The difficulty starts with differences in doneness system. While in classical French cooking (and most European countries) there are only four degrees of doneness (“blue”, “saignant”, “à point” and “bien cuit”), in the rest of the world, and certainly in English-speaking countries, we generally use five degrees of doneness (rare, medium rare, medium, medium well and well done).

Some even order the meat by percentages e.g. from 25% for rare, to 70%, 80% and obviously 100% for well done. Whatever method one prefers, the easiest solution to avoid disappointment is to use a meat thermometer.

This scientific approach is much better than poking a meat fork into the meat and trying to judge the cooking temperature by the color of the juices that seep out.

Using a thermometer might be consider an old fashion method, but it certainly works well, especially when you’ve gained a bit of experience.

1. The thermometer can be left inside the joint/roast while it is roasting. But this is not always advisable, especially when roasting meat on a BBQ grill, or basting with liquid or marinade.
2. Stick the needle into the meat so that the point reaches the middle of the thickest point of the roast. Depending on the type of thermometer used, ensure that you allow time for the needle to come up to the final reading.
3. All joints should be well rested after roasting. Place it in a warm place (below 60°C or 140°F) and leave for 10–20 minutes depending on the size of the roast. This will help to equally distribute the juices throughout the meat and even out the doneness, rather then very bloody on the inside and grey around the edge.
4. As the meat will “heat through” during the resting period, calculate approximately 10% additional cooking time during the resting period.

As a general guide, follow these temperatures to determine how well the meat is cooked:

1. Very Rare: 45°C (113°F) – the blood will be cold
2. Rare: 50°C (122°F) – deep red to purple, “bloody”
3. Medium Rare: 55°C (131°F) – dark red
4. Medium: 60°C (140°F) – pale red
5. Medium Well: 65°C (150°F) – light red to pink, almost clear
6. Well Done: 71°C (160°F) – clear, no blood visible

Note:

All needle thermometers need to be checked every so often to ensure they are working correctly. Dip the needle into boiling water – the thermometer should now read 100°C or 212°F. Then dip it into ice water – the temperature reading should now be 0°C or 32°F.

Related: Types of Steak Cuts Explained by a Chef
Related: 16 of the World’s Most Expensive Steaks
Related: What is a Delmonico Steak
Related: Tips for Choosing the Best Ribeye

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Sometimes I like a beautifully tender piece of tenderloin fillet, other times I may be in the mood for a robust beefy sirloin or a juicy ribeye. Do your tastes vary like mine but you’re not sure what steak to buy to satisfy those varying cravings? Or maybe you’ve got guests coming to your barbecue and you’re not sure what to offer them. Then this little guide should come in incredibly handy.

Below are descriptions of the steaks pictured above.

Top Left: Highly Marbled Sirloin

This level of marbling is found in more expensive varieties of sirloin such as Wagyu and USDA Prime.

The richness of this type of meat and the high intramuscular fat content makes it best cooked no less than medium-rare, as the fat needs to melt through the meat and will not achieve this at rare or blue temperatures.

It has quite a rich taste; ideal for that once in a while special occasion dinner but not something I would throw on the barbecue any old weekend.

Top Right: T-Bone (Also known as a Porterhouse in North America)

Some call this steak “the best of both worlds” due to the fact that on the larger side you have a full flavored sirloin and the other a more delicate and tender filet.

T-bone is the perfect choice if you are having a casual barbecue with close friends with an appetite.

Middle Left: Tenderloin Fillet (AKA: Filet Mignon, Fillet steak, Eye Fillet)

I’ve heard this called “the ideal steak for non-steak eaters”, something I completely refute yet and also slightly agree with.

The tenderloin is the tenderest of cuts, can be cut with a butter knife and will melt in your mouth. Features, I imagine that appeal to both first time steak eaters and to the regulars at the best steak joints in the world. The tenderloin is what I tend to serve if entertaining, it plates well (doesn’t take up the whole plate) and is beautiful whether you have it blue or medium.

