Conference turris::cooks

Well, there's cooking wine as in the horrid stuff sold in grocery stores
that is loaded with salt so people won't drink it (thus the market doesn't
need a liquor license to sell it.)  It really doesn't matter how many
calories it has, since you'll probably not eat anything it was used in.

Then there's just plain old wine.  If you like it, you pour it into what
you're cooking, and if you don't you pour it down the drain.  That's really
the rule in cooking -- if you won't drink it, don't cook with it.  

It's probably hard to get a good calorie count for cokked wine, since the
sugar of the grape juice has been converted to alcohol, and the alcohol 
evaporates out during the cooking.  The remaining grape broth probably
doesn't add a lot of calories, although some wines are sweetened after
fermenting, and you'll get some sugar residue from that.

					>>>==>PStJTT

    
>    Then there's just plain old wine.  If you like it, you pour it into what
>you're cooking, and if you don't you pour it down the drain.  That's really
>the rule in cooking -- if you won't drink it, don't cook with it.  

    I agree, you are tying to add some flavour from the wine into
    what you are cooking. If you can't stand to drink the wine, cooking
    it is not going to improve its flavour and it wont do anything for
    your dish either.
    
    When we cook with wine, we find it is just the excuse we need to
    have a nice glass of wine which we may not have bothered to have.
    
    So, as a rule of thumb - if you don't like to drink it, don't cook
    with it.
    
    Incidently, day old wine (ie well corked leftovers from the previos
    day) are fine but beware of long re-corked stuff - try it first.
    
    
    Pete
    

    
    
    I don't really care for wine.  Is there a substitue that can
    be used when a recipe calls for it.  I have tried a few things
    with not much success.
    
    
    
                                       donna
    

    
    What is it that you don't care for with wine? Is it the flavor, if so
    try a different wine. Some times sherry can have a stronger flavor than
    some of the white wines. I have been using a white port and find it has
    been real good in chicken and shrimp recipes. Also as previously
    stated, don't use those cooking wines sold in the supermarket.

  I agree with .-1. If you've been using supermarket cooking wines,
  before trying a substitute, try a moderately decent wine. You can buy
  suitable California chardonnay or fume blanc for $5 to $6, which may
  be comparable to cooking wine. 

  If it's the alcohol that bothers you, you may not be cooking it long
  enough to evaporate it out. I watch that when preparing dinner for
  friends who are alcoholics. It doesn't take more than a few minutes,
  though, to cook it all out, so I doubt that's your objection.

  If you really don't like the flavor of any wines, when the recipe
  calls for cooking sherry or white wine, you can substitute chicken,
  fish, or veal stock (or bouillon). You may have to cut the salt a bit.
  You can even use plain water, but then you may need to add salt. This
  substitution will change the flavor of the dish a bit, but of course
  that's what you're after. 

  Believe it or not, another good substitute in some recipes is beer.

  When the recipe calls for a strong-flavored wine, like marsala or red
  wine, there's nothing you can substitute without really losing the
  essence of the recipe. You could try beef stock in place of red wine.
  You could also try cognac. Nothing I know of will substitute well for
  marsala, though you might get away with some whiskies - rye or bourbon
  - and cut the amount in half or third. In any case, you might still
  like the result, but the dish won't be the same. You can consider it
  your own original creation.

    Re: .2-- Pete, try using the "older wines" on your next tossed 
    salad --in place of wine vinegar-- it is really a tasty treat
    when added to a nice safflower oil on mixed or an all green salad
    (add herbs etc. to your taste) I have also used "old wines" as part
    of a marinade for meats to soak in..  Good stuff!!     <DICK>                                                            
    

The calories in dry table wine are almost exclusively from the alcohol, and that
usually evaporates during the cooking process.  Thus, I would guess that cooking
wine adds negligible calories to the final dish.

--PSW