Wine & Food

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Cook it up with Wine

Jazzing up a dish with a dash of wine not only enhances the flavour of the food, but also helps to make it healthier. So if you love cooking and have got a couple of extra wine bottles lying idle on your shelves, let’s get ready for some experiment.
-- Winehopper

"I cook with wine; sometimes I even add it to the food," said W. C. Fields, the veteran American actor. And wise he was. Food might be the direct way to reach one's heart, but if that is cooked with wine, the journey becomes all the more interesting, if not special. Indeed, cooking with wine is getting popular day by day and chefs are occasionally throwing in generous amount of wine in their cooking. Because jazzing up a dish with a dash of wine not only enhances the flavour of the food, but also helps to make it healthier. Using one or two spoonful of wine can act as a great fat substitute as it can be used in sautéing vegetables, making a marinade or in mixing a cake batter.

So if you love cooking and have got a couple of extra wine bottles lying idle on your shelves, let's get ready for some experiment. Believe me, the result will be some mind-blowing dishes.

Why Use Wine?

Wine not only cooks food well and adds flavours to it but also helps increase the food's nutritional value. Deep frying fish or sautéing veggies in oil might make the dish tastier but robs the food of its essential nutrition while adding on the fat factor. One way to add flavour and moisture to the food without increasing the fat level is to cook it with wine. Simmer the fish with wine, sauté vegetables in a spoonful of wine or rub a piece of chicken breast with few drops of wine and then beck it - your choice of healthy food is endless.

You can also use wine as a marinating ingredient. Wine is basically an acidic ingredient with loads of flavour. Marinating meat, chiken or seafood with wine helps keep food moisturized and it cooks well too!

What to Use and When

With so many types of wine available in the market and so many dishes to be cooked, it's easy to feel confused as to what type of wine to use while cooking which dish. Worry no more; here is your basic guideline. Follow these simple rules, and an array of delicious dishes will be ready to greet you.

Go through your recipe carefully. Check if the dish is bold or have lots of spices. If yes, look out for a wine that has fruity flavours and floral aroma. Either a Riesling, or a Viognier or a Gewurztraminer can be a brilliant choice. All these wines are endowed with heavy floral aroma and great fruity flavour that balances the spice of the dish.

If you are going to cook big, hearty dishes like pork or lamb, you should go for an equally hearty wine. A big, bold red, like a Shirah, or a Merlot could be the ideal choice. If the concerned dish is lighter, then consider less strong reds, like a Pinot Noir or a Zinfandel.

Port, Madeira and Sherry are the best wines that can be used for cooking. All good chefs around the world swear by these three wines. The heady sweetness of Port, the intricate roasted flavour of Sherry and the toffee-caramel notes of Madeira can enliven almost all types of soup, meat preparations and sautéed dishes.

Watch out If

However, there are certain things to watch out for when using wine as a cooking ingredient. Since the quality of wine directly affects the quality of the dish, so always opt for a good quality wine. Using an inferior wine would ruin the taste of the dish completely. Most importantly, never, never cook with a wine that you won't drink because it has gone sour.

Don't put too much wine in your dish. Follow the recipe and don't add too much wine than is required. If you are cooking with wine for the first time then start with a small amount of wine and add more if needed.

Don't use wines that are labeled as 'cooking wines'. These wines often have salt and other ingredients that will ruin the original taste of the food.

Left over wine is great for cooking. However, remember to cork your left over wine tightly and keep it refrigerated. Or you can move the wine to a smaller bottle and then keep it in the fridge. This way the wine will remain good for another month or so.

Happy cooking! Cheers!

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