Unit 5 Use of wine and herbs in cooking

COOKING WITH WINE

We all know the importance of wine on the menu. It serves as an accompaniment to various courses of a meal. Each type of food is best suited by a particular type of wine. It helps in providing contrast in taste flavour and in some cases helps digestion. Besides being served in the restaurant wine is also extensively used in the kitchen.

SUITABILITY: Before we go on to actual use of wine, let us examine which wines are best suited for cooking. If you survey the market one can find certain wines labelled as cooking wines. They are wines produced specially for cooking. They are not as superior as a table wine and are generally by products of table wine.

Cooking wines are not matured for very long and are generally cheaper than table wines. However cheaper table wines can also be used in the kitchen. Try to avoid strongly flavoured wines which may adversely affect the flavour of the food. Generally sweeter wines are preferred to dry wines. Champagne can also be used like other sparkling wines.

v  Wine is used in Soup making

The taste & flavour of the soup is considerably enhanced by the addition of a little wine. A dessert spoon-full of wine is enough for 6 to 8 portions. White wines go very well

with bisque and other fish based soup.

v  Use of wine in salad

Wine may be added as a substitute for vinegar or lime juice to create tangy salad dressings.

v  Wines are used for basting

Meat and poultry can effectively be basted with wine to a very good effect. Used very effectively for deglazing roasting pans for gravy. Champagne can be used to baste turkey and ham.

v  Wines are used in sauces and stews.

Red wine may be added to almost all brown sauces, white wine for veloute sauce and its derivatives or to fish based sauces. Wine is also used to prepare reduction for béarnaise and hollandaise and its derivatives. Wine can also be used to flavour stews.

v  Wine as a marinade

Old and tough meat can be marinated in wine by which tough fibre are made tender, wine also enhances the flavour in old meats.

v  Poaching in wine

A good way to enhance the flavour for fish and meats during poaching is by adding a glass of wine to the poaching liquor. Flat fish can be poached entirely in white wine while whole salmon can be poached in court bouillon to which a glass of wine is added. Wine can also be used to poach fruits pears, apricot etc.

v  Wines used in Desserts

Sweet wine and fortified wines such as port and also brandy are used extensively in desserts.

THE USE OF HERBS IN COOKING:

Herbs have many uses in the kitchen. Herbs are the most frequently used ingredient for flavouring food. Apart from flavouring and adding aroma and nutritional value to food, herbs are put to several other uses, such as potpourris, that are used as aromatic placements in houses. Some herbs are also used in making herbal pillows that are believed to induce sleep.

Uses of herbs	Description
Flavouring	Herbs can be chopped, minced, torn and added to soups and stocks, or they can be added in the form of bouquet garni which means “bunch of herbs”. A traditional bouquet garni consists of a few sprigs of parsley, thyme, leeks, and bay leaves. Chopped herbs are used in sausages and stuffing for various kinds of cold cuts. Herbs can also be used for flavouring cheese, cakes, breads, and cookies.
Garnishing	Herbs are commonly used for garnishes. They can be minced finely as in case of parsley or used whole in food and also dessert. Some of classic ways of using herbs for garnish are: Fine herbs: this is popular herb mixture used for garnish in French cuisine. It generally comprises fine minced such as parsley, tarragon, chervil, and thyme. Deep-fried: herbs such as parsley, basil, curry leaves, and rosemary are deep-fried in oil at the temperature of 80*c. This helps the herbs to retain their colour and become crisp. Sprigs: the fresh sprigs of herbs are kept in iced cold water until they become crisp.
Seasoning	Saltless seasoning: a mixture of dried herbs, such as dill, thyme, and oregano, are combined with dried onion, sesame seeds, black pepper, dried lemon peel, paprika, and garlic powder to make saltless seasoning. Because of rising health problems, salt-free seasoning are becoming common in health food. Herbal salts: powdered salt or rock salt is mixed with dried herbs to make herbal salts. To make herbal salt, store the fresh herb in salt in an airtight container for few months. The salt then can be churned in a mixture or ground in a mortar and pestle so that the dried herbs blend well.
Herbal oils	Oil can be flavoured by one or more herbs. These oils are used for making vinaigrettes or dressings for salads and also used for glazing meat or used as a sauce such as basil oil in Italian cuisine.
Herbal vinegars	In olden days, herbs were infused in vinegar or wine for their preservation. This led to flavoured vinegars and wines. To make herbal vinegars, combine fresh herbs with good quality white wine vinegars and keep the jar in sunlight for at least two weeks so that the flavours infuse in the vinegar.
Herb butter	It is made by combining softened butter with chopped herbs. This kind of flavoured butter is also known as compound butter. Some of the most commonly made herbal butter are: Cafe de Paris butter: this butter is created by the chef of cafe de Paris restaurant in Geneva. The butter is creamed and mixed with ingredients such as herbs, spices, and other condiments such as oregano, marjoram, dill, rosemary, mustard, tarragon, garlic, shallots, parsley, chives, capers, Worcestershire sauce and anchovies. Maitre d’Hotel butter: this is made by creaming of butter, along with lemon juice and chopped parsley. It is also kniwn as buerre a la bourguignon in French. The butter can be used for making sauce or as a stuffing in poulet a la kiev. Chive butter: this is made by creaming butter and adding finely sliced chives.
Herbal drinks	Since centuries, herbs have been drunk as herbal decoctions that are believed to be a cure for many ailments including cancer. Before the advent of medicines, it was herbs and spices that were used as medicines. In hotels different kinds of herbal drinks are served such as: Herbal tea Herbal water Cocktails & Mocktails
Sauces and Spreads	Apart from flavouring, herbs can also be combined and cooked to make sauces, soups, and spreads that can be served in variety of ways, such as: Herb sauce Mint sauce Spreads and marinades