Middle Right: Scotch Fillet (AKA: Ribeye in North America)

Due to a nice amount of fat in the muscle, this is one of the juiciest steaks you can find. A great option for marinating; it retains a full flavored beefy punch to compliment the marinade versus being overpowered by it.

Although I hate to even use the words “Well Done” if I had to pick one of these steaks to cook well done it would be this one. Due to the fat the ribeye will retain the most juice, even when over cooked. Watch the flare ups if barbecuing over open flames. For an interesting read on the history of this cut and it’s names, check out this article.

Bottom Left: Rump Steak

Many claim this to be the poor mans Sirloin although I would tend towards calling it the smart mans Ribeye. It is a full flavored and very versatile cut great for barbecuing.

It can tend to be in all shapes and sizes as it doesn’t come off the tidy short loin like most of the others, so ask your butcher to cut you as uniform pieces as possible. Also a great cut to slice and use rare in stir-fry’s.

Bottom Right: New York Cut Sirloin

I’ve heard it said that King Henry enjoyed this cut so much that he had it Knighted, hence the name Sir-Loin. Although I am a little doubtful of that, I don’t doubt that old Henry did enjoy this cut immensely.

A steak with a very hearty beef flavor, perfect for those who eat steak for that exact reason. A connoisseur’s cut and as such also a little more difficult to cook. Good for barbecues, great with a little char but not good for well done.

Related: The Most Expensive Steaks in the World
Related: What is a Delmonico Steak
Related: Tips for Choosing the Best Ribeye

The post Types of Steak Cuts Explained by a Chef appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

No matter how many chopping and slicing kitchen gadgets come on the market you will still find 99% of professional chefs using their knives for most of the things these gimmicks purport to be able to do better.

However one gadget that I and most other chefs I know, use and stand by, is a cherry pitter. In fact I hesitate to even call it a gadget as they are usually made by very reputable kitchen tool and knife manufacturers.

So allow me to rephrase that; one piece of “equipment” that I and most other Chefs I know use and stand by is the olive or cherry pitter.

This amazing little plier like looking piece of equipment can pit a box of cherries in a matter of minutes. Now let’s discover how to best use this neat tool.

How to Use a Cherry Pitter

1. Place the cherry in the bottom cradle with the top facing up.

1. Squeeze your hand and the pitting hammer will come down on the top of the cherry, pushing the pit out of the bottom of the cherry.

1. Olives are done in the same fashion.

If you have not got a pitter like this, I recommend you get one if you plan to pit a lot of cherries or olive, but in the mean time, here are some tips on how to pit cherries without a cherry pitter.

• For Cherries:

1. Use a paring knife to slice around the cherry through the top.
2. Twist either side of the cherry, (one side may have already come off).
3. And pop the pit out with your finger or the paring knife, but be careful.

• For Olives:

1. I tend to go for a rustic look and squish the olive under the side of my knife and then simply tear or squeeze the olive pit out.

If you mastered the technique then you’re ready to prepare a few cherry dishes. Check out one of our favorites below:

• Cherry, Almond and Mascarpone trifle
• Cherry Mascarpone Swiss Roll
• Chocolate Cherry Cake
• Chocolate Cherry Cookies

The post How to Pit Cherries Using Cherry Pitter appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

How to Cure Salmon

It is all based on the marriage of salt and sugar, which will cure the salmon or any other fish for that matter, and therefore preserve it. In general you can not go wrong when applying a 2:1 ratio salt over sugar when curing any fish.

The time of the curing process, although is quite essential, and depends very much on the thickness of the fish fillet to be cured.

Smoked salmon, especially from farmed salmon, is often quite fatty, but curing the salmon fillet removes a lot of the fatty structures in the meat and the resulting cured salmon is leaner, easier to cut and a delight to eat.

Enjoy this easy cured salmon recipe!

