15 Red Wine Recipes That Are Simply Delicious (2024)

FAQs

What is a good cooking red wine? ›

When it comes to cooking, your safest bet is to choose a mid-priced, medium-bodied red wine with moderate tannins, like a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Pinot Noir. Using a red wine that is too big, full-bodied and tannic, like Shiraz, may turn 'chalky' and astringent while cooking and ruin the flavour of your dish.

Thoroughly mash fruit, add four crushed Campden tablets, cover with cheesecloth and allow container to stand four hours at room temperature. Add 10 cups sugar syrup, lemon juice, tea and yeast and allow seven days to ferment at a temperature between 60-70º F, stirring thoroughly twice daily.

Wines with high acidity levels like sauvignon blanc or chardonnay make excellent cooking companions. Don't use an old white wine. While most wines improve with a bit of age, this isn't always applicable to white wines.

Best red wine for cooking beef - Merlot

Red wine and beef are a match made in heaven. While most medium-dry red wine varietals work well in beef dishes; a Merlot, with its medium tannins and moderate body is an excellent choice.

Red wines play well with bold, hearty, and aged cheeses like cheddar or gouda. These cheeses can stand up to the extra tannins red wine has as compared to white wine.

Generally, an opened bottle of red wine can last for up to 5 days if stored properly in a cool and dark place with a wine stopper or cork in place to prevent excess oxygen from getting in. For white wine, it can last for up to 3 days under the same storage conditions.

Cabernet Franc is generally a smooth wine to drink with low levels of tannin, making it easy to drink young and when aged. The wine has medium-to-high acidity that makes it refreshingly easy-to-drink.

What adds Flavour to red wine? ›

Herbs and spices in red wine are like the secret ingredients that elevate the drinking experience. Beyond adding taste, they infuse the wine with layers of complexity, creating a symphony for your senses. They work better with the body, like breakfast with dry fruits.

Making red wine with just such grapes is very easy. If you have a clean space, good temperature, and not vinegar around, you cannot fail. Then you can make things more complex, by mixing different grapes, by better stabilizing the wine (so that if will not go dark if it remain open for too long), more “clear”, etc.

Buy a 64 oz bottle jug of grape juice or white grape juice, open the jug and remove 16 oz., leaving 48 oz. Pour 1 1/2 cups of sugar in the jug and 1/2 teaspoon of yeast. Tighten the cap and shake well for 2–3 minutes. Loosten the cap so air can circulate and store in a warm dark place for 3 weeks.

If you want a sweeter - high alcohol wine, the easiest way to do it is to start off with more sugar and keep adding it in small amounts throughout the fermentation. Eventually the alcohol will kill the yeast and leave some residual sugar. If you add too much at once the wine may be too sweet.

Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and Merlot are good choices that are easy to find. Use Marsala, Madeira, and other fortified wines as instructed in recipes. These wines have distinct flavors and should not be substituted. If in doubt, use a red wine that would pair well with the finished meal.

The best red wines to use when cooking pasta sauce are Cabernets, Chianti, Merlot and Pinot Noir. Chianti is an Italian origin wine, created using Sangiovese grapes. It's affordable, and ranges in a wide variety of flavor notes like mushroom, tobacco, and cherry.

Here's an easy red wine style guide to stick to while you're shopping: If you're cooking beef, lamb or stew, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir are your friends. If you're cooking chicken, duck or pork, go with Merlot.

Go for a pinot noir if you like your stews light and fruity, cabernet sauvignon if you like it strong and rustic, and a merlot if you fall somewhere in between. But most importantly, use a wine that you're also happy to drink.