Text 12774, 112 rader
Skriven 2007-03-08 11:53:35 av Glen Jamieson
     Kommentar till en text av Dave Sacerdote
Ärende: BOOZE  70308
====================
 -=> Quoting Dave Sacerdote to Sean Dennis <=-

 JW> Cooking wines are heavily salted, so they can't be drunk in
 
 SD> Well, that ended that idea.  I'm supposed to have less than 
 SD> 300mg of sodium at each meal.  That's really hard for me, 
 SD> but I'm working on it.

 DS> Not only are cooking wines heavily salted, but they are usually 
 DS> really crappy wines to begin with, Sean.  They really aren't the
 DS> kind of thing you'd want to add to your food if you were looking
 DS> to try cooking with wine.

 DS> [Side note: you know why they put all that salt in them?  To
 DS> make them undrinkable!  I kid you not: it's so people looking
 DS> for a quick high won't buy (or shoplift) them and try to drink
 DS> them.  I bet you can imagine how much salt has to be in a 
 DS> beverage to actively repel a drinker.]

You are correct there, Davo, as referring to my bottle of Shiwan
Cooking Wine, it is labelled as, "For cooking only not for beverage".
Although it contains 29% alcohol (Wheee!), it also has 3% salt (Urgh!)
and so is definitely not an enjoyable booze.  (Of course I have
conducted that experiment, to save others from suffering.)  As it is
intended for addition to food, I merely reduce the salt which I would
otherwise add.  It does flame up nicely when added to a stir-fry.  The
Customs and Excise people obviously also believe it is not a beverage,
as there is no duty charged on the alcohol, and the 620 ml bottle only
cost $3.50.

I think that the Customs mob may have slipped up in granting my 1125ml
bottle of Sapori Essence, Dark Rum flavour, exemption from duty, as it
contains no salt, but is 70% alcohol.  It only cost $7.50, but it does
carry a WARNING that it "...is an ingredient for cooking and is not to
be consumed as a drink."   Of course you know that Australians are
very law-abiding, and would not dare to drink it if instructed not to,
which makes it difficult to understand why it has the additional
instruction to the retailer, in bold letters, "Not for sale to persons
under 18 years of age".  I have been told, by certain law-breakers,
that if diluted with soft drinks, and with red currant cordial added,
it is quite palatable, but of course I wouldn't know.

 DS> Anyway, if you're interested in trying out the flavor of wine
 DS> in foods without the alcohol, there are several denatured 
 DS> products that will do (or has Jim already mentioned that?)
 DS> They don't have the flavor of great wine, but are likely to be
 DS> adequate for what you would like.

It is possible to buy alcohol-free wines here, which would probably be
just as good as alcoholic wines for a lot of dishes.  They do not have
added salt.
 
 SD> I actually don't recall ever cooking any recipe needing wine.  
 SD> Being raised Mormon, I don't think my mom ever used it.

I have wondered why an alcoholic wine could not be used by people with
anti-alcohol religious beliefs for some dishes, such as stews, where
all of the alcohol is boiled out of it.  The flavour contribution of
the wine should remain, so that the dish tastes correct.  Also, do any
religions prohibit the use of vinegar, which is normally derived from
alcohol?

 DS> And there's nothing wrong with that at all; I could cook with 
 DS> wine if I wanted to, but most of the time I'm not crazy about
 DS> the taste anyway, so I don't.
 
MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.05
 
      Title: ACAR BENING - SWEET & SOUR FRUIT & VEGETABLE SALAD
 Categories: Salads, Indonesian, Asia-se
      Yield: 8 servings
 
      1 sm Cucumber
      1    Onions
           Salt
      1 sm Pineapples- ripe; OR
    425 g  ; pineapple rings
      1 sm Capsicum- green
      3    Tomatoes
     25 g  Sugar- castor
      3 tb Vinegar- cider; >4tb, OR
      3 tb ;white wine vinegar
    120 ml Water
           Salt
 
  peel the cucumber and cut in half lengthways. Remove the seeds with a
  small spoon. Cut the cucumber in even-sized pieces. Sprinkle with a
  little salt. Rinse and dry the onion and place in a large bowl. Rinse
  the cucumber and pat dry, then add to the onion in the bowl.
  
  Peel the fresh pineapple, removing all the eyes by cutting them out
  from top to bottom. Slice the pineapple thinly, then core the slices
  and cut in neat pieces. If using canned pineapple rings, cut into
  similarly sized pieces. Add them to the bowl together with the green
  capsicum and tomatoes.
  
  Heat the sugar, vinegar, and water till the sugar dissolves. Remove
  from the heat and leave to cool. When cold, add a little salt to
  taste and then pour over the fruit and vegetables. Cover and chill
  till required.
  
  From: TASTE OF INDONESIA By: SALLIE MORRIS ISBN 1-85967-260-4 Typed
  by: KEVIN JCJD SYMONS, August 2005
 
MMMMM
 

... I cook with wine.  Sometimes I also add it to the food.
___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR]

--- FLAME v2.0/b
 * Origin: Braintap BBS Adelaide Australia (3:800/449)