Saturday, April 10, 2010

Contrary to popular belief, alcohol does not completely cook out of foods

I decided to make my first recipes using wine while I was pregnant. I was assured by a friend and my mom (both don't drink) that it cooks right out. Well, seeing how I was pregnant, that was the dumbest time to try that, eh? I wanted to be sure of how long it takes for it to cook out. Guess what I found when I googled it?

"A study conducted by the US Department of Agriculture’s Nutrient Data Laboratory calculated the percentage of alcohol remaining in a dish based on various cooking methods. The results are as follows:

Preparation Method Percent of Alcohol Retained
alcohol added to boiling liquid & removed from heat 85%
alcohol flamed 75%
no heat, stored overnight 70%
baked, 25 minutes, alcohol not stirred into mixture 45%
baked/simmered, alcohol stirred into mixture:
  • 15 minutes
40%
  • 30 minutes
35%
  • 1 hour
25%
  • 1.5 hours
20%
  • 2 hours
10%
  • 2.5 hours
5%

This is a well-published study, but its still almost "common knowledge" that alcohol "cooks right out." http://www.ochef.com/165.htm. This is important for recovering alcoholics to keep in mind.

There are many substitutions for wine in recipes. See:
Alcohol substitutions in recipes.
Yahoo! Answers I
Yahoo Answers II
I think, for people like me who don't even drink wine, what's the point of putting it in a recipe if you're not attached to it, and therefore its not going to make it "delicious" to you?

wine contains sulfites

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