Print

Cured Salmon

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Scandinavian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Marinating time 1 day day 12 hours hours

Total Time 1 day day 12 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Author Thomas Wenger

Ingredients

• 1 kilogram salmon fillet
• 50 grams granulated sugar
• 100 grams sea salt
• 10 grams black peppercorns
• 1 bunch dill
• 2 lemons

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• In a bowl, mix the sugar, salt, dill and lemon zest.
• Lay the salmon fillet into a deep dish (it will loose water and therefore you want to ensure that the fish is in a deep dish and can hold the resulting brine).
• Sprinkle with the lemon juice and then pack tightly with the sugar-salt mixture.
• Place in the refrigerator and let marinate for at least 36 hours.
• Remove the fish from the brine and wash thoroughly. At this stage the cured salmon is ready for serving but can easily be wrapped in plastic foil and kept in the refrigerator for a up to 5 days.

Notes

There are some interesting flavors that can be added to the curing process. You must ensure however, that the 2:1 ratio of salt and sugar will not be altered.

Vodka or Aquavit can be added to the brine – very “Nordic” chic; Szechuan pepper or fresh or pickled ginger or sake for Asian taste nuances; double the amount of dill, juniper berries and allspice for Scandinavian authenticity and more.

Related: Gourmet Deviled Eggs with Smoked Trout Gravlax & Corn Sabayon
Related: Marinated Salmon w/ Wasabi-Cucumber Salad & Avocado Purée
Related: Cucumber Cream Cheese Roll Ups w/ Salmon Tartare
Related: Crispy Rice With Creamy Salmon Tartare

The post Cured Salmon Recipe appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

When you whisk egg whites what you are actually doing is whisking air into them. The result is tiny little bubbles of air living inside your egg whites. It is these air bubbles that give egg white based desserts that light and airy texture.

A great example to demonstrate how these little air bubbles live inside the egg whites is that of the souffle. A souffle consists of predominantly whisked egg whites, in other words eggs whites full of little air bubbles.

These air bubbles when put in the oven expand (as any air does when heated) and it is this expansion of air trapped in those little bubbles that causes a well made souffle to so impressively stand up out of dish.

Whether whisking egg whites for a souffle, meringue or mousse the key is having the right tools for the job. The most important things for whipping eggs are the following:

• fresh eggs at room temperature
• a balloon whisk
• a very clean large stainless steel bowl.

Whipping egg whites at room temperature is important for several reasons:

1. Better volume: warmer egg whites have lower viscosity, which means they can be beaten more easily and to a greater volume. Whisking at room temperature allows the proteins in the egg whites to unfold and trap air more effectively, resulting in a lighter and fluffier texture.
2. Faster and more stable whipping: Room temperature egg whites reach their full volume more quickly when whisked. The proteins in the egg whites are more relaxed and can denature and coagulate faster, creating a stable foam structure that can hold its shape.
3. Greater incorporation of air: Whisking at room temperature promotes the formation of smaller and more numerous air bubbles in the egg whites. This leads to a more stable foam that can hold its structure even after cooking or baking.
4. Improved emulsification: When whisking egg whites into a meringue or incorporating them into other mixtures, having them at room temperature ensures better emulsification. The egg whites can distribute more evenly throughout the mixture, resulting in a smoother and more homogenous texture.

Overall, whipping egg whites at room temperature helps achieve optimal volume, stability, and texture, leading to better results in recipes that rely on beaten egg whites for their structure or lightness.

Depending on your recipe, you may need different consistencies for your whipped eggs. Please find below my recommendations on this topic.

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Whipping Egg Whites (Beating Egg Whites)

Everything you need to know to get perfectly whisked egg whites every time. When you whisk egg whites what you are actually doing is whisking air into them. The result is tiny little bubbles of air living inside your egg whites. It is these air bubbles that give egg white based desserts that light and airy texture.

Prep Time 1 minute minute

Cook Time 1 minute minute

Total Time 2 minutes minutes

Instructions

• Place the egg whites in the stainless steel bowl.
• Add a small pinch of salt (optional).
• Whisk vigorously with the balloon whisk until desired consistency is achieved.
• Note: See below for the consistencies called for in most recipes.
• Egg whites whisked to soft will appear slightly foamy and will leave a soft rounded trail where the whisk has been.

