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f a l l 2 0 1 7 | 2 3 • Never use poor-quality wine. Years ago, Julia Child cautioned: If you wouldn't drink it, don't pour it into the stew. She was right—a bad tasting wine can't help but contribute those poor flavors to the dish. • Never use cooking "sherry" or other wines billed for cooking. These wretched liq- uids are cheap, thin-base wines to which salt and food coloring have been added. • If a recipe calls for dry white wine, many whites from all over the world will work. But one of the best, easy-to-find and moderately-priced choices is a good-quality Sauvignon Blanc, which will contribute a fresh, light herbal lift. • If the recipe calls for dry red wine, consider the heartiness of the dish. A rustic, long-cooked casserole or a substantial stew is not the ideal recipient of a delicate Burgundy. Hearty dishes usually benefit from hearty wines—Shiraz, Zinfandel or a red from the south of Spain, Italy or France. • Perhaps most importantly, those wanting to cook with wine should reach for a scrumptious bottle of Port, Madeira or one of the nutty styles of sherry, such as amontillado and oloroso. All are fortified, meaning they have slightly more alcohol, but they all pack a bigger wallop of flavor too. Plus, these wines don't spoil or oxidize quickly, so once opened they can be used for cooking for several months or more. I use the real things—Port from Portugal, sherry from Spain, and so on. Port (Tawny or LBV styles are best) has a rich, sweet and winey flavor, a real plus in meat casseroles. Sherry's complex roasted nutty flavors can transform just about any soup, stew or sautéed dish. The mes- merizingly lush Madeira, with its citrus peel and caramel flavors, can transform a plain chicken dish; use the medium-rich style known as bual. In the end, wine is the easiest "secret ingredient" any good cook could have. FOR ME, THE FIRST definition of a cooking wine is the wine you drink while you're cooking. But of course, those among us who are inclined to sip while stirring are also typically the type who like to use wine in the dishes themselves. But why is wine such an asset in cooking, and if the wine's intended for the pot, are all wines pretty much equal? The rationale behind adding wine to a dish is simple: Wine layers in more flavor and richness than water. And while conventional wisdom has always claimed the alcohol evaporates after a few minutes of cooking, that's not exactly the case. In studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 85 percent of the alcohol remained after being added to a boiling liquid that was then removed from the heat. That said, it's true that the longer something is cooked, the less alcohol remains. For example, when a food is baked or simmered for 15 minutes, about 40 percent of the alcohol remains; after one hour, only 25 percent remains, and after 2½ hours, just 5 percent of the original amount is present. Of course, if a cup of wine is added to a large pot of soup, the actual amount of alcohol in one serving of the soup is fairly negligible. As for the best types of wine to use in cooking, here are some important guidelines: Karen MacNeil often uses wine while cooking to enhance flavor and provide rich- ness to her food. PHOTO COURTESY OF KAREN MACNEIL COOKING WITH WINE THE BEST SECRET INGREDIENT A COOK COULD HAVE by Karen MacNeil A Splash of Vin-spiration ■cr

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