Colourful Sauces for Plating — Make Food Look Restaurant-Made
Why does restaurant food look better than home cooking even when it tastes the same? Usually it's a dot or a swoosh of colour sauce. Sauce gives a plate colour, acidity to cut through richness, and a look that makes the photo worth posting.
These are Chef Ahmet Salameh's own sauces — the ones you see in his plate photos. Three are published here in full; all five are in the free Five Signature Sauces guide.
The recipes
Beet & Pickled Ginger
Electric magenta — sharp and sweet, perfect with fish and cheese. · 20 minHerb & Chlorophyll
Deep green from fresh herbs — lifts any chicken or vegetable plate. · 20 minAged Balsamic & Date
Dark and glossy — balsamic and date for grilled meats. · 20 min
Chef's notes
How to draw sauce on a plate
Put a spoonful of sauce at the edge of the plate and drag it with the back of the spoon in one quick stroke. Or use a squeeze bottle for dots of graded sizes. The rule: less sauce, more impact.
Getting the texture right
A plating sauce should hold its place, not run. If it's too thin, blend longer, add a pinch of xanthan, or reduce it on the heat.
Questions
How long do the sauces keep?
Most keep 3 to 7 days in an airtight container; each sauce page gives its own shelf life.
Is the Five Signature Sauces guide free?
Yes — the Five Signature Sauces guide is completely free and arrives instantly.
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Cooking guides
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- Easy Korean Recipes at Home — Buldak, Ramen & Garlic Bread
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- Colourful Sauces for Plating — Make Food Look Restaurant-Made
Free recipes from the book
- The Original Baked Feta Pasta
- Marry Me Chicken
- Quesabirria Tacos (Birria Tacos)
- Gigi Hadid's Spicy Vodka Pasta
- Emily Mariko's Salmon Rice Bowl
- Green Goddess Salad
- Sushi Bake
- Smashed Potatoes
- Bang Bang Shrimp
- Dalgona Coffee (Whipped Coffee)
- Crinkle Cake (Muakacha)
- French Onion Grilled Cheese
- Whipped Feta & Hot Honey Dip
- Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread
- The Logan Moffitt Viral Cucumber Salad
- The Viral Dubai Pistachio Kunafa Chocolate
- The Onion Boil
- Volcano Cheese Ramen
- Tanghulu (Microwave Method)
- Cheese Buldak (Korean Fire Chicken)
- Japanese Soufflé Pancakes
- The 'Crookie' (Croissant Cookie)
- Honeycomb Pasta Pie (Rigatoni Cake)
- Cornflake Chicken Tenders (ASMR Crunch)
- Accordion Potatoes
- Beet & Pickled Ginger
- Herb & Chlorophyll
- Aged Balsamic & Date