Why season food?........

[osprey]

Something that alwys bugs me on every cookery programme (especially Masterchef type programmes) is that you are always told to season (salt + pepper) food either before or during cooking and prior to serving. Now what I want to know is this, I hate pepper and know that many people have an aversion to salt, so why do chefs season food in that way? Surely when the food is then presented, the people eating it wont like it. When you go to the posher restaurants do you have to order the food without seasoning? I'm confused.

[heathfield]

Recipes normally say 'season to taste'. if you don't like salt or pepper, then you needn't add them. Chefs will season food to achieve a flavour they consider people will like. Even a tiny pinch of salt will actually improve and intensify food flavours.

But. When boiling vegetables, the mineral salts in the cells will migrate through the softened cell walls into the water. You will be losing valuable nutrients. By adding salt to the water before cooking, a mineral balance can be achieved between the water on the outside, and the inside of the cells, and the nutrients will then remain within the vegetables. So salt isn't all bad. Of course, too much salt in the water, and the salt can migrate into the cells, leading to salty-tasting veggies.

[-=BigD=-]

You season food to add flavour. Its not always salt n pepper though. Any herb/spice can be used to season a dish.

But the reasons for using salt , especially for meat is to help enhance the flavour. I put it on steaks to help draw the blood/moisture out but it also add to the flavour, noticeably so. I use Maldon sea salt rather than table salt, the flavour is delicate and the big flakes make a huge difference. If you use table salt don�t use much due to the strength of the flavour, you want to taste the effect of the salt with the food not the salt itself.

Pepper adds, well, peppery flavours (similar to using roquette or basil to season).

They are designed to compliment the food not over power it, if you don�t like pepper don�t order anything with pepper in the description, I doubt you�d notice the seasoning. I�ve not worked in a kitchen before but should imagine seasoning with s�n�p is done in advance?

Salt and pepper is added to more foods than you�d think, but if you really hate it eat Chinese (decent Chinese) or Japanese, in fact most oriental cooking doesn�t use salt and pepper, instead relying on soy sauces to add the salty taste properties (umami is the name of the savoury taste for soy/salt etc).

I never put salt on my meals, I�m not keen, but I do season with it. If people were so off put by their uses it wouldn�t still be a mainstay of cookery still.

[society]

heathfield and BigD are both right. Doy you make cakes and sweet desserts osprey? A a pinch of salt added to cakes and puddings enhances their flavours and also brings out their sweetness.

[Ethel]

Try a boiled potato where no salt has been added to the cooking water.

Absolutely horrid. And putting salt on after cooking does not improve it.

[Figi]

I disagree Ethel. There is absolutely no problem with potatoes cooked in unsalted water. Those who wish to add salt afterwards are quite at liberty to do so..

[osprey]

Thanks to you all for taking the time to reply, but my final question hasn't really been addressed.

When eating at the posher restaurants, where it is likely that the chefs have seasoned the food to a flavour they consider people will like, do they even consider the possibility that many people hate pepper however little is used in the preparation? Do customers have any choice in the matter? How are diners supposed to know if pepper is used in the preparation of the food? Do they have the right to send it back and what are the consequences if they do?

[heathfield]

If the restaurant is all that posh, what the customer wants, the customer gets. They'll go out of their way to prepare the food in any way you specify. Tell the waiter you're on a totally salt-free diet, and you cannot eat anything that has pepper in it. He should then pass on this information to the chef, who will probably sigh, raise his eyes to the ceiling, then proceed to produce the food to your specifications.

[-=BigD=-]

To answer your questions:

�Do they even consider the possibility that many people hate pepper however little is used in the preparation?�

Doubtful, not every dish has pepper in it but its relation with cooking is ingrained. If that many people did hate pepper they are keeping very quiet about it, suffering in silence. They should be making there hated known! My GF doesn�t like pepper, but has no idea how often I use it ;) (she was also a demi-veggie before I �turned� her with some meaty wizardry!!)

�Do customers have any choice in the matter?�

Yes, if your going to a half decent restaurant asking the waiter if a dish contains any pepper wouldn�t be frowned upon (knowledgeable waiting staff is always a good sign) and I guess its a reasonable request to ask for no pepper to be added.

�How are diners supposed to know if pepper is used in the preparation of the food?�

Ask!!

�Do they have the right to send it back and what are the consequences if they do?�

Yes, but only if you�d requested a meal without pepper.