Squid Ink Soup with Bean Curd Threads and Black TrufflesWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
For a long time in cooking, virtually all of the attention has been directed towards color, aroma, taste, shape, and tableware. Of these five elements, more importance is attached to aroma and taste by far.
Chef Da DongWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Dong Zhenxiang is a master chef in China, and is often referred to as Da Dong (Master Dong). Dong Zhenxiang has formulated his own unique concept of "Culinary Chromatics." He conducted a systematic study on the relationship between cuisine and color, and integrated color, aroma, shape, and tableware with a sense of taste. In doing so, he extended the artistry of cooking from the realm of taste alone to the presentation of color as well.
Color block (circle)World Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
I. Associations of color and mood
The hue, brightness and purity of an object's color will leave certain impressions on people. Color can make something feel bright and vivid, or it can run the gamut from brilliant to tenebrous, or warm to cold. This is the psychological effect created by a color's emotional attributes.
Studies show that the color red can make an individual feel more agitated and also cause their pulse and blood pressure to rise. Blue meanwhile causes the pulse to slow down and tends to calm people down.
Color cardWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
1. Tastes of color
Human sense organs can sometimes experience forms of synesthesia. Under specific circumstances, a certain color can trigger a physiological reaction. For example, green arouses a feeling of sourness, yellowish-green seems astringent, pink represents sweetness, and auburn stands in for bitterness.
Armed with a knowledge of the inherent psychological effects of certain colors, a chef can be instilled with a newfound confidence when designing the taste of their creation.
Rice Wine Cured Clams with Jasmine FlowerWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
2. Smell of color
Like taste, colors can also create a physical sensation with one's sense of smell. These associations often have much to do with an individual's personal life experiences. When smelling the light fragrance of jasmine, one could envision the color white; where the sweet smell of bananas or lemons might conjure up the color yellow. Meanwhile, smelling milk could cause you to think of, unsurprisingly, a milky white color.
Orange Shrimp SoupWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
The conjuring of these colors via one's sense of smell is a kind of conditioned reflex. Having a better understanding of these physiological connections will allow a chef to better incorporate color into the design of their dishes.
Da Dong's photography worksWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
3. Color association
When we see a color, we usually associate it with a certain object or scenario that is invoked from within our own imagination. This process is called color association.
Drunken CrayfishWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Red: passion; excitement; stamina
Red is exceptionally eye-catching. It conveys emotions like passion, desire, and ambition. It therefore can easily stir up one's emotions. Red is also a symbol of sun and flames, so it embodies rather intense concepts such as vigor, ardor, and excitement.
Barley and Pomegranate SaladWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Not only is it a warm color, but it is one of the most bold colors out there. As a result, it also carries some negative connotations such as rage and aggressiveness.
Baked Matsutake MushroomWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Orange: fresh; young; creative; adventurous
Orange is an intermediary color between red and yellow. Its effects are subsequently a mixture of the two. It brings out positive feelings such as happiness and joy, and also increases appetite.
Persimmon SaladWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Due to its association with vitamins and vitality, it goes well with themes like health and sports.
Rape Flovers with Saffron SauceWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Yellow: optimistic; outgoing; fun; happy
Yellow's extreme brightness makes people feel both refreshed and relaxed. A primary color, yellow goes well with the concepts of youth, cheerfulness, and optimism. Yellow can stimulate one's appetite. There are a bevy of enticing foods that come in shades of yellow, such as pomelo, honey, cake, and sesame oil.
Tendeer Green Peas and Ham with Olive OilWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Green: danger; passion; excitement; stamina
Green is a healing color. Like the sprouts in spring, it is bursting with hope and vitality. Owing to its comparatively subdued visual stimulation, it gives people an impression of safety and security, which subsequently makes them feel at ease.
Blueberry Mille-FeuilleWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Blue: gregarious; reliable; calm; depressed
Visually speaking, blue will remind us of natural settings like the sea and sky. In terms of physical sensations, we will think of the cold. Therefore, blue brings forth a feeling of openness and refreshment.
Traditional Orange Peel SorbetWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Spiritually, though blue has the effect of calming people down, if overused, it can exacerbate negative feelings such as depression, disappointment, loneliness, and insecurity.
Plum with SoysauceWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Purple: nobility; stately; spiritual; mysterious
Purple is half-way between a warm and cold color, and its low brightness tends to impose negative psychological impressions. Unlike yellow, shades of purple are not found in many other colors. Having said this, it does come in many shaded variations.
Wisteria CakeWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Adding a touch of white to dark purple will mellow out the color and make it more elegant. Increasing the amount of white will produce a variety of shades of light purple, each of which possesses a beguiling beauty.
Da Dong's photography workWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
II. Color matching method: color harmony
Color harmony refers to combining colors in a way that maximizes their esthetic appeal. There are no strict esthetic criteria for any single color. The process very much resembles notes in a musical composition. No single note is "good" or "bad." Only when two or more colors collide can an esthetic judgment be passed.
Sauteed Chinese BurcloverWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
1. Of the same hue
Bringing together colors of the same hue but with varied brightness and purity. Sunsets and snow-laden peach blossoms are both examples of this form of color matching. This method of color combination emphasizes simplicity, harmony, and purity. It is the simplest, most widely-adopted, and most effective method of color matching.
Color matching - brightnessWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
2. Of the same brightness
A color's brightness is a measurement of its emotion. This color matching method involves pairing colors that are on the same plane of the color solid. The colors of one plane only differ in hue and purity. Their same brightness results in a harmonious combination.
High brightness (high key)
Bright colors have high brightness. High brightness will remind us of clear skies, daylight, clouds, and streams. Matching bright colors results in harmonious and unified combinations.