  Soft peaks are what you want for souffles and mousses as they will be folded with other ingredients. Stiff whites do not incorporate other ingredients well.
• Egg whites whisked to stiff will feel harder to move the whisk through, they will appear shiny and they will stay standing up in peaks when you lift them up with the whisk.

  Stiff peak egg whites are what you want for meringue nests or Pavlova’s.
• Egg whites that have been over whisked will start to form little individual sections, as though the whole mix is a series of small cotton balls piled together.

Notes

The post A Full Guide to Whipping Egg Whites appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

Once peppers are roasted they are the ideal addition to any antipasto, beautiful in a salad, perfect in a pasta and not to mention an amazing base to many beautiful sauces or soups.

Check out this step-by-step guide on grilling peppers.

How to Roast Capsicum on a Gas Stove Top

• Place the pepper (capsicum) directly on the flame of your gas stove and turn the flame to high.
• Once the side facing the flame is black and blistered, turn the pepper around to face another side to the flame.

• Continue turning like this until all sides are black.
• Remove the pepper from the flame and place in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap.

• If you are doing more than one pepper you can simultaneously do this process on all burners of your stove.
• Allow the pepper to sweat in the bowl covered with plastic, approx 1 hour.
• Once cool to the touch, remove the pepper from the bowl and peel off all the blackened skin. This can be a bit tedious and you can do this step under running water, but you will have a far better and slightly smokier taste if you avoid running them under water.

• Remove and discard the seeds.
• Use flesh as desired (learn how to make a simple, but delicious roasted capsicum coulis).

Print

Roasting or Grilling Peppers (roasting capsicum)

Bell peppers  or capsicum are pretty delicious and tasty by nature. However roasted or grilled capsicum are all the more tasty and more versatile.

Once capsicum are roasted they are the ideal addition to any antipasto, beautiful in a salad, perfect in a pasta and not to mention an amazing base to many beautiful sauces or soups.

Course Side Dish

Prep Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Author Paul Hegeman

Instructions

How to Roast Capsicum on a Gas Stove Top

• Place the pepper (capsicum) directly on the flame of your gas stove and turn the flame to high.
• Once the side facing the flame is black and blistered, turn the pepper around to face another side to the flame.
• Continue turning like this until all sides are black.
• Remove the pepper from the flame and place in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
• If you are doing more than one pepper you can simultaneously do this process on all burners of your stove.
• Allow the pepper to sweat in the bowl covered with plastic, approx 1 hour.
• Once cool to the touch, remove the pepper from the bowl and peel off all the blackened skin. This can be a bit tedious and you can do this step under running water, but you will have a far better and slightly smokier taste if you avoid running them under water.
• Remove and discard the seeds.
• Use flesh as desired (learn how to make a simple, but delicious roasted capsicum coulis).

How to Grill Capsicum – BBQ Capsicum | Charred Barbecue

• If you don’t have a gas stove, the capsicum can be charred on a barbecue.
• Simply turn your barbecue to high and allow it to heat up.
• Place the capsicum on the grill part of the barbecue and cook until black on one side.
• Turn the capsicum and continue this process until all sides are black.
• Remove the pepper from the barbecue grill and place them in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
• Allow the pepper to sweat in the bowl covered with plastic, approx 1 hour.
• Once cool to the touch, remove the pepper from the bowl and peel off all the blackened skin. This can be a bit tedious and you can do this step under running water, but you will have a far better and slightly smokier taste if you avoid running them under water.
• Remove and discard the seeds.
• Use flesh as desired.
• The process on the barbecue will take a little longer than on the stove.

