Aaron Franklin Teaches Texas-Style BBQ

Alice Waters Teaches The Art of Home Cooking

Apollonia Poilâne Teaches Bread Baking

Bake Like A Pro

Breakfast All Day

Dominique Ansel Teaches French Pastry Fundamentals

Dominique Crenn Teaches Modern Vegetarian Cooking

Gabriela Cámara Teaches Mexican Cooking

GOAT

Gordon Ramsay Teaches Cooking I

Gordon Ramsay Teaches Cooking II: Restaurant Recipes at Home

Gut Health

Jessie Krebs Teaches Wilderness Survival

Mashama Bailey Teaches Southern Cooking

Massimo Bottura Teaches Modern Italian Cooking

Niki Nakayama Teaches Modern Japanese Cooking

Roy Choi Teaches Intuitive Cooking

Thomas Keller Teaches Cooking Techniques

Thomas Keller Teaches Cooking Techniques III: Seafood, Sous Vide, and Desserts

Thomas Keller Teaches Cooking Techniques II: Meats, Stocks, and Sauces

Wolfgang Puck Teaches Cooking

Yotam Ottolenghi Teaches Modern Middle Eastern Cooking

Alice’s Essential Kitchen Tools

A Well-Stocked Pantry

Introduction

Wolfgang's Culinary Philosophy

Tortillas de Maíz | Corn Tortillas

The Art of the Details

Method: Kitchen Layout

Balance in Kaiseki

Vegetables: An Introduction

Pasta: An Introduction

Roy's Pantry Staples

Thoughts on Hosting

Cook Like a Chef at Home

Know Your Tools: Knives

Bonus Chapter: Kitchen Essentials

Method: Knife Skills

Japanese Culinary Tools 

Kitchen Setup: Essential Tools

Kitchen Setup: Cookware

Sous Vide Cooking: Getting Started

Knife Skills

The Equipment You Don't Need

Dominique's Essential Kitchen Tools

Develop Expert Knife Techniques

Alice's Philosophy of Food

Dominique’s Journey: Beauvais, Boulud, and the Bakery

Gordon's Journey:  Learning from Masters

Gordon's Journey: Becoming a Master

Advice for Life

Closing

Introduction to Baking

Go From Home Cook to Pro Chef

A Vegetable Lunch: Roasted, Steamed, and Raw

A Market Fresh Dinner: Planning and Prep

Foie and Grits

Wolfgang's Journey

Mastering Ingredients: Beef, Lamb & Pork

Sous Vide Cooking: Turbot

Conclusion 

Brunch Spread: Middle Eastern Bread Spread

Veggie Spread: Grilled Carrots With Labneh and Dukkah

Homemade Condiments: Smoky Marinated Feta

Sogliola al Cartoccio (Mediterranean-Style Sole)

