the Romans who figured out how to make it spreadable by grinding the seeds into a paste and then adding vinegar or wine. When the Romans conquered France, they brought their mustard seeds with them planting this crop first in Burgundy. By the 13th century, the local French monks had laid the foundation of an important industry which would emerge several centuries later. In the mid-1800s Jean Naigeon tried adding verjus—acidic juice of unripe grapes—to the paste et voilà, Dijon mustard, as we know it today, was born. Ironically, however, France now uses mustard seeds primarily from Canada to produce its revered condiment.
Most countries have a version of mustard: America with our taxicab yellow variety, Germany’s its brown Bavarian mustard, and England its so called “French mustard” which is actually a less spicy alternative to their ubiquitous “English” mustard, which even for the faint in heart, is really hot. I know it’s confusing but today everyone wants a piece of the mustard scene.
There is even a Mustard-of-the-month club attesting to this condiment’s never-wavering popularity. Plain, whole grained, or flavored with a plethora of different herbs, spices and other random ingredients—including tarragon, raspberry, horseradish, and even Blue Cheese, for example—there is something for every palate. My trainer, Jenn Spina, ranks honey mustard way up there. According to her, on a sandwich or in a salad dressing, the honey flavoring of the mustard somehow makes it special.
SAY WHAT?
Wine writer/marketer Lila Gault agrees that mustard is tops and even has an surprising story to illustrate its versatility. In Lila’s own words: “Move over hot dog topping, vinaigrette enhancer, soft pretzel dip, roast meat glaze. There’s a new use for mustard that’s got everyone saying - really? Back in the 80’s as one of my best friends was walking past the storied Quilted Giraffe restaurant in New York with (wine writer/bon vivant) Anthony Dias Blue, the chef/owner Barry Wine (and friend of Andy) invited them into the kitchen to taste his newest dessert. He asked them to close their eyes and open their mouths, then offered tasting samples of sweet and tangy mustard ICE CREAM. “What do you think?”, the chef asked, and they answered in chorus, “Terrific”!! He put it on the dessert menu the next night, then after a test week, put it on the regular menu for the rest of the summer.
“Fast forward to 2019 and I watch French’s, the largest mustard producer in America, celebrate National Mustard Day with Mustard Ice Cream, developed in partnership with an artisanal ice cream maker. Don’t be surprised if it pops up as a regular item on ice cream carts around our city in a scant few months!”
A SALT OBSESSION
Salt is another popular contender in the condiment beauty contest. According to Karen Brosius, Executive Director, the Folks Center for International Business, at the University of South Carolina, the subtleties of salt are endless. “Salts have a terroir, similar to wine, and bring to life their regions through taste, color, and appearance. I am even so enamored of salt that I have visited the great French UNESCO World Heritage site dedicated to salt located in southeastern Burgundy - the Royal Salt Works, designed by the 18th-century French architect Claude Ledoux for Louis XV. In Paris at the Marché Avenue Président Wilson, I have bought handmade salts from an artisan salter who infuses his salts with incredible flavors and perfumes.
“I have salts in my pantry of almost every color and permutation, it seems. Pink, violet, black, gray, red, white, not to mention the flavored salts, such as rosemary, truffle, saffron, smoked, fennel, and flowered. Added to that are the various shapes of fine, finishing, coarse, crystals, kosher, and flaked. For me, salt is not only a necessary tool in my culinary toolbox for seasoning, it also plays a pivotal role in color and texture in the final dish.” In conclusion to Karen’s riff on salt, she added, “Fortunately, I'm blessed with low-to-normal blood pressure, so salt is my friend to boot.”
ALL YOU NEED IS SALT
Karen is not the only one who has a love affair with salt. Our long-time family friend Michael Kennerley uses salt as the secret to his grilling. He explains philosophically, “I used to be a hard-core carnivore, eating red meat several times a week. Even though I’ve cut back quite a bit, the majority of my cooking is still done on the grill. After lots of experimentation with many condiments over the years, I kept coming back to salt. In essence, I was interested in tasting the meat as is…and not having its taste disguised or distorted by my attempts to add flavor.”
But salt is not the only preference in the condiment game for Michael. He also raves about Hoisin Sauce. “I remember the first time I had Peking Duck many years ago. The duck was crispy and truly delicious…but the sauce that came with it stole the show. I’d never tasted such a combination of sweet and salt before…ever. Most restaurants usually required that Peking Duck be ordered in advance which seemed slightly exotic. Adding hoisin sauce to it made it one of my favorite dining…and tasting experiences.”
NOT ALL CONDIMENTS ARE CREATED EQUAL
As you might suspect, people’s preferences for condiments vary from state to state as well as from country to country. Whereas mayonnaise may not be popular in Korean, the people there can’t live without their Gochujang, nor the Australians without their Vegemite, nor the North Africans without their Harissa. The # 1 condiment in the US changes yearly but mayonnaise, ketchup and mustard (just as my repairman Haig instinctively knew) are normally among the top ten. The exception was in 2013 when Salsa bested all of them.
Check out my recipe for homemade ketchup with an Asian twist in the Dessert section of this week’s posting. I channeled Haig when I created the recipe. According to him burgers beg for ketchup. So, crank up the grill. As Haig isn’t looking, go ahead and take out the mustard and mayo as well from the frig. Or, if red meat is not your thing, try Joan Ross’ suggestion. As a vegetarian, she whipped up her own special dish of scrambled eggs with sautéed spinach and button mushrooms topped with my flavored ketchup plus a sprinkling of feta cheese. Feel free to design your own use of this ketchup condiment and share with us your winning combo.