Leftover wine

Three weeks ago I cooked dinner for 100—yes 100 people—for my cousin’s wedding. It was remarkably easy somehow, but exhausting. Between recovering from it and a crazy-busy time at work, I’ve barely had time to think about cooking, much less write about it with the exception of trying to turn about 25 pounds of tomatoes into sauce last weekend.

Both endeavors required making space in my always-overloaded fridge. What was eye opening was how many bottles of leftover wine we had: I counted at least seven! I pulled the bottles out and set them on the counter. Looking at the collection of various leftovers from dinner parties and weeknight meals, I was inspired to use it all and make a list of what else leftover wine could be used for.

It wasn’t hard to do because every magazine and newspaper I picked up seemed to be thinking about the very same thing. Everyday Food suggested freezing wine in an ice cube tray for easy use later. I like this idea for recipes like stew, but for most recipes I use leftover wine in it would require thawing the wine—too much work, I’d rather leave it in the fridge.

The food blog, Orangette talked about marinating fresh peaches in white wine and sugar overnight. Add a little fresh thyme and I’m all for it. Food and Wine magazine suggests adding red wine to water for cooking pasta to add complexity. Love it! And Associated Press offered a bevy of ideas, from adding a splash of white wine just before you serve it to braising vegetables in it.

So, what did I do with the wine? I used it for the wedding! All of the red became a marinade for the 15 tri-tip steaks I grilled. And the white became a white wine-butter-lemon sauce to pour over the nine whole sides of salmon I oven roasted (450°F for 25 minutes—perfect!).

Typically, I use leftover wine as an excuse to make some of my favorite dishes, especially those made with other “leftover” ingredients. Here are some of those and a few more ideas:

A cheese spread I learned from Jacques Pepin: put whatever leftover scraps of cheese you have in the fridge in a food processor and turn on. Pour in enough wine that the mixture becomes creamy. Throw in a pinch of salt and some fresh herbs. Spread over sliced bread and bake until the cheese is melted and the bread is crisp.

Fondue! What could be easier? Bring 1 cup of white wine and 1 chopped shallot to a boil in a medium saucepan. Toss together 2 cups of grated cheese and 2 tablespoons flour to coat the cheese evenly. Stir the cheese into the wine. Transfer to a warmed fondue pot and serve with boiled potatoes or chunks of good bread.

Hotel butter: Stir together 1/4 cup red wine, 1/2 cup softened butter, 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese then put on plastic wrap, shape into a log and freeze until ready to use. Slice and serve on top of grilled meat, roasted vegetables or pasta.

A quick dessert: Fold a little sparkling or dessert wine into whipped cream and top fresh berries or baked apple slices.

Super quick pan sauce: Cook chicken or pork chops in a skillet with a tiny bit of olive oil or butter to help brown the meat, remove from the pan and add 1/2 cup red or white wine, bring to a boil and cook until its reduced to a couple of tablespoons.

What tricks do you have for cooking with leftover wine?

Note: How long can you leave leftover wine in the fridge? I’d say forever. It might oxidize, but if it’s good wine to begin with the quality should remain, even if the flavor profile changes. This isn’t good for drinking, but fine for cooking most dishes. Still anything older than a couple of weeks, I’d taste first.

Comments

[Lori]

Thanks, Ann! I appreciate the encouragement. The tomato task has been
interesting. I put the tomatoes through a food mill and cooked down to
nearly a third of the original volume in two different pots. One cooked
beautifully, the other not as well. I froze everything and today I'll
defrost, run through a finer setting on the food mill then season and freeze
for winter. If you know anything about making tomato sauce, please share it
with me.

[Ann Miller]

Love these ideas - I'm going to print out this blog post for the recipe drawer. I am in awe of anyone who cooks for 100 and then a week or two later tackles 25 pounds of tomatoes. Thanks for the tips!