Technique
Salt and acid
2026-10-14 · Adrian Stefan, Table d'Adrian
Salt
and acid
Most plates that taste flat need salt or acid, sometimes both. Salt wakes the ingredient up. Acid, from lemon, vinegar or a sharp fruit, cuts the richness and makes the flavour read clearly.
Taste the food, not the sauce on its own. A spoon of sauce can seem sharp until it meets a piece of fish, and then it disappears. Add a little, taste again. The last pinch of salt often does more than the first handful.
I season in layers: the cooking water, the vegetables as they go into the pan, the finished plate. A dish salted only at the end tastes of salt on the surface and of nothing underneath.