How to Grill Capsicum in the Oven

• If you have neither a gas stove nor a barbecue, the pepper (capsicum) can be blistered in the oven.
• Preheat your oven up to 220 Celsius (430 Fahrenheit).
• Place the pepper in an ovenproof dish or tray and coat with vegetable oil.
• Place the tray in the oven.
• Turn pepper every 10-15 minutes or until starting to blacken and blister.
• Once the peppers are black all over remove the tray from the oven and place them in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
• Allow the pepper to sweat in the bowl covered with plastic, approx 1 hour.
• Once cool to the touch, remove the pepper from the bowl and peel off all the blackened skin. This can be a bit tedious and you can do this step under running water, but you will have a far better and slightly smokier taste if you avoid running them under water.
• Remove and discard the seeds.
• Use flesh as desired.

Notes

Related: Roasted Red Peppers in White Sauce
Related: Briam – Greek Roasted Vegetables
Related: Marinated Grilled Chicken Salad with Roasted Peppers
Related: Italian Stuffed Peppers with Rice
Related: Middle Eastern Chicken with Roasted Veggies

The post How to Roast Red Peppers (Roasting Capsicum) appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

Wine served too warm makes the taste of the alcohol to over power the flavor and bouquet of the wine.

Of course, the temperature wine is served at is often down to a person’s preference, but there are a few general guidelines that should be followed to ensure the wine is enjoyed at it’s best.

Keep in mind that the instruction “serve at room temperature” refers to the cellar temperature rather than that in your regular living room. Also, it is safer to serve wine just a little cooler, as it warms up very quickly in the glass.

It is important to bring the wine to the correct temperature gently. Generally, place a bottle of white wine in the refrigerator, where it will cool approximately 2°C (4°F) every 10 minutes. Rapid chilling in an ice bucket can shock the wine and if left too long, will cool it close to 0°C (30°F).

Bringing red wines to temperature is much the same. It is best to leave the bottle to warm naturally to room temperature. Placing it in the sun or next to a heater will negatively affect its flavor.

A wine thermometer is handy as it helps to easily check the temperature, and they usually come with a useful chart.

Below is a guide to the correct temperatures for different kinds of wine:

• 6-8°C (43-46°F) Sparkling wine and Champagne. Most varieties of sweet dessert wines including Sauterne, Ice wine and “Spaetlese” wines.
  
• 7-10°C (45-54°F) White wines of various grape varieties such as Chenin Blancs, Tokaji, light Chardonnays, Rieslings, white Zinfandel, Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blancs.
  
• 10-12°C (50-54°F) Rosé wine, white Burgundy wines, light red wines such as Beaujolais and light European red wines from Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Light Sherry.
  
• 14-16°C (57-61°F) Matured red wines of various grape varieties such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Zinfandel. Bordeaux, red Burgundy, Rhone valley and most Italian and Spanish wines. Fortified wines such as Port, dark Sherry, Marsala, Vermouth, Madeira and Muscat.
  
• 16-18°C (61-65°F) Very matured Grand Crus wines.

Related: Food and Wine Pairing Tips from Chef
Related: How to Decant Wine
Related: How to Pair Wine and Cheese
Related: Best Red Romanian Wines

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So why truss chicken? Firstly, they just look better. There’s nothing worse than a bird with the legs and wings spread akimbo in the roasting pan when it comes out of the oven.

Secondly, if you are using a rotisserie or spit over a BBQ, the snuggly fitted legs and wings of a well trussed chicken will ensure even cooking.

Thirdly, tightly trussing the legs helps to lock in the flavors of the herbs placed inside, allowing the flavors to develop from the inside throughout the chicken. And by sealing the neck the juices and flavors are held within the bird.

