Cuisine is one of the oldest practices that humans have. Over centuries billions of people across different cultures have been able to identify and combine different foods, flavors, spices, and drinks to create stunning combos that have since become staples worldwide. However, this art has not been perfected, and there's still a ton of room to experiment and find new combos, but first, you'll need to know how to experiment. Keep reading to find out how you can make some exciting new combos.

Understand Flavor Profiles

There are countless flavor profiles, and understanding them is the key to blending them effectively. The most common flavor profiles are sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami, and all of these can be combined based on their similarity or their contrast. There are many ways to fit food and drinks together, but assigning them based on flavor profiles can be effective. For example, you can pair an umami food like a steak with something sour, like lemon zest, on top, and a side of a sweet drink like a soft drink. You can turn the process of experimenting into a simple formula with more successes than failures.

Match The Intensity Of The Meal With The Drink

The drink you're having with your food is meant to complement it perfectly, and this won't be possible if it's too light or heavy. If you have a drink that overpowers the dish you're having it with, or vice versa, the meal won't work. To counter this, many chefs and wine experts pair light, elegant foods like fish or caviar with equally light drinks like white wine and heavy, robust meals like steaks with full-bodied red wine. The perfect mix of a drink and a main course can elevate the meal above the sum of its parts.

Consider Complimenting And Contrasting Flavors 

Now that you've decided how to approach the drink and the flavor profile, you can experiment more and give yourself more freedom. Sometimes there's no way to tell how good a dish may turn out until you experiment and find the perfect blend. Combining contrasting flavors like sweet and salty, such as in salted ice cream, or sweet and sour, like in the famous chicken dish, can provide a blend that can be perfected when paired with the right drink. 

Experiment With Cultural And Regional Dishes 

Another layer of experimentation and risk that you can add to your meal when you're feeling comfortable is adding cultural or regional influences to your meal. Combining Asian and Western cuisine has resulted in a lot of outstanding combinations, such as egg-fried wok, that has Western elements like bacon. Another popular trend is combining drinks from other countries and cultures with normal meals, such as those that combine the sweet Lassi drink in South Asia with salty or sour meals.

Use Spices And Textures To Your Advantage

Another way to experiment and add excitement and variety to your meals is by experimenting with spice, seasoning, and texture. When you've prepared a spicy meal, it's important to pair it with a drink that has a cooling effect so that the person enjoying it isn't overwhelmed by the spice to the detriment of the other qualities of the meal. A unique drink with a surprising texture, like a carbonated soft drink or wine, can cleanse the palate and prepare you to have more. Mixing the right textures, seasonings, spices, and flavor profiles is key when creating a new combo.

Conclusion

Experimenting is something that everyone loves doing. The feeling of creating something unique and special that only you could have done is like no other in the world, and that feeling is only better if you do it well and know how to combine vastly different foods and drinks to make a satisfying whole. Getting there is long and tough, but it's more than worth it in the end. Using the information in this article, you'll soon become good enough at creating new dishes that your friends and families will be asking for your recipes.