Try cooking with beer to add fun flavours to your dishes
Cooking with beer can produce some very interesting results depending on the application, cooking method, and style of beer.
As we learned to appreciate better wines in the 20 years ago, we have seen something similar thanks to the craft beer craze that swept the continent over the past decade — a movement to embrace both the cheap and cheerful and the complex craft beer creations.
I have long advocated taking the time and effort to match beer with food, but I also adore cooking with beer as well. Craft beer is so deeply nuanced depending on the treatment of the barley or the variety of hops that it is possible to cook the same recipe using the same style of beer from different breweries that the end result will taste different. That can be a fun experiment to try with my recipe for Porter Ketchup.
Beer adds a deep, earthy flavour to soups and stews that makes them taste like they have been simmering for hours. My Pilsner Braised Sausage and Potatoes cooks up in 30 minutes, but it tastes as if you have had them simmering away for hours in the slow cooker. I took the opportunity to use all the local product I could get my hands on for this weeknight meal, and I think it really made it taste even more delicious.
I plan to make this recipe again and try a pilsner from a different brewery; sometimes it’s the little things that can inject excitement into our everyday meal experiences.
PILSNER BRAISED BRATWURST AND POTATOES
Created by Chef Ilona Daniel Serves 4
2 Tbsp Canola Oil
5 Bratwurst sausages or your favourite style of sausages
1 medium yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 can (473ml) Pilsner, (I used Upstreet Craft Brewery Commons Pilsner)
1 Tbsp Italiano Seasoning or 1/2 Tbsp Dried Oregano
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 lbs mixed baby potatoes, halved 2 cups Black Kale, chopped
1 bunch asparagus, chopped on the bias
2 Tbsp Whole Grain Mustard
4 Tbsp parsley, chopped
Brown sausages in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add onions to pan. Soften onions over medium heat for seven minutes. Add potatoes, beer, water, cornstarch, and seasoning; cooked until sausages and potatoes are cooked through; 15-20 minutes. Add in kale, mustard, and asparagus, and stir through. Cover and allow to steam for two to three minutes. Garnish with parsley.
PORTER KETCHUP Created By: Chef Ilona Daniel
1 TBSP olive oil
1 small onion, chopped (1/2 - 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder
2 Tbsp whole grain mustard, divided 1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
3 tbsp distilled white vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 16oz can chopped tomatoes (or 16 oz of fresh tomatoes, in season, with juices)
3/4 cup Smoked Porter or Standard Porter
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the chopped onions and saute them until they soften and become translucent.
Add the remainder of the ingredients; setting aside 1 Tablespoon of the whole grain mustard and bring to a boil; simmer for about an hour until thickened to a jam consistency; longer if necessary. Either use an immersion or countertop blender and blend until just slightly chunky and thick. Add the additional tablespoon of whole grain mustard and simmer for five minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool before pouring into a container. Refrigerate. Use within a couple of weeks.
Go online: See a video of Chef Ilona Daniel preparing the dish at Saltwire.com
Chef Ilona Daniel's food column appears monthly. She welcomes comments from readers by email at chef.ilona.daniel@gmail. com or on twitter: Twitter.com/ chef_ilona