Make the Most of Your Ingredients

Dry Bread: Savory Pain de Mie Pain Perdu

BONUS: Alice's Egg in a Spoon

Make: Poached Egg & Mushrooms on Brioche

Make: Elevated Scrambled Eggs

Eggs: An Introduction

Boiled Eggs

Scrambled Eggs

Poached Eggs

Omelet

Oven Roasting: Shrimp Scampi

Desserts: Pots de Crème

Mushroom

Perfect Egg Poaching Technique

Making Masa

Pescado a la Talla | Red and Green Roasted Fish With Refried Beans

Desayuno: Huevos Rancheros | Fried Eggs With Two Salsas

Quesadillas Doradas | Golden Quesadillas

Tamales de Guayaba | Guava Tamales

Bonus: Carnitas and Pork Fat Cilantro Rice Burrito

Masa

Perfect the Homemade Tortilla

The Farmer’s Market: Learning From the Source

Quail with Watermelon Molasses and Cornbread Dressing 

Thinking Creatively About Pastry

Essential Philosophies

Meet Your Instructor

An Evolution of Pesto

Tortellini Part 2: Dough, Filling, and Assembly

Pumpkin Risotto

Bonus: The Story Behind Two Dishes From Osteria Francescana

Cake

Revitalize Classics With Modern Flair

Grilling on a Hibachi: Steak, Lamb Chops, and Chicken

Prepare: Sauce

Aaron’s Journey to Pitmaster

Meet Your Instructor 

Yakimono: Grilled Tuna

Bonus: Sous Vide Cooking: Varying Time and Temperature

Grilled Cheese

Mother Sauce: Salsa Verde

Kogi Taco Part I: BBQ Kalbi and Veggies

The Modern Gut Dilemma

“Spin-Painted” Beet

Melon: Illuminated

Upgrade Your BBQ Skills

Food & Drink

Teaches Intentional Eating

Michael Pollan

Michael Pollan Teaches Intentional Eating

Teaches Cooking Techniques II: Meats, Stocks, and Sauces

Thomas Keller

Teaches Bread Baking

Apollonia Poilâne

Teaches Texas-Style BBQ

Aaron Franklin

Teaches The Art of Home Cooking

Alice Waters

Teaches the Art of Home Cooking

Teach Mixology

Lynnette Marrero & Ryan Chetiyawardana

Lynnette Marrero & Ryan Chetiyawardana Teach Mixology

Teaches Southern Cooking

Mashama Bailey

Teaches Wine Appreciation

James Suckling

James Suckling Teaches Wine Appreciation

With Emily Wines

A Sommelier's Snob-Free Guide to Wine

Teaches French Pastry Fundamentals

Dominique Ansel

Teaches Cooking

Wolfgang Puck

José Andrés with Special Guest Chefs

Food, Stories, and Connections

Teaches Mexican Cooking

Gabriela Cámara

Teaches Gardening

Ron Finley

Ron Finley Teaches Gardening

Teaches Cooking I

Gordon Ramsay

Teaches Modern Japanese Cooking

Niki Nakayama

Teaches Tracing Your Roots Through Food

Michael W. Twitty

Michael W. Twitty Teaches Tracing Your Roots Through Food

Teaches Cooking Techniques

Teaches Cooking Techniques I: Vegetables, Pasta, and Eggs

Teaches Cooking Techniques III: Seafood, Sous Vide, and Desserts

The Greatest of All Time

Teaches Cooking II: Restaurant Recipes at Home

Teaches Intuitive Cooking

Roy Choi

Teaches Modern Middle Eastern Cooking

Yotam Ottolenghi

With Leading Experts

Brain Health

Brain Health with Leading Experts

Teaches Indian Cooking

Madhur Jaffrey

Madhur Jaffrey Teaches Indian Cooking

Gut Health with Leading Experts

Teaches Modern Italian Cooking

Massimo Bottura

Teaches Modern Vegetarian Cooking

Dominique Crenn

Sohla El-Waylly with Special Guest Chefs

David Zilber

Dr. Emeran Mayer

Erica Sonnenburg & Justin Sonnenburg

https://players.brightcove.net/5344802162001/1cMNiwC9oQ_default/index.html?videoId=6093280778001

Even picky eaters can learn to become great chefs. The key is to expand your palate using high-quality ingredients and flavor-enhancing cooking techniques and to try lots of different foods. Read on to learn more about how to train your palate from world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.

Expand Your Palate: Wolfgang Puck’s Tips

 We made a pea soup here, and we didn't season it. So you taste it, and you say, well, it's bland. It's not really something I would enjoy eating. Why? Because it has no salt, no pepper, no nothing in here. So now let's get a little salt. So you add a little at that time, a little fresh ground pepper. If you can, you can toast your peppercorns a little bit in the oven, to release a little bit of their oil, and they will be even more fragrant. We do that with all of our spices. If it's cumin, coriander seed, we toast them, and they have more flavor, because they release their oil. And we're going to stir it up and taste it again. There's still something missing. it's a little not bland really, but I cannot really taste the flavor of the peas. So now I'm going to add a little honey. Because we call it sweet English peas sweet peas. So I'm going to add a little honey to it to sweeten it lightly. This is really one of my secret ingredients, is add a little honey, and then a little lemon juice to balance it. OK, we cut off a little piece of lemon, all right. And squeeze a little lemon juice in here. All right, that's enough, not too much. And now let's see. So you can see now I added salt, pepper, honey, and lemon juice to my soup. Much better now. I love the combination of the lemon juice and the honey. But it still needs a little salt. So you saw even me, I put salt little by little. I don't want to add a lot of salt, because you can always add to it. So now let's taste it. Now it tastes perfect. Now it tastes like you can eat two servings of it. And I know all your friends will just love it.

In the culinary world, expanding your palate involves stepping outside your comfort zone and trying new foods. [Chef Wolfgang Puck](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/wolfgang-puck) argues that everyone interested in cooking should learn to train their palate. Wolfgang suggests experimenting with different seasonings, oils, vinegars to learn how each ingredient interacts. 

