Garnish Your Food Like an Instagramming Chef

Published in

The Grove Blog

3 min readOct 11, 2016

If you enjoy cooking and Instagram, you’ll likely relate to my struggle.

I cook. And I like to share my masterpieces (well, breakfast sandwiches and crockpot stews) on social media. Whether it’s Snapchat, Instagram or Twitter, I’ve been known to post the occasional ‘food pic’ and am not ashamed to admit it. Food is something we connect through.

But very few of my meals actually look appetizing once the camera hits it.

When I prepare a nice meal, I put it on a plate, bring it to the table, find an angle with “the right lighting”, snap the photo, and realize it looks like a pile of mush. Not appetizing. Not share-worthy. Flat. I am sure this feeling extends to kitchens beyond my own, so decided to figure out what was going on. What do chefs do that we aren’t? How do restaurants make dishes — even soup— look vibrant?

The ultimate difference: We gotta garnish and, thanks to Instagram, can bypass chef school to learn the basics. Here are the lessons I’ve learn from food pics on Instagram, and several ideas to get you going.

Lesson 1: It doesn’t take much.

A few sprigs will do. Add a simple pop of green to an otherwise monotone dish and watch it come to life.

Lesson 2: Any dish can benefit.

Even nachos. Having neighbors over for football Sunday? Add a zig-zag of crema and some chopped green onion to impress.

Lesson 3: No dish is off limits.

There’s no risk of garnishing something that shouldn’t be. Chefs seem to top everything with something, so don’t worry about stepping out of bounds.

Lesson 4: You can have fun with it.

In fact, it’s encouraged. This chef student transformed a standard tomato and egg dish into a memorable one using a bed of seeds and greens.

Lesson 5: Preparation makes a world of a difference.

Collect your garnish options and lay them out. This can take just 60 seconds, but once you see what you have to work with, ideas flow more easily.

Lesson 6: Use all parts of the veggie.

Nature provides it’s own garnish. Use the leaves or other bits that are part of the veggie when garnishing. Beets are a great example of this trick.

Lesson 7: Use the plate.

Instead of pouring the sauce or sprinkling the seasoning on top of the food, put it on the plate. This slight difference in plating can really ‘wow’.

Lesson 8: Turn a side salad into a ‘top salad’.

Already serving greens as a side salad? You’re one step ahead. Take those greens and place them on top of the main feature for a fancier presentation.

Lesson 9: It doesn’t have to be green.

Most garnishes are green. Green adds vibrancy and freshness to a dish. That said, it’s not a rule. Nuts, seeds, fruits, and spices are other great options.

Lesson 10: Sweets benefit, too.

No dish is off limits, including sweets. Mint leaves are popular for this, but any fresh garnish can help add lightness to even the most sugar-y treats.