Flavor Heroes for Your Meals: 3 Ways to Enhance Flavor In Your Food

This post has been compensated by Maille. All opinions are mine alone. #FlavorHeroes

I’m a big believer in food that’s uncomplicated, yet impressive in flavor. I’m not particularly fond of making a dish with a multitude of spices when I can easily just sub in one or two flavorful ingredients that make my food just as scrumptious. 

The Flavor Heroes

Most of the time, these flavorful ingredients are pantry ingredients that I always have on hand. And many of them just so happen to be Maille products. 

Whether it’s their classic dijon mustard or spicy cornichon pickles, I love adding high-quality flavor heroes like these to my everyday foods. 

Salad Dressing and Tapenade

One of my favorite ways to use Maille’s array of premium mustards is in my salad dressing. I am in love with making vinaigrettes for my salads because they’re light and easy to make. 

Adding just a teaspoon of Maille’s dijon (classic or honey) to a mix of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and minced garlic is a beloved French trick to making a perfect vinaigrette. 

The mustard adds just the perfect boost of spice to the vinaigrette. If you use the honey mustard, it will also provide a subtle bit of sweetness that’s lovely with salads like apple pecan. 

Or, if you like to make your own spreads, such as homemade tapenade, try using Maille’s classic or whole grain mustard. It will provide just the right amount of zing to your tasty olive spread. 

Marinating Poultry and Fish

Another French “secret” to enhancing flavor in your meals is to marinate your chicken and fish with mustard. 

I’ll often use Maille’s dijon mustard as a rub for my one-pot chicken in mustard dish. Aside from a sprinkle of salt and pepper on the chicken, that’s the only other ingredient the chicken is treated with. 

The mustard on the chicken ends up providing fantastic flavor to not just the chicken, but the sauce it’s cooked in as well.

The same goes for fish. Smear mustard on a piece of tilapia or sole, and be amazed at just how much flavor is imparted on the fish. 

Elevate Your Sandwiches

Before trips to Paris, I wasn’t particularly fond of pickles. All I’d ever known were those big dill pickles that came on my burger. 

It wasn’t until I had a classic Parisian sandwich with delightful cornichons that I fell in love with these French pickles. Unlike dill pickles, cornichons tend to be more tart and spicy than sweet. They’re just as crunchy, but even more fun to eat because they’re bite size.

Make a cheese tray and include Maille’s cayenne cornichons; your guests will love them! Or, use their classic cornichons as a sandwich filling, like in a French egg salad sandwich. I love the extra crunch and bit of tartness they add to sandwiches. 

Always on Hand

The best part about using Maille’s products are that they’re incredibly versatile and easy to keep on hand. Whether I’m making a salad for myself or creating a dish for entertaining guests with, I’m comforted by the fact that these gourmet ingredients can be readily stored in my pantry and fridge. 

Maille’s mustards and pickles are always yummy right out of the jar too, so if I decide to use them in a meal, I know I won’t have to add much of anything else to make a flavorful dish. Check out the video below to see how I use Maille’s products in action, and make sure to enter the contest for the chance to win a 5-piece set of Le Creuset!

Enter for the chance to win!

Simply share your tip (through the link below) for using any Maille product in a dish and you’ll be entered into a contest for the chance to win an awesome 5-piece Le Creuset signature set and the opportunity to star in a video with some food celebrities sharing your tip! Click the image below to be taken to the contest page: