fOAMS.

I started messing with foams about 5 years ago.. Since then it went from a "look what i can do "
type thing , to a national trend that seemed to kill itself because every chef foamed everything..
I am a firm believer that foams have a place in the modern kitchen.. Foam or emulsions have been done European kitchens for a century or so.. the only difference is today we have the know how to make it easier...Before you would have to infuse dairy , heat it and let it cool overnight ...the cooling process was not just to let the flavor intensify it was to let the natural oxygen in the liquid to decrease ..so when you whip the mixture the following day it would poof and stay a bit more stable.... Today we have countless ways of making foams .. Depending on the size of the bubbles we see fit for a dish , and the intention of the foams purpose i.e do we want the foam to melt over a certain part of a dish . Do we want the diner to be able to lift the foam and be able to feel the bubbles pop in there mouth..... on an episode of Bizarre foods Andrew Zimmern went to Pierre Gagnier's flagship restaurant in Paris, Pierre gave Andrew a strawberry effervescent foam that almost made him cry . My guess he either used freeze dried strawberry's mixed with a bit of baking soda whipped with a combination of versawhip , Xanthan , and sucrose or perhaps he has Rotavap and drew some of the strawberries essential oils to infuse.. .In our kitchen there is a plethora of chemicals for on the whim foams the foam above is just a simple foam of sweet milk foamed with a little Xanthan , and pectin ...