Don’t know what to do with leftover white wine? Sometimes an opened white wine is not as delicious or good to eat with food. No matter what, leftover white wine is perfect to cook with.
The best part of leftover white wine, there are countless ways to use it in stews or roast chicken recipes. White wine plays a significant role in developing explicit flavors in a variety of dishes.
What to cook with white wine? In general, white wine is perfect to cook creamy or olive oil based pasta dishes, chicken recipes, and all kinds of seafood.
White wine is useful in various cooking techniques including deglazing, reducing, steaming, or macerating to achieve higher levels of acidity.
For instance, use white wine to deglaze the brown bits in a pant make a quick sauce for sautéed fish, chicken, pork, or mushrooms. In addition, add in risotto, shellfish, salmon, and bass for a touch of flavor.
Most white wines are crisp, sweet, tart, or tangy, making them easy to balance the tastes of many dishes and clear the palate from any overwhelmingly rich flavors.
White wine also adds acidity to seafood, dairy products, fish, and poultry dishes. This article aids to answer some frequently asked questions regarding what to cook with white wine.
Is white wine good for cooking?
Yes, white wine is good for cooking. In fact, white wines are the go-to when preparing citrus, light broths, chicken and seafood.
However, not all white wines should be used in cooking, and only the highly-acidic types are recommended. For instance, Chardonnay can be served with food, but shouldn’t be used in cooking.
As far as cooking with white wine goes, you can never go wrong when it comes to Sauvignon Blanc. This is the most versatile vino for marinades, seafood dishes, and vegetables.
The acidity of white wine and herbal notes will give an additional zest and depth to cooking everything from the risotto to steamed mussels and more. That acidic touch changes the outlook of the whole meal by adding more complexity to the dish.
What do you cook with white wine?
Cooking with white wine adds acidity and helps more delicate ingredients to remain tender and moist to speed up the cooking process, especially with poached vegetables or steamed fish. White wine cooking is not complicated, and makes food taste balanced with a slight complexity to the taste.
Some white wine varietals to cook with include:
- Sauvignon Blanc: marinades, seafood and vegetable dishes, risotto, steamed mussels
- Pinot Grigio: lemon garlic sauce pasta, scampi
- Chardonnay: cream sauce, tarragon chicken
- Riesling: creamy chicken, seafood dishes
White wine gives an excellent acidic touch that can be enjoyed and made memorable with excellent aroma and taste. Add white wine to the shellfish pot before covering it to allow the steaming process to occur.
What flavor cooks well with white wine?
White wine pairs perfectly with spicy and sweet foods. Some flavors to cook with white wine include bay leaves, garlic, fresh thyme, sour cream, olive oil, Dijon mustard, fresh herbs, rosemary, saffron, or cream.
These flavors give the meal a balanced aroma and uniquely delicious taste. Do not hesitate to try out new flavors with ingredients that you are excited about emerging together.
Cooking with White Wine: Conclusion
Most people use white wine to add some acidity to the dish. Since white wines have more alcohol than others, which is why it’s always a good idea to add at the start so there is plenty of time to burn off.
Dry white wines with high acidity are the most preferred when cooking. Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Riesling are the common types, thanks to their green apple and citrusy notes.
Fuller whites such as Chardonnays should be avoided since they are lower in acidity. However, this varietal of white wine works well in specific ingredients for marinating, steaming seafood and making creamy pasta.
Use this guide of flavor profiles and ingredient combinations to try cooking with white wine. White wine useful to deglaze, reduce, steam, or macerate to add acidity in a dish that make ingredients tender, moist, and juicy.