Watson, IBM’s super smart computer, is now in the business of creating recipes that use what you have on hand and meet your dietary restrictions. It does this using a process called Cognitive Cooking, which works like this: Watson uses a cloud-based analytics to understand what makes a certain dish what it is, for example, what makes a burrito a burrito and not a tuna melt. Rather than just considering ingredients, Watson creates molecular formulas for the flavors that will come together from certain combinations. The resulting recipes, because they aren’t limited by a human chef’s preconceptions of what ingredients go together, are both innovative and surprisingly tasty.
Watson has generated many recipes, but here are a few of our favorites.
Peruvian Potato Poutine | Photo Credit: Image courtesy of IMB.
Watson took this Canadian staple and added some South American flair. This Peruvian Potato Poutine has everything a good poutine should have, but includes cauliflower, tomatoes, and cumin. Queso blanco is crumbled atop the dish rather than the more traditional cheese curds.
Turkish Bruschetta | Photo Credit: Image courtesy of IBM.
Though Italy and Turkey are not quite as far away as Canada and Peru, these two nation’s flavor profiles are about as distant as one could imagine. Watson devised a Turkish Bruschetta that has no tomatoes but instead includes eggplant, sumac, and carrot; a strong but tasty combination. The only homage to a traditional bruschetta is the addition of Parmesan cheese.
Austrian Chocolate Burrito | Photo Credit: image courtesy of IBM.
Probably the most surprising of all the recipes we found was this one for an Austrian Chocolate Burrito. And no, it’s not a dessert burrito, but in fact includes both dark chocolate and ground beef! In addition to some of the traditional burrito ingredients such as beef, queso fresco, and a flour tortilla wrapper, Watson also added orange zest, apricot, and edamame. And while the queso fresco seemed right at home, we’re ready to pull a Watson and try some Edam on our next burrito!
Photo Credit: Featured Image courtesy of IBM
Virginia Hyde
Virginia Hyde is a southern girl at heart who just moved to Boston to submerge herself in food - mainly cheese, to be honest. Game for any food-related adventure, festival, or gathering, she is ready to share her passion for cheese with others. Virginia is currently working on a Masters in Gastronomy at Boston University.