Now that we’ve covered the why, let’s turn to how to truss a chicken with this chicken trussing guide:

1. Season the inside of the carcass and stuff with herbs of your choice.
2. Place chicken on a chopping board with the neck towards you, and push both legs inwards underneath the breast of the chicken.
3. Chop off the chicken wings at the first joint and bend the wings inwards underneath the chicken.
4. Cut off the neck bone, leaving a little stump and enough skin to wrap round it.
5. Take a length of string and holding both ends in your hands, slide it about 1/3 of the way underneath the chicken’s back/legs.
6. Bring the ends up over the legs, swap the ends in your hands so they cross over, and loop the string around underneath the ends of the legs. Pull the string tight and the legs will seal the whole in the carcass.
7. Tightening the string further will flip the bird onto its breast.
8. Keeping the string tight, run one end of the string around the lower side of the chicken and over the wing up to the neck.
9. Cover the neck with the remaining skin and run the sting around it and to the other side of the chicken.
10. Keeping the string tight, bring both ends together over the wing. Ensure that the string tightly secures both wings, the neck bone, and the legs.
11. Twist the string twice, pull tight, and secure with a knot.
12. Cut off the excess string.

Before you go check out these delicious chicken recipes:

• Thai Green Chicken Recipe
• Cajun Chicken with Hummus
• Chicken Stir Fry Noodles

The post Why and How to Truss a Chicken appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

As enjoyable as handling and portioning beautiful fresh fish can be, one part of these duties that is never very enjoyable is cleaning pound after pound of prawns and shrimp. I’m sure every apprentice chef and kitchen hand out there will agree with me on this, especially if you have a demanding Head Chef that expects all of them to look perfect.

To help you through your own prawn perils here are some techniques that will help make cleaning prawns and shrimp as painless as possible.

How to Clean Shrimp & Prawns

• Partially tilt the head of the shrimp downwards, revealing the tract in the back of its neck that runs down its spine.
• Place the back (dull part) of the knife under the tract and gently pinch the tract to the knife.

• Carefully lift up until you can pinch the tract with two fingers.
• Remove the knife, hold the prawn’s tail straight and carefully pull the tract out.
• That’s it, it is now clean and can be cooked whole, it may take a few attempts to get the hang of it and some tracts will break but they can still be used in the ‘Cleaning Peeled Prawns’ method.

How to Peel Prawns and Shrimp

• Hold the prawn in your left hand with its back down, its head at the top and its legs facing you.
• Slide your thumb between the legs at the top nearest the head and slide to the right, getting under the right side legs and shell.

• Work your way down all the right legs until they are all loose and then simply pull the skin off all the way around the length of the prawn.

• The head can be left on for presentation or it can be removed.

Cleaning Peeled Prawns

• Make a small incision in the middle of the prawns back and use the back (dull side) of the paring knife and tease out the tract until you can pull it all the way out.

Butterfly Cleaning Prawns

• Make a small incision the length of the prawns back and remove the tract.

1. This incision will cause the flesh to butterfly and the prawn to curl when cooked.
2. This technique gives a nice presentation and is often used in Asian soups.

Did you finish cleaning your prawns? Then you are all set for these delicious prawns and shrimp recipes:

Easy Tomato Shrimp Pasta Recipe

Buttermilk Shrimp with Quinoa

The post Cleaning Shrimp & Prawns Explained by a Chef appeared first on Chef's Pencil.

Before you choose the wine to go with a dish, ask yourself what the character of the dish is: full flavored, creamy, mild, lean, spicy fatty, or acidic?

The stronger tasting the cheese, the more full bodied and flavored the wine should be to balance the two flavors.

A few ground rules on pairing food & wine

Match flavorful dishes with full bodied wines and creamy mild dishes with mild, mellow wines. Fatty and fried dishes are best with crisp, lightly acidic wines or wines with a good amount of tannins. Acidic dishes can only be matched with acidity.

Spicy dishes are best matched with mildly sweet wine, and when in doubt remember that regional dishes are always best served with the wines from the same region.

For example, Italian food pairs well with Italian wines. “You can dig a little deeper on this though“, says Michele Gargiulo, certified Sommelier and Wine and Beverage Director of the Fearless Restaurant Group. “A nice fresh Italian seafood dish will pair well with a wine grown close to the beach. The salinity in the air will make its way into the wine, layering it with some minerality that will pair well with the food.”

On the other hand, Spanish or Portuguese seafood dishes pair well with local wines such as Albariño or Alvarinho, according to Ami Gangemella, a wine marketing consultant. “With a maritime climate and influence from the Atlantic Ocean, these vibrant acidic white wines pair well with local seafood cuisine.”