> “Musicians have to train their ears to listen to music; painters have to train their eyes to learn about perspective and how to mix colors. We, in the kitchen, have to learn how to train our palate and how to season things properly because without that, you can buy the most expensive ingredients, and the food will taste flat.”  — Chef Wolfgang Puck
Your tastebuds can detect five tastes: salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and [umami](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-umami-learn-about-umami-and-how-to-incorporate-umami-flavors-in-your-cooking) (savory). These different flavor profiles send a message to your brain to help your body recognize what you’re eating. Umami can be the hardest to pin down. “The umami taste, you can find it in, for example, [soy sauce](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/soy-sauce-explained),” Wolfgang says. “You can find it in dried mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese.”
Here are some tips from Chef Wolfgang Puck for training your culinary palate: 

1. __Season food gradually__. Always start with just a small amount of salt in your dish. Remember, you can always add salt, but you can never take it out. The same goes for pepper. You should use fresh ground pepper whenever possible, starting with a little and adding more if needed. 
2. __Toast your spices__. Wolfgang recommends toasting your spices to enhance their flavor. Lightly toasting peppercorns in the oven before grinding them will release oil and maximize flavor and fragrance.
3. __Invest in good olive oil__. High-quality olive oil and vinegar go a long way in enhancing the flavor of the dish. “Get a good bottle, but don’t cook with the really expensive [olive oil](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/complete-olive-oil-guide), with the flavorful olive oil, because olive oil, when it’s really cold-pressed and the first press, it has little particles in it and they burn when you heat them up,” Wolfgang says. “So use the good olive oil for salad, for your fish dish, or wherever you drizzle a little olive oil on it.” 
4. __Create balance__. Wolfgang’s secret weapon is a touch of honey in his pea soup. To balance the flavor, Wolfgang adds a little lemon juice for acidity. Look out for any seeds you might have accidentally squeezed into the soup.
Become a better chef with the [MasterClass Annual Membership](https://www.masterclass.com/). Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Wolfgang Puck, Gabriela Cámara, Chef Thomas Keller, Massimo Bottura, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Yotam Ottolenghi, Alice Waters, and more.
Even picky eaters can learn to become great chefs. The key is to expand your palate using high-quality ingredients and flavor-enhancing cooking techniques and to try lots of different foods. Read on to learn more about how to train your palate from world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.

In the culinary world, expanding your palate involves stepping outside your comfort zone and trying new foods. <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/wolfgang-puck' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/wolfgang-puck","linkCopy":"Chef Wolfgang Puck","category":null}'>Chef Wolfgang Puck</a> argues that everyone interested in cooking should learn to train their palate. Wolfgang suggests experimenting with different seasonings, oils, vinegars to learn how each ingredient interacts. <blockquote class="mc-text--italic mc-opacity--hinted mc-my-8 mc-mr-0 mc-ml-6 mc-pl-6">“Musicians have to train their ears to listen to music; painters have to train their eyes to learn about perspective and how to mix colors. We, in the kitchen, have to learn how to train our palate and how to season things properly because without that, you can buy the most expensive ingredients, and the food will taste flat.” — Chef Wolfgang Puck</blockquote>

What Does It Mean to Expand Your Palate?

Your tastebuds can detect five tastes: salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-umami-learn-about-umami-and-how-to-incorporate-umami-flavors-in-your-cooking' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-umami-learn-about-umami-and-how-to-incorporate-umami-flavors-in-your-cooking","linkCopy":"umami","category":null}'>umami</a> (savory). These different flavor profiles send a message to your brain to help your body recognize what you’re eating. Umami can be the hardest to pin down. “The umami taste, you can find it in, for example, <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/soy-sauce-explained' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/soy-sauce-explained","linkCopy":"soy sauce","category":null}'>soy sauce</a>,” Wolfgang says. “You can find it in dried mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese.”

What Are the Five Basic Tastes?

