Cooking with wine elevates a broad swathe of dishes, and with a few tips and tricks, you can use it as an essential ingredient in your culinary toolbox. You will need to use a bit of finesse when incorporating wine into various recipes. Let’s explore the most important guidelines when it comes to using wine in the kitchen, one of the most important being to select quality wines from Jacques Scott Wines & Spirits.
Cook with Wine You Like to Sip
Sure, dumping wine into a sauce or other dish might seem like a frugal way to handle a wine that you didn’t enjoy the taste of, but this decision comes with consequences you probably won’t like. The features that you found off-putting will likely be accentuated in the dish. As you cook, choose wines that you enjoy drinking for food that you enjoy eating.
Cook with Dry Wines for Most Dishes
When used for culinary purposes, wine usually adds acidity, not sweetness. If you add a sweet wine to a dish, the result is likely to be more syrupy than tasty. You will find some recipes that call for a sweet wine, but if the recipe doesn’t specify, choose a dry bottle.
Cook with an Inexpensive Wine
The wine that you use for cooking must be palatable, but it should also be affordable. If you splurge on a wine, it should be one that you relish by the glass. Furthermore, expensive wines have subtle features that you enjoy as you drink, but these subtle flavors and aromas are lost during cooking.
Cook with Timing in Mind
Cooking is more than just combining ingredients and adding heat. It’s as much a science as an art. When you add wine, it should be early enough to cook off the alcohol to avoid a harsh taste. For a sauce or stew, incorporate the wine right after the protein has browned and liquid starts simmering. Let the wine reduce and then add the stock or other liquid in the recipe. If you decide to add a bit of red wine at the end, make sure that you choose a high-quality wine.
Cook with a Wine-Based Marinade
A marinade with a wine base provides a nice acidity and flavor. Consider the type of protein when determining which type of wine will be the best for your marinade:
- Fish – acidic white wine
- Chicken – rich white wine
- Roasts – red wine
- Beef – red wine
Ideally, marinade your protein in a wine similar to what you would pair with the dish that you’re making.
Cook with Pre-Frozen Wines
When you have a bottle of wine that you’d like to save for future cooking, here’s a great hack! Use an ice tray to freeze the wine in separate blocks or cubes. Once frozen, you can pop out the cubes and store in a Ziploc freezer safe bag.
Cook with Red Wines with Balanced Tannins
If you prefer red wines with a full tannic profile, don’t use these for cooking. The result will be far too bitter. Rather than a Cabernet Sauvignon, choose a bottle of Gaja Promis Ca Marcanda or another Merlot or Pinot Noir.
Use these tips and tricks when cooking with wine from Jacques Scott Wines & Spirits. Make your purchase either online with free delivery to any address on Grand Cayman or in-person at one of our seven retail locations.
