Rule 20 of 27 · Chapter V — Tasting and Finishing
Taste constantly, and adjust at the end
Why this rule exists
Tasting is not a final check; it is the feedback loop that makes cooking a craft rather than a gamble. A cook who tastes as they go catches the flat sauce, the harsh raw garlic, the missing acid while there is still time to fix it, and arrives at the end with something already close to right. A cook who plates without tasting is simply hoping. Your ingredients change from week to week, your palate shifts with the day, and no recipe can account for either, so the only reliable instrument is the spoon in your hand. The final tasting, right before serving, is where you make the last small corrections that turn good into memorable: the pinch of salt, the squeeze of lemon, the crack of pepper that pulls everything into focus.
In practice
Taste at every meaningful stage, using a clean spoon each time so you are not seasoning by contamination or guessing. Ask specific questions of what you taste: does it need salt, brightness, richness, heat, or depth. Make small adjustments and taste again rather than one big irreversible change. Save the biggest corrections for the end, when flavors have concentrated and melded and you can judge the finished balance. Taste at the temperature it will be served, since cold dulls seasoning and food meant to be eaten hot tastes different straight off the heat. Then adjust one last time before it leaves the kitchen.
When it doesn't apply
Some things you cannot safely taste mid-cook, like batter with raw egg or undercooked chicken, so you season those by experience and check the cooked result. Baking again resists tasting-and-adjusting, because the corrections come after it is too late to make them. And seasoning for guests means tasting toward their preferences, not only your own.