The New Orleans Menu

Deconstructed Dishes

Dave asks:

What does it mean when a dish is "deconstructed"? I saw a dish recently served with a deconstructed hollandaise sauce. Does that mean I will be served egg yolks and butter?

Tom sez:

It means that the chef has taken the ingredients of the dish apart and reassembled them in a way different from the original. Sometimes this results in something suggestive of the classic dish; in other cases, it's hard to puzzle what the new dish has in common with the old. It is conceivable that a deconstructed hollandaise may be butter, an egg, and a lemon, arrayed on a plate for you to play with. I do not believe that the descontruction vogue will last for long. At least, I hope it won't.

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