Flavors & Seasonings & SpicesAuthentic/Ethnic

Joined in Tasty Matrimony: Flavor Fusion

By David Feder , RDN, Executive Editor–Technical, Hinnerk Von Bargen

With such a fine line between “fusion” and “confusion,” it’s a good time to point out the pitfalls in bringing seemingly disparate flavor notes together.

David Feder, Executive Editor-Technical for Prepared Foods, converses with Professor Hinnerk Von Bargen of the Culinary Institute of America, San Antonio on the current trends in global cuisine and the bringing together of different ethnic and cultural flavors to build a whole formulation that is greater than the sum of its parts. Professor Von Bargen, a regular contributor to Prepared Foods, shares his expertise on the ingredients and techniques that marry together seemingly disparate culinary styles such as Latin and Asian cuisines. He answers just what does constitute successful fusion cuisine in today’s ethnic and cultural sensitive world, and the art of taking the familiar ingredients that are associated with them to join those flavors into new products that transcend both cuisine cultures and shine on their own.

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KEYWORDS: Flavor Fusion

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David Feder, RDN, has been a food, nutrition and health journalist for 26 years. In spite of an academic background that began with psychology and biblical archaeology, David cut his teeth as a celebrated chef in Texas during the 1970s and 1980s, helping pioneer haute-health & fusion cuisines in high-end restaurants and hotels. In the 1990s he became a registered dietitian while completing research and coursework toward a Ph.D. in nutrition biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin. Along the way he taught food science and nutrition while practicing as a nutrition counselor.

Hinnerk von Bargen, CHE, is the author of “Street Foods” (Wiley, 2015). He holds a Master Chef certificate from the Hotel School in Hamburg and has been an associate professor at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), San Antonio, since 2009. Previously, he taught at the CIA’s main campus in Hyde Park, NY, for 10 years. Additionally, von Bargen works with leading food companies to create new products. He has been featured in The New York Times, Women’s Health, Men’s Health, and other periodicals, as well as in “Culinary Boot Camp” (John Wiley & Sons, 2006). He can be reached at Hinnerk.VonBargen@culinary.edu.