Kitchen Essential

Among the ’special’ dishes or sets of dishes you might like to acquire are those for a particular food. The following are the most usual.

Artichoke plates

These round dishes, embossed with a raised design of artichoke leaves, have a circular depression in the centre for the artichoke and a dimple for melted butter or french dressing.

Avocado dishes

These come in exactly the right shape to hold half an avocado, and are made from glass or fine bone china embossed with leaves.

Snail plates

These are round metal, china or pottery dishes made with small indentations to hold from six to twelve snails.

Corn-on-the-cob dishes

These are usually made from white china, fashioned in the shape of a leafy cradle in which the cob lies.

Oyster plates

Round bone china dishes with well-shaped indentations to hold six oysters and a small bowl in the middle to hold a sauce.

Serving dishes

It is perfectly acceptable to use stoneware, earthenware or pottery dishes on the table for informal occasions, but for elegant formal dinners it is better to use dishes that match the dinner service or that are finer and prettier than most stoneware or earthenware. Most dinner services include vegetable dishes with matching lids and large oval plates for serving meat; these are also excellent for serving arrangements of different salads or vegetables.

For special dishes such as potted shrimps, pates, soufflées or flans, plain white china is available which will blend with almost any style of tableware. A gravy or sauce boat is an important item and often available as part of a dinner service. If not, you could buy one in stainless steel, plated silver or china. A matching ladle is useful and generally available, or you could browse in second-hand and antique shops among the collections of different- sized ladles in plated silver or porcelain.

A salad bowl is essential, and the best are made from glass or wood with matching servers. You will also need: a butter dish or plate that is pretty enough to be used on formal occasions; a container such as a delicate basket or pretty china dish for bread rolls, buttered bread or toast to accompany hors d’oeuvres; a cheese board or plate with a bone or wooden handled cheese knife; a carving knife and fork, either matching the main set of cutlery or toning in style, and a selection of serving spoons — most canteens of cutlery include four or six of these. You may also like to acquire a serving slice for cutting and serving gateaux and desserts. These are available in plain stainless steel and, much prettier, in decorated plated silver. Danish and Swedish glass manufacturers make exquisite, flat, glass plates that are ideal for cheese or gateaux.

Oven-to-table-ware

Specially toughened, oven-proof, glass dishes are useful for such foods as casseroles and stews and are generally acceptable on the table for less formal meals. Also available now is a wide variety of cream or white porcelain or stoneware dishes suitable for use in a conventional or microwave oven. These are of an attractive, simple design and blend well with most dinner services. Remember that dishes look much more attractive standing on a meat plate or large dinner plate that matches the main china, or standing on a coloured linen or paper napkin that fits the colour scheme. For deeper bowls or basins used for steak and kidney pudding or similar dishes a pretty linen napkin tied around the dish softens the effect of the plain, rather stark serving dish.

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