At Home with Marco Pierre White 2011 - (Page 76)

A splash here… any more meals and desserts use alcohol than you might ﬁrst imagine, ranging from the classic Beef Bourguignon to tasty whiskey-based cakes and ﬂambéed Crêpes Suzette with lashings of brandy. The key to cooking with alcohol is, if it doesn’t taste great, don’t use it. The ﬂavour could ruin your meal, but choose a good quality product and it will really enhance the ﬂavour and take your dish to a higher level. So whether it’s cider, beer or wine you plan to use, a little investigation goes a long way. M Using alcohol in your cooking can add a depth of avour, and turn an everyday meal into something special to obliterate the ﬂavour in the food, so if the wine is going to be cooked only lightly it’s worth taking care. Even if you are just adding it to the gravy, or deglazing the pan, you will be able to taste the wine, so it’s well worth using a good one. As for white wines, Jeremy says he would always choose a wine with good acidity and sprightly character. ‘A simple gavi is great.’ After adding wine to sauces and stews, simmer for 10 to 15 minutes to evaporate the alcohol and allow all the ﬂavours time to blend. At the table, serve the same wine you cooked with, as the wine will bring out the ﬂavour of the food. CIDER RULES Maybe not the ﬁrst alcoholic beverage you think of when it comes to cooking, but cider goes particularly well with pork, ﬁsh, poultry and some fruits. Cheap, commercial ‘white’ ciders are not suitable for cooking according to BBC Good Food website, www. bbcgoodfood.com. ‘Single varietal ciders have their own distinctive ﬂavours – try a few to ﬁnd your favourite. In general, it’s best to choose a medium-strength cider (around 6-7%) for cooking as very alcoholic ciders can overpower your dish.’ Do your research to avoid any disasters. Cooking tip: When a recipe calls for water, try replacing it with a favourite wine. You can also stir in one to two tablespoons of a full-bodied red into brown gravy for ﬂavour. Let it simmer to create rich brown gravy for red meat. Use reds for ﬂavouring sauces with red meat. For example, a bold red wine would be perfect for a meatball marina or stout stews with lots of vegetables. Steer towards white wines if you are making cream sauces or want to emphasise white meats or seafood. Cooking tip: Use cider to braise meat, in sauces and gravy or for pickling fruit. Apple cider vinegar, which is said to have health-giving properties, can also be used to make a variety of salad dressings if you enjoy strong ﬂavours. BEER IT UP WINE DINING Once again, quality is key when it comes to cooking with wine. ‘It (quality) does show,’ says Blueprint Café’s head chef Jeremy Lee. ‘Even in a casserole that’s slow-cooked. If you use the thin, cheap stuff you have to use twice the amount to get any ﬂavour. Of course, there is a cut-off point… and you want to cook with a bottle you can have a glass of, that’s for sure.’ Big ﬂavoured oaky reds tend Beer is made from grain, hops, water and yeast, so arguably sits better with the main foods we all eat than its cooking rival, wine. Beer batter is probably the most well known beer-based dish, but adding even a small amount of beer can bring ﬂavour and zing to other dishes, too. Virtually any liquid called for in a recipe could potentially be replaced with beer, so start experimenting. Cooking tip: Add a dash of beer to stews and casseroles just before serving, to reinforce their ﬂavour. Beer goes particularly well with beef and ham or bacon. Don’t throw leftover beer away – instead, why not try adding it to batter, stocks, soups and gravies for a different, bolder ﬂavour sensation. ✱ COOK WITH A QUALITY WINE SO YOU CAN ENJOY A GLASS WHILE YOU WORK 076 | OCTOBER 2011 http://www.bbcgoodfood.com http://www.bbcgoodfood.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of At Home with Marco Pierre White 2011

EDITOR’S LETTER
HELLO FROM MARCO
NOTEBOOK
DIARY DATES
SEASONAL FARE
MUG SHOT
WIDGET WATCH
SUNDAY LUNCH
MODERN DAY MARCO
MASTERCLASS
IN THE KNOW
COMFORT FOOD
GO GLOBAL
THE FAME GAME
A GLASS AND A HALF
ECO EATING
FANCY A PINT?
BOOZY BITES
TICK-TOCK TUCKER
CUISINE BY COMPASS
LAY THE TABLE
THROW THE PERFECT PARTY
MARCO’S MENU
PRAWN POWER
CHOCS AWAY
COCKTAIL O’CLOCK
BOTTOMS UP
BOOK THE BEST TABLE IN TOWN
THE GREAT WHITE GALLERY
WILD WITH MARCO
FOOD FADS
COMING SOON
RECIPE ROUND-UP

At Home with Marco Pierre White 2011