cooking with wine, etc.

[KayKay]

I ran into a "cooking with wine" dilemna today...

I was assembling a beef stew in the crock pot which calls for 1/2 cup of red wine. The problem was that using 1/2 cup left only 1/3 cup (a little less than 80 ml for those using metric measurements) of wine in the bottle. Well, that's a little too much to throw in the pot (almost double the amount needed) yet not enough to actually keep. Ordinarily I'd just polish it off and be done with the bottle.

Problem was... it was 8:00am.

(I threw it in the pot)

[Lizzie]

I'd like some of that dinner KayKay you did well!

[Blue Skies]

Originally Posted by Lizzie

I'd like some of that dinner KayKay you did well!

Lizzie, KayKay, thanks for my laugh today! KayKay, how was it?

[KayKay]

It was okay. Not my favorite recipe, but it was a really, really cold day and it hit the spot. It's a stew DH likes, I tolerate, and the kids don't like, so that was pretty much the evaluation at dinner. DH liked it, I appreciated that it was warm and filling, and the kids had frozen lasagna. LOL.

[snafu]

I discovered (I think) that the temp of the wine prior to using it in cooking affects the taste of the finished product.

When I made the stew with chilled wine (I was going to drink what wasn't used) the stew had a different taste. When I left the wine at room temp - the stew tasted a lot better.


Does temp really make a difference?

[Oinkles]

For those who are concerned about alcohol, this evaporates when wine is used in cooking. Generally, I only put a glug or two in. It's only really to add flavour, that's all. The time when wine does get used, is in a spag bol, but commonly, only rough red wine is used which I think is a mistake. Because if such wine tastes rough, then it's not going to enhance the food. Okay, we're not going to pull out the horns and splosh expensive Burgundy! But wine can also be used, or Maderia especially lovely, to deglaze any meat juices in a pan to reduce into a really delicious, scrummy gravy. Particularly with Toad In The Hole.