Garnish

A garnish is a substance used primarily as an embellishment or decoration to a prepared food or drink item. It may also give added or contrasting flavor, but that is not its primary purpose, in contrast to a condiment which is primarily a flavour added to another food item.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A garnish makes food or drink items more appealing. They may, for example, enhance their color, such as when paprika is sprinkled on a salmon salad. They may give a color contrast, for example when parsley or chives are sprinkled on potatoes. They may make a cocktail seem more festive, such as when a celery stalk is placed in a Bloody Mary (cocktail), or a Mai Tai is garnished with all manners of tropical fruit.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A garnish may make food extra special, such as a maraschino cherry on top of ice cream. The use of this particular garnish has led to the common children's plea— "Pretty please, with a cherry on top!"— for extraordinary requests.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A garnish can also become a hackneyed clich? when it has lost its meaning, such as a sprig of parsley and a small spoonful of coleslaw in a paper cup served beside all sandwiches at a diner.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A garnish may be so readily identified with a specific dish, that the food item may appear incomplete without it.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A food item which is served with garnish may be described as being garni.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Paprika: Capsicum annuum...

Salmon: :This article is about the fish. For other uses, see Salmon (disambiguation)....

Parsley: P. crispumP. neapolitanumParsley (Petroselinum crispum) is a bright green, biennial herb that is very common in Middle Eastern, European, and American cooking. It is used for its leaf in much the same way as coriander, although it has a milder flavor....