Here are some tips from Chef Wolfgang Puck for training your culinary palate: <ol class="mc-m-4"><li class="mc-my-4"> 1. Season food gradually. Always start with just a small amount of salt in your dish. Remember, you can always add salt, but you can never take it out. The same goes for pepper. You should use fresh ground pepper whenever possible, starting with a little and adding more if needed. </li><li class="mc-my-4"> 2. Toast your spices. Wolfgang recommends toasting your spices to enhance their flavor. Lightly toasting peppercorns in the oven before grinding them will release oil and maximize flavor and fragrance. </li><li class="mc-my-4"> 3. Invest in good olive oil. High-quality olive oil and vinegar go a long way in enhancing the flavor of the dish. “Get a good bottle, but don’t cook with the really expensive <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/complete-olive-oil-guide' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/complete-olive-oil-guide","linkCopy":"olive oil","category":null}'>olive oil</a>, with the flavorful olive oil, because olive oil, when it’s really cold-pressed and the first press, it has little particles in it and they burn when you heat them up,” Wolfgang says. “So use the good olive oil for salad, for your fish dish, or wherever you drizzle a little olive oil on it.” </li><li class="mc-my-4"> 4. Create balance. Wolfgang’s secret weapon is a touch of honey in his pea soup. To balance the flavor, Wolfgang adds a little lemon juice for acidity. Look out for any seeds you might have accidentally squeezed into the soup. </li></ol>

4 Tips for Expanding Your Palate

Become a better chef with the <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/","linkCopy":"MasterClass Annual Membership","category":null}'>MasterClass Annual Membership</a>. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Wolfgang Puck, Gabriela Cámara, Chef Thomas Keller, Massimo Bottura, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Yotam Ottolenghi, Alice Waters, and more.

Want to Learn More About Cooking?

Even picky eaters can learn to become great chefs. The key is to expand your palate using high-quality ingredients and flavor-enhancing cooking techniques and to try lots of different foods. Read on to learn more about how to train your palate from world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.

Even picky eaters can learn to become great chefs. The key is to expand your palate using high-quality ingredients and flavor-enhancing cooking techniques and to try lots of different foods. Read on to learn more about how to train your palate from world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.


expand-your-palate

Seasonings enhance the flavor of dishes. Learn Wolfgang Puck’s approach to tasting and seasoning foods to boost flavor.

Wolfgang Puck’s Tips for Seasoning Food

Born in Austria, Wolfgang Puck is a James Beard Foundation Award–winning restaurateur and one of the world’s most successful chefs. After studying in Europe, Wolfgang moved to Los Angeles in his twenties, where he became the chef and part owner of Ma Maison in Los Angeles, California. From there, Wolfgang published his first cookbook and opened his first restaurant, Spago, to wide acclaim. 

Starting on the Sunset Strip in 1982, Spago relocated fifteen years later to Beverly Hills. Wolfgang has helped popularize California nouvelle, a modern form of California cuisine, which Wolfgang would expand upon in his subsequent ventures by adding a European flair to California staples.
Seasoning is the salts, [spices](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/a-list-of-the-27-essential-cooking-spices-you-need-to-know), and herbs cooks use to enhance a food’s flavor. Seasonings can be savory, sweet, acidic, or bitter. Cooks can add seasonings when braising, roasting, sautéing, pickling, and even baking desserts to create more flavorful and memorable dishes. Cooks can use pre-ground spices like chili powder, peppercorns, cumin, paprika, and cayenne, or grind whole spices. [Fresh herbs](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/cooking-101-the-15-most-common-culinary-herbs-and-how-to-cook-with-them) like oregano, chopped chives, or torn fennel can season soups and stews while cooking. Combining spices to create a pre-set spice mix can expedite the cooking process and be an excellent way to experiment with flavor combinations.
Seasoning is essential because it enlivens meals, promotes innovation in cooking, and can transform the flavor of a dish. For example, a simple [stir-fry dish](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-stir-fry) may feature some soy sauce, but preparing a marinade with lemon juice, garlic powder, black pepper, ginger, hot pepper flakes, and dried herbs can make it a more dynamic dish. 
Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck shares some tips about how to get the most out of your seasoning.

