Food production

1. Chapter 06 : Hors d’oeuvre and Appetizers
‘Faire manger-les sans appetit, faire briller l’esprit de ceux en out et
faire trouver a ceux qui en desirent, est le supreme role des hors
d’oeuvre’
(For those who are not hungry…….to perk up the spirit of some and
to give spirit to others who are without it, this is the task of the hors
d’oeuvre on a menu)
This definition/explanation of the hors d’oeuvre, was presented by
Escoffier in one of his earlier books.
Hors d’oeuvre is a French expression and its true definition is a
preparation served outside of the menu proper, at the beginning of
the meal before the main course. It comes from the French
term outside (hors) and goes back to the early times when at
banquets, the appetizer (hors d’oeuvre) was served in a separate
room (ante chamber/room) while the guests assembled and waited
for the arrival of the host and the chief guest. Hors d’oeuvre or
appetizer as it is called in English can be described as a small tidbit,
which should be light, delicate attractive and tasty. The term hors
d’oeuvre should never be spelt with the final s, since there is plural
form for the term in French. An hors d’oeuvre can be either in the
solid form (appetizer) or in the liquid form (aperitif) which may be an
alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage.
Hors d’oeuvre may be classified in various ways:
Hot and Cold hors d’oeuvre
Vegetarian and Non vegetarian hors d’oeuvre
Classical and Contemporary hors d’oeuvre
Hors d’oeuvre Singulaire and Compound hors d’oeuvre

2. However, a more comprehensive classification would include:
- Meat based hors d’oeuvre
Pate, Terrines, Sausages (salami and mortadella), Ham
- Fish based hors d’oeuvre
Oysters, Caviar, Roll mops, Snails, Prawn cocktail
- Egg based hors d’oeuvre
Egg mayonnaise, stuffed eggs, devilled eggs, Gulls/Plovers eggs
- Vegetable based hors d’oeuvre : Asparagus, Artichokes, Corn-on-
the-cob
- Fruit based hors d’oeuvre : Melon, Grapefruit, Floridacocktail
Sometimes, Hors d’oeuvre are classified as:
Cold Hors d’oeuvre
Hot Hors d’oeuvre
Zakuski and
Canapés
Cold Hors d’oeuvre are of two categories:
The ready to serve variety, available in the market off the shelves,
like smoked salmon, pate, sausages.
Those which require culinary preparation and that, when made
properly have the advantage of being freshly prepared from fresh
ingredients with maximum flavor and appeal. This is where fine
cuisine can make a contribution to eating pleasure.
Hors d’oeuvre varies are often served at lunch and consist of many
items served in a container called raviers. Various items can qualify
to be called a part of hors d’oeuvre varies such as olives, pickled
onions, cornichons (pickled gherkins), sliced salami, ham and even
items like smoked salmon and gulls/plovers eggs
Hot hors d’oeuvre could generally be served at a cocktail party or
before a dinner but seldom at lunch. Although there are some hot
hors d’oeuvre that are considered to b classical, there are many
others that are strictly prototype and serve as a basis for many

3. different preparations. As a matter of fact, every branch of cookery
that is reduced to a smaller portion is or could be used in the
preparation of hot hors d’oeuvre. Paillettes, allumettes, beignets,
frittes, bouchees, croustades, rissoles, ramequins and even the
classsic quiche can all be served as hot hors d’oeuvre when reduced
in size.
What are Zakuskis?
In the 1890s, zakuski, or hors d’oeuvre a la russe or canapés a la
russe became very popular.
These cold hors d’oeuvre are considered to be classical and made up
of certain specified ingredients. Chefs inRussia were patronized by
the Czars and reached the pinnacle of heir profession. It consists of a
base of Blinis; the famous Russian pancake made out of buckwheat
flour. This was topped with a topping that would be meat, fish,
vegetable or combination of these. A characteristic of the topping is
that it would most often be flavored with a smoked fish or meat. The
surface would be decorated elaborately; and here is where the chef
had the chance to demonstrate his imagination and his skill. Intricate
garnishes of exquisite designs would decorate thezakuski. This would
then be finished off with a glaze of aspic. The zakuski is a dinner hors
d’oeuvre and are larger in size than the canapé. They are presented
to the guest individually, without an accompaniment or sauce.

4. Cold Canapés
How would you describe a canapé?
These are tiny open faced snacks, which are cut into a variety of
shapes – round, rectangular, oval, triangle or other shapes. The size
and thickness will depend upon the nature of the ingredients used. A
canapé will have three parts:
The base – which would normally be bread – toasted or plain, white
or brown. However, a variety of other base ingredients could also be
used – puff pastry, flaky pastry, short crust, pizza dough, choux
pastry, are examples of the variety that can be used. Sometimes, a
spread would be applied to the base to prevent it from soaking up
the moisture of the topping.
The topping – almost anything could be used to top the base.
However, it should be suitable and must complement the base. It
should be fairy dry and must hold shape. A slice of cheese, hard
boiled egg, ham, salami, mushrooms or chicken coated with a thick
cream sauce, marinated mushrooms and prawns could all be used as
topping. The list is limitless and can only be contained by the
imagination.
The garnish – this is done more to increase the visual appeal and the
appearance than for any functional value. A slice of olive, a sprig of
parley, a dice of capsicum or even a green pea can all be used to
increase the presentation of the platter of canapés
Canapés are usually served as snacks at cocktail parties and are
never featured on the regular menu. Some classical canapés are
served as the savory course. Here are some popular canapés:

5. Canapé Rigoletto: Butter a canapé with cayenne butter. Sprinkle with
a mixture of finely chopped whites and yolks of egg, ham, tongue,
fine herbes and truffles.
Canapés a la danoise: Butter rye bread with horseradish butter,
arrange slices of smoked salmon and filets of marinated herrings on
top.
Canapés cancalaise: Butter a canapé with tuna fish butter, top with a
poached mussel and decorate with a sprig of parsley.
Canapé rejane: Butter a slice of bread with lobster butter, top with a
mound of chopped egg and mayonnaise and decorate with lobster
coral.
Canapés a la nicoise: Butter the bread with anchovy butter. Pile
stuffed olives on top and fill the gaps with anchovy butter.
Canapés poulette: Butter round canapés with anchovy butter,
sprinkle sieved boiled egg yolks and top with a shrimp.
Canapés vie vile: cover a canapé with tarragon butter, top with a
slice of ham and decorate with tarragon leaves.
Assignment: make a list of innovative canapés breaking them into
the base, the topping and the garnish.
VERNON COELHO
ihm mumbai
2008-09
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