Pickled CabbageWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
High brightness is associated with: spring, daylight, clear sky, clouds, streams, snowy mountains.
Foods associated with high brightness: oats, milk, soybeans, rice, cauliflower, white radish, cabbage, lotus root, bamboo shoots, wax gourd, mushrooms, yellow pears, yam, dried lily bulb, tremella, tofu, rape flowers, smoothies, cream, beer, champagne, macarons, wagashi. Feelings: brisk, bright, cold, lively, mild, light, soft, clear, charming, pure, aloof, fragile, sick.
Low brightness
Dark colors have low brightness. Matching colors that are low in brightness can also result in harmonious combinations. Low brightness gives people the impression of being plain yet solid. It can also create sinister feelings of oppressiveness, darkness, sorrow, and loneliness.
ChestnutWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Low brightness is associated with: the deep sea, starry nights, distant mountains, forests
Foods associated with low brightness: fermented black soybeans, black truffle, soy sauce, chocolate, wine.
Feelings: solid, thick, strong, tough, tenacious, firm. Mouthfeels: intense, mellow, full.
Color block (square)World Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
3. Of the same purity
A color's purity determines how appealing an image is. This method involves matching colors of the same purity but with different hues on the color solid.
Baked Portabella MushroomWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
High purity
Matching colors of high purity makes for visually harmonious compositions.
Feelings: active, intense, impulsive, outgoing, happy, clever, lively. It has a strong effect on visual sensation and emotion.
Mouthfeels: intense, syrupy sweet. Foods associated with high purity: most fruits and fresh cauliflower.
Fried Small FishesWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Low purity
Purity is one of the three elements of color. Matching colors of low purity will produce visually harmonious compositions.
Feelings:: reservation, gentle, ambiguity, grace. Foods associated with low purity: anything brown
Tender Chicken Fillets with Black TruffleWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
4. Accent color
In color matching, one can use a slight contrast color to create a highlight and make the entire composition more visually appealing. These are called accent colors.
Crips Floral EnsembleWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
5. Gradient
This color matching method brings together colors that have gradual changes in all three elements. It has a strong sense of order and rhythm.
Squid Ink Soup with Bean Curd Threads and Black TrufflesWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
6. Achromatic colors
Achromatic colors include black, white, and shades of gray. Among achromatic colors, black and white are two extremes. Black makes people feel grave and solemn, yet can also produce positive internal mental effects;
Meanwhile, white carries a sense of divergence and expansion, and gives people a feeling of clarity and relaxation. It embodies quietness, purity, and lightness. Gray is a neutral color that is both mild and changeable. It has connotations such as nothingness, elusiveness, and moderation.
Chocolate Leaves with Candid RaspberriesWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
7. Natural match of colors
When it comes to color matching, nature doesn't make mistakes. In nature, whether it's animals or landscapes, we can find balanced color combinations all around us. This kaleidoscopic presentation of bright, vivid colors is well coordinated and accompanied by complementary contrasting colors. At the same time, these lively colors are almost always embedded in solid, stable colors of low saturation.
Crispy Pan Cake with Cheese and Chinese ToonWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
8. Repetition
This method involves combining two or more colors to form a color unit, which is then used repeatedly. Color matching which uses repetition features intense and obvious rhythmic patterns in order to avoid any monotony or tedium.
Musang King Green PastryWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
9. Blank spaces
Blank spaces can help set off other colors and emphasize the theme. A blank space doesn't necessarily have to be white, and can consist of any single color. Blank spaces work best when they occupy more than half of the composition, as this creates a stronger contrast.
We can also use containers to extend the blank area to highlight the food intended to be the primary focus.
Seasonal colorsWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
III. Color in practice with Dong Zhenxiang — Seasonal themes
二十四节气摄影图:清明 by Da DongWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
1. Spring color
Spring awakens all living creatures and revitalizes the natural world. The color of spring should be refreshing, light and graceful. In early spring, the world is slowly coming back to life. The vitality of nature gradually announces its presence as it becomes less obscured by the previous cold winter weather.
Tofu with Cedrela ToonWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
Winter jasmine and rape flowers also bloom in early spring. These tender yellow flowers, together with yellowish-green grass and trees, construct a bright composition that is the most captivating view in all of nature.
夏季摄影图 by Da DongWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
2. Summer color
Summer is a stunning debutante who illuminates the earth with her passionate dance. Summer is largely dyed green and blue, but it is also iridescent.
JARDIN DE MONETWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
There exists a strong contrast in the combination of these bright colors, which exhibit a unique chromatic effect thanks to the abundance of available light. Colors in this area, due to their high saturation, coordinate well with achromatic tableware, which helps dilute or eliminate any potential visual fatigue.
二十四节气摄影图:秋分 by Da DongWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
3. Autumn color
Autumn has the most stunning colors of all the four seasons. This time of year features sights and smells like the autumn moon, seas of red leaves, and the luscious fragrance of sweet osmanthus floating through the air. Some say the color yellow suits autumn best, whereas others claim fiery red is the go-to, and others still say golden hues are best…
Geoduck Clam Fillets with Green Sichuan PeppercornWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
When you are immersed in those autumnal landscapes, your eyes will be overwhelmed by the continuously shifting presentation of dazzling and harmonious colors in abundance.
冬季摄影图 by Da DongWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
4. Winter color
Winter resembles entering a serene and crystalline fairy tale world. An all-encompassing layer of white snow covers the landscape, making it feel as if the entire world is in a deep slumber while encased in a flurry of white and silver. Such a magical sight lulls people into a state of calm.
Sweet and Sour Pork Short Ribs with Powdered SugarWorld Federation of Chinese Catering Industry
In a world of ice and snow, the prevailing monotonous color scheme may be somewhat negative, as it is thin, transparent, and slightly blue in hue.
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