1. __Cold foods may require more seasonings than hot ones__. “The palate really receives the flavors of cold food much slower and not as strongly than when you serve, for example, a hot bowl of soup,” Wolfgang shares. “If it’s too spicy or too salty, you will taste it right away. So cold food should be seasoned a little heavier than hot food. That’s one of the principles in cooking.”
2. __Different salts can have different functions__. Salt plays a vital role in seasoning food but comes in many unique kinds. “When I started cooking, we had one kind of salt,” Wolfgang says. “Now, you have so many [different salts](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/the-12-different-kinds-of-salt-you-should-have-in-your-kitchen), even smoked salts, for example. If you want to roast or [barbecue](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/things-to-bbq) something, put a little smoked salt on it. What I use all the time is great sea salt or fleur de sel. I never use [iodized salt](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/iodized-salt-explained) because iodized salt is not good for you and has no flavor. Good salt has a lot of flavor.”
3. __Experiment with your use of seasoning__. Home cooks can use a single seasoning in several different ways. Take [ginger](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-ginger-learn-all-about-ginger-and-ginger-cooking-tips). Wolfgang says: “You can grate it; you can slice it; you can pickle it. One of my favorite ingredients is ginger. Fresh ginger is easy to find in any supermarket today. It has so much fragrance.” Try exploring different uses of ginger in various recipes to see how it can uplift everything from a [ginger salad dressing](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ginger-dressing-recipe) to [ginger tea](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ginger-tea-recipe) to ginger beer [cocktails](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-make-a-moscow-mule-cocktail).
4. __Season a dish gradually__. Cooking is a process, one that needs your sense of smell and taste every step of the way. “Training your palate to figure out what you like, the way you like it—you have to go step-by-step,” Wolfgang says. “Don’t go too fast. Don’t do [what] many people [do and] just throw salt in it, pepper in it, without tasting. So, tasting is always really important.” You can always add more salt, so there is no need to go [overboard](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/wolfgang-pucks-tips-to-fix-oversalted-dishes) with the first pinch.
5. __Toast your ground spices for enhanced flavor__. Wolfgang shares a pro tip about getting more from your seasonings, a practice he employs in his award-winning restaurants’ kitchens: “If you can, toast your peppercorns a little bit in the oven to release a little bit of the oil, and they will be even more fragrant. We do that with all of our spices. If it's cumin, coriander seed: We toast them, then they have more flavor because they release their oil.”
After developing your palate and mastering your kitchen skills, learning about the culinary industry's business side is essential. Discover Wolfgang Puck’s approach to seasoning food, preparing sauces, opening a restaurant, and more when you sign up for the [MasterClass Annual Membership](https://www.masterclass.com/homepage).
Seasonings enhance the flavor of dishes. Learn Wolfgang Puck’s approach to tasting and seasoning foods to boost flavor.

Born in Austria, Wolfgang Puck is a James Beard Foundation Award–winning restaurateur and one of the world’s most successful chefs. After studying in Europe, Wolfgang moved to Los Angeles in his twenties, where he became the chef and part owner of Ma Maison in Los Angeles, California. From there, Wolfgang published his first cookbook and opened his first restaurant, Spago, to wide acclaim. Starting on the Sunset Strip in 1982, Spago relocated fifteen years later to Beverly Hills. Wolfgang has helped popularize California nouvelle, a modern form of California cuisine, which Wolfgang would expand upon in his subsequent ventures by adding a European flair to California staples.

Who Is Wolfgang Puck?

Seasoning is the salts, <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/a-list-of-the-27-essential-cooking-spices-you-need-to-know' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/a-list-of-the-27-essential-cooking-spices-you-need-to-know","linkCopy":"spices","category":null}'>spices</a>, and herbs cooks use to enhance a food’s flavor. Seasonings can be savory, sweet, acidic, or bitter. Cooks can add seasonings when braising, roasting, sautéing, pickling, and even baking desserts to create more flavorful and memorable dishes. Cooks can use pre-ground spices like chili powder, peppercorns, cumin, paprika, and cayenne, or grind whole spices. <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/cooking-101-the-15-most-common-culinary-herbs-and-how-to-cook-with-them' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/cooking-101-the-15-most-common-culinary-herbs-and-how-to-cook-with-them","linkCopy":"Fresh herbs","category":null}'>Fresh herbs</a> like oregano, chopped chives, or torn fennel can season soups and stews while cooking. Combining spices to create a pre-set spice mix can expedite the cooking process and be an excellent way to experiment with flavor combinations.

What Is Seasoning?

Seasoning is essential because it enlivens meals, promotes innovation in cooking, and can transform the flavor of a dish. For example, a simple <a href='https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-stir-fry' target='_blank' class='mc-text--link' data-mc-segment-trigger='true' data-mc-segment-event-type='Article Page Click' data-event-obj='{"textTag":"p","href":"https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-stir-fry","linkCopy":"stir-fry dish","category":null}'>stir-fry dish</a> may feature some soy sauce, but preparing a marinade with lemon juice, garlic powder, black pepper, ginger, hot pepper flakes, and dried herbs can make it a more dynamic dish.

Why Is Seasoning Important?

Seasonings enhance the flavor of dishes. Learn Wolfgang Puck’s approach to tasting and seasoning foods to boost flavor.

Seasonings enhance the flavor of dishes. Learn Wolfgang Puck’s approach to tasting and seasoning foods to boost flavor.


Elevate Your Cooking Skills & Techniques