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I found a couple of dishes are more flavorful after cooling to room temperature. Why is that? Okay to serve like this?

Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Recorded

This event was on February 18, 2025

Join Chef Char Nolan in her virtual office as she welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to ask anything – from cooking techniques to course-specific questions, to how to turn your cooking passion into profit or simply hearing the perspective of a professional chef, Chef Nolan is ready to answer them all.

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Question

Ellen Kumler

I found a couple of dishes are more flavorful after cooling to room temperature. Why is that? Okay to serve like this?

Answer

We eat hot foods differently than we eat cold foods. Um, when we eat hot food, we take smaller amounts because we don't want to, you know, s swallow our pallets or anything like that. Um, the other thing is that sometimes flavors may be enhanced when food is cold, but generally speaking, food tastes better when it is eaten, you know, freshly made out of the oven or whatever like that. So I think if you enjoy, uh, that salad, uh, well I'm calling it a salad now 'cause it's cold, but your carrots and beans, then make that one of your go-to dishes where everyone will rave and applaud your wonderful ability to make such beautiful plant-based dishes. So, um, but it is okay to serve that way. Yes, I would maybe put it on a bed of some greens and, uh, add a beautiful garnish. And I'm sure that, uh, it would taste better if you're making that seed mixture. You might wanna have that in a small bowl with a little spoon so people could garnish it themselves.

Char Nolan

Chef Instructor

Char Nolan is a serious crusader for plant-based education, armed with a degree in public health from Philadelphia’s Temple University. She teaches nutrition and plant-based cooking throughout Philadelphia, and in many underserved communities. Char holds a certificate in plant-based nutrition from eCornell and completed Rouxbe’s Plant-Based Professional Certification course in 2015. In 2019, Char completed post-graduate course work in social media marketing at the University of the Arts. When she is not cooking or teaching, she manages social media accounts for several plant-based influencers. Char prides herself on learning everything she knows about cooking from growing up in her grandparents’ Italian restaurant. Her favorite vegetables are Brussels sprouts and kale, of course. Char originally hails from Queens, NY, but has lived in Philadelphia most of her adult life. She is a former Peace Corps Volunteer.