Wine Isn't Just for Drinking: Cook with It, Too!

When a cooking or baking recipe calls for wine as an ingredient, which ones do you choose? Here are some tips to help you choose the right bottle.
Â
1 Cook with wine that you would drink.
Â
Select good-quality wine that's reasonably priced. There is no need to splurge on expensive, premium wine since most of the flavor and aroma will be lost during the cooking process.
Â
Â
2 Consider the wine's acidity.
Â
The tartness of the wine will be more pronounced as it cooks. Use one with high acidity for dishes that will complement the additional sour flavor from the wine.
Â
Â
3 Use dry wine when a dish is savory or doesn't require sweetness.
Â
Read the description on the bottle to find out more about its characteristics. Examples of dry white wine are Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay; dry reds include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Shiraz.
Â
Â
4 On the other hand, use sweet wine for desserts.
Â
Use sweet, nutty wine like Pedro Ximénez for nut-, caramel-, and vanilla-based desserts. Pick sweet fortified red wine like Ruby Port for chocolate treats, and sweet white wine like Sauternes and Moscato for fruity desserts.
Â
Tips were originally published in the June 2016 issue of Yummy magazine.Â
Â
