Simply Cooking with Wine

Red and White. Sometimes that is as deep as some people go into deciphering the difference between wines. Some might even throw in what some call a rose' (the pink wine people).

For me wine is much more complex. In fact, wine is an art. The complex flavors and smells are tantalizing. I love the smell of oak barrels and I dream of living on a winery. Those who know me, know this, and for that reason one of my Christmas gifts this year was a wine package (decanter, wine stoppers, and a "Wine Lover" glass) - catchy idea for those who have a hard time deciding on gifts.

However, as we know, here on MMW - we like to keep it simple. So we'll delve into the basic reasons why you would choose between red or white for cooking, as I most recently discovered by trial and error. Many recipes call for wine in their ingredients, but many may not realize why one recipe may call for white and some red. Some of you may, admittedly, not be very familiar with wine but it's a MUST to have in your kitchen. It adds some complex flavors that you will be sure to enjoy (and if you are anti-alcohol, don't worry it burns off in the cooking process).

In choosing meats (no fish today), you have the white meats and the red meats. Pork, chicken and turkey (not the dark meat) fall into your white meats. Steak (any cut), lamb and duck fall into your dark/red meats. Fun side note: Any poultry that sticks to the ground and doesn't fly will have white meat except in the legs. Poultry that flies (geese and ducks) are dark throughout.

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When choosing a wine pairing to cook your meat, you should choose white with white and red with red. This is only for the sole reason that red will stain the color of your white meat! However, you CAN do white wine with red meat, but usually you can get deeper flavors with red wines so red wines are usually paired with richer flavors such as steak and darker meats. Similar flavor profiles can be found in either red or white (dry profiles or more fruity profiles for example). Cabernet Sauvignon (red) and Sauvignon Blanc (white) will have similar flavor profiles (both dry), but please remember that this can get way more complex, so I'm trying to keep it basic.

Want to try??
Pork al vino ajo (Pork with wine and garlic)
Ingredients:
1 Pork tenderloin (cut into 1inch cutlets)
2 tbs. garlic
1/2 cup WHITE wine (dry)
1/2 cup chicken stock
olive oil
salt and pepper

- Cut your pork into 1 inch thick cutlets (see picture) and season with salt and pepper.
-Heat your pan to a medium heat and add enough olive oil to coat the pan.
-Allow the oil to warm until it begins to give up steam
-Add your pork and sear on both sides until you get a golden brown color on each side (about 4 minutes)
-Once seared, add the garlic and wine. Turn heat up to medium/high heat. Cook, flipping the pork occasionally, until the wine reduces to almost nothing.
- Add the chicken stock and reduce to simmer (low heat). Cook for about 15 minutes or until cooked through. Cooked through implies that the pork will be faintly pink when you first cut through it but it will quickly turn "pale" which is the color of the cooked pork.
-Serve with your favorite side!

**Please enjoy and feel free to experiment! Trust me on the white meat and red wine do not mix though - see picture below. My pork looks more like steak because of the redish/purple hue of the reduced red wine.