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Fun Ways to Cook With Wine

If you like to cook with wine or want to learn how to successfully use wine in your cooking, there are many ways to learn. Recipes for dishes with wine in them abound. If you are savvy in the kitchen, a little trial and error can also produce some spectacular results. One important thing to remember is that the quality of wine you use affects the quality of the dish you create.

Some choose to cook with leftover wine, which isn’t a terrible idea, as long as the wine hasn’t gone bad. Others opt for “cooking wine” that they find at the grocery store. This, on the other hand, IS a pretty terrible idea. There are so many wonderful, affordable wines on the market that you can use in your cooking, there is no need to use this inferior product.

If you are new to cooking with wine, try your hand at these recipes to get started.

Red Wine Spaghetti With Olives and Anchovies

  • 2c + 2 Tbsp Fruit Forward Red Wine
  • 9 oz Whole Wheat Spaghetti
  • 2 oz Can of Anchovies
  • 1-2 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 3 Sliced Garlic Cloves
  • ⅔ Cup Pitted Olives
  • ½ Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
  • 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
  • 1 Cup Chopped Parsley
  • Sea Salt

Bring 2 cups plus 2 Tbsp of water to boil, along with ¾ cup of the wine. Add a teaspoon of salt and cook your spaghetti on this mixture for 7-8 minutes. Drain, but save 1/2cup of the liquid. Drain the oil from the anchovies into a pan and add the olive oil. Sauté garlic over low heat. Chop the anchovies and halve the olives. Add pepper flakes, tomato paste, liquid reserved from the spaghetti, and the rest of the wine to the garlic. Bring to a boil and add the olives and anchovies. Simmer for a few minutes, add the spaghetti, and cook until most of the liquid is absorbed. Toss with ¾ of the parsley, then serve with the remaining parsley as a garnish.

White Wine Garlic Chicken

  • 4 6oz Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast Halves
  • ½ Tsp Salt
  • ¼ Tsp Pepper
  • 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 6oz Sliced Baby Portobello Mushrooms
  • 1 Medium Onion, chopped
  • 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
  • ½ Cup Dry White Wine

Use a meat mallet to pound the chicken breasts to ½ inch thickness and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil on medium and cook chicken breasts 5-6 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the pan and add mushrooms, cooking on medium high for 2-3 minutes. Add garlic, stir for 30 seconds, then add the wine and bring to a boil. Cook for 1-2 minutes and serve over the chicken breasts.

Get the Right Wine for Your Recipe

Cooking with wine isn’t strictly for those old traditional French dishes we think of, like Coq au Vin and Boeuf Bourguignon. It can be used in a variety of sauces, glazes, soups, and even ice cream. For a great selection to choose from for your next venture into cooking with wine, visit us at Payless Liquors and pick up a few bottles. Just remember to save a glass to drink while you’re cooking!