Cooking with wine as an ingredient of the dish is no cake walk. One just needs to be a bit careful and use it with discretion. Dry red wine is quite a hit amongst food enthusiasts. Those who have a passion for cooking and are always trying something new, swear by it. This wine has been fermented till the single bit of natural sugar present in the grapes has been eliminated. What remains is maximum amount of alcohol and this avoids an added sweetness, a semi-sweet or sweet wine would add to a dish. By now you must be wondering what this 'wining' is all about. Never mind, relax and check out the text to come.
Cooking With Red Wine
Things to Consider
Cooking with dry wine is a fabulous idea, but the whole idea can come tumbling down like a house of cards. Hence, it would be better to keep these things in mind before you start cooking. For starters if you have to use dry red wine, analyze the heartiness of the dish. The heavier and sumptuous the dish, it would need a wine of the same type. For instance, a long simmered beef roast or the likes would need something like a Zinfandel. Similarly, a lighter dish will do well with a lighter red wine, like Pinot Noir. The next extremely crucial thing is to chuck the so-called 'cooking wines' available. The best ones are perhaps Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Rioja, Chianti and a few more. Another important factor to keep in mind here is to never use a wine for cooking which you wouldn't drink. The mantra to use red wine is simple. Do not go for cheap wine as it may hamper the taste of your dish. Also, avoid adding it to the dish just before serving. It might give a harsh taste to the dish, rather than enhancing the sauces and flavor of the dish.
Specific Food Compatibility
Normally full bodied dry wines go in tandem with red meat dishes, like cooking beef is a good option. In addition to this, pastas with a tomato based sauce can be enhanced using it. These have a full flavor and complement even those dishes which are fundamentally spicy. Amongst others, there are a few other wine types which can be incorporated in the meal, according to the menu. Meat dishes prepared very simply, like steak can be prepared well with Cabernet Sauvignon. Zinfandel is another type of wine which is great, especially for those who are new to drinking (Well - that's strange - nevertheless!).
Alcohol After the Cooking
This question would certainly pop into someone's mind that what happens to the alcohol content in the wine? Those who are seasoned campaigners would say that the alcohol evaporates within a few minutes after you start cooking. But reports and studies say otherwise. They say that around 80 % of the alcohol content exists even after the wine is added to a liquid at boiling temperature and then removed from heat. However, the proportion is that more the dish is cooked, the less alcohol content there would be. For food cooked for 15 to 20 minutes, the alcohol content would be around 40%. But this is hardly an issue as wine already has very less amount of alcohol. If you do not want to take a chance with alcohol, you always have the option of a substitute.
Tempting and experimental as this seems, it is needs some level of skill too! Although, once you perfect the basics, it would be a smooth sailing! So then what's cooking people? Bon appetit!
Cooking With Red Wine
Things to Consider
Cooking with dry wine is a fabulous idea, but the whole idea can come tumbling down like a house of cards. Hence, it would be better to keep these things in mind before you start cooking. For starters if you have to use dry red wine, analyze the heartiness of the dish. The heavier and sumptuous the dish, it would need a wine of the same type. For instance, a long simmered beef roast or the likes would need something like a Zinfandel. Similarly, a lighter dish will do well with a lighter red wine, like Pinot Noir. The next extremely crucial thing is to chuck the so-called 'cooking wines' available. The best ones are perhaps Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Rioja, Chianti and a few more. Another important factor to keep in mind here is to never use a wine for cooking which you wouldn't drink. The mantra to use red wine is simple. Do not go for cheap wine as it may hamper the taste of your dish. Also, avoid adding it to the dish just before serving. It might give a harsh taste to the dish, rather than enhancing the sauces and flavor of the dish.
Specific Food Compatibility
Normally full bodied dry wines go in tandem with red meat dishes, like cooking beef is a good option. In addition to this, pastas with a tomato based sauce can be enhanced using it. These have a full flavor and complement even those dishes which are fundamentally spicy. Amongst others, there are a few other wine types which can be incorporated in the meal, according to the menu. Meat dishes prepared very simply, like steak can be prepared well with Cabernet Sauvignon. Zinfandel is another type of wine which is great, especially for those who are new to drinking (Well - that's strange - nevertheless!).
Alcohol After the Cooking
This question would certainly pop into someone's mind that what happens to the alcohol content in the wine? Those who are seasoned campaigners would say that the alcohol evaporates within a few minutes after you start cooking. But reports and studies say otherwise. They say that around 80 % of the alcohol content exists even after the wine is added to a liquid at boiling temperature and then removed from heat. However, the proportion is that more the dish is cooked, the less alcohol content there would be. For food cooked for 15 to 20 minutes, the alcohol content would be around 40%. But this is hardly an issue as wine already has very less amount of alcohol. If you do not want to take a chance with alcohol, you always have the option of a substitute.
Tempting and experimental as this seems, it is needs some level of skill too! Although, once you perfect the basics, it would be a smooth sailing! So then what's cooking people? Bon appetit!
