Definition: Cooking with wine

Cooking with wine "is no more difficult and is much smarter than cooking with water...". When we talk about cooking with wine, we are undoubtedly referring to traditional home-style dishes, the kind we take the time to enjoy with friends on cool autumn evenings or cold winter nights. Let's think for a moment about French cuisine and dishes such as beef bourguignon, beef stew, rabbit stew and scallops.

Long cooking times and flambéing have no respect for fine wines. Don't waste your hard-earned vintages in beef bourguignon. Save them instead to accompany the dish once it's cooked. So what should you use?

Don't count on using undrinkable wines: reduction, while it levels out the qualities, cannot mask the flaws. For red wines, aromatic and fruity wines from the Côtes du Rhône or Languedoc, Piedmont or Rioja, warm and powerful, serve as the basis for all game marinades. A fresh and fruity Pinot Noir is useful for making beef bourguignon or a white meat dish that requires red wine. Bordeaux wine, which is more tannic, or Cabernet Sauvignon, or even Merlot, goes well with any Bordeaux sauce. Above all, don't overcomplicate things; if you also enjoy drinking the cooking wine, you've made the right choice.

If you want to keep the leftovers from a bottle for cooking, you can pour them into an ice cube tray and freeze them. Or even better: reduce them before freezing. You can then easily take spoonfuls of the concentrate to refine your sauces.

Simplicity is also key with dry white wine. One wine is enough. For example, an Orvieto or a local wine will go well with mussels marinières or a simple fish stock. And if you fancy sauerkraut, it will be discreet so as not to upset you. Finally, don't forget to make room for white vermouth and port. (Alain Laliberté)