With the above in mind, here are some more guidelines on pairing food & wine.

Rich, Creamy Dishes

Rich dishes include those with creamy sauces, fish, seafood, pasta in cream sauce, veal pork and poultry dishes and chilled or warm cream soups. Generally speaking cream sauces do not match well with acidic wines.

For these dishes choose a rich, full bodied and heavily-oaken Chardonnay, young Merlot, Beaujolais, Gamay or Pinot Noir.

Acidic, Vinegar-based Dishes

Vinegar marinated or vinaigrette-based appetizers and salads or dishes containing tomato sauce or lemon juice need an equally acidic wine to stand up to it.

The acidity in these dishes can not be balanced by mild or full bodied wines. Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris or Grigio and other dry white wines suit best.

Light Flavored Dishes with Light-bodied Wines

Balancing the flavors is key here. The wine should not overpower the strongest flavored element of the dish.

John from Vino Clarity explains: “take a baked snapper, which is a light dish, and pair it with a Pinot Grigio or Soave, two lighter bodied wines. However, if you take that same snapper and pour yourself a glass of Chianti Classico, a medium-bodied red wine from Tuscany, the wine will overpower the fish and any flavor it might have.

“But if you cover your snapper in a hearty tomato sauce, a glass of Chianti Classico would be a great choice because the sauce has a stronger flavor than the snapper and would pair better with a fuller bodied wine. You are not pairing the wine with the fish anymore, you are rather pairing it with a hearty sauce, which needs a bolder full-bodied wine.“

Strong, Bold Flavors

These include dishes such as roasted lamb, grilled spice-rubbed or marinated steaks, braised beef, various lamb dishes, game specialties, heavily herbed and mushroom dishes as well as dried and cured beef charcuterie.

These dishes are best paired with full bodied red wines such as Syrah, Barolo, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel.

However, all these well-trusted food & wine pairings can go out the window if there is a sauce involved, according to John, the founder of Vino Clarity. Cabernet Sauvignon and steak is a good pairing with most
sauces, except a hot and spicy one. Cabernet is high in alcohol, which makes it a little hot in the mouth, but the heat of the spice would make the wine extremely hot (and rather unpleasant) and conversely, the higher alcohol of the wine would make the spicy sauce feel even hotter in the mouth.

Exotic and Ethnic Cuisines

Chinese, Thai, Indian, Malay and Mexican cuisines often use fragrant and hot spices, which makes the choice of wine fairly difficult.

Often these dishes are well balanced in spiciness and sweetness. They are best matched with slightly sweet wine such as Gewürztraminer, Riesling and/or dry fruity new world white wines.

“Spicy foods pair best with wines that have low to no tannins and a touch of residual sugar“, says Allie Albanese, a certified sommelier and founder of Parched Around the World. “Tannic wines (i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon or Nebbiolo) can actually amplify the heat in a dish and make the alcohol in the wine feel more pronounced, while a wine with a touch of sugar can both reduce the effect of the dish’s spiciness and balance the flavors of the food and wine.

“One of my favorite sweet-with-heat pairings is an off-dry Riesling with spicy Thai food.“

Pairing Cheese & Wine

Matching wine and cheese is a science all by itself, and a lot of cheeses are too high in fat content and too strong to be paired with fine, matured red wines.

The stronger tasting the cheese, the more full bodied and flavored the wine should be to balance the two flavors. Soft and semi-soft cheese is best paired with dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chablis, unoaked Chardonnay or light red wines such as Gamay, Pinot Noir and or Beaujolais.

Strong, ripe, pungent cheeses can be matched with full bodied white Bordeaux wines, and Spanish and Italian white wines. And as stated earlier, try to pair foods and wines from the same region: Italian cheeses with Italian wines and French cheeses with French wine.

Hard and extra hard cheese such as aged cheddars, Parmesan, Manchego, Gruyere, Comte and similar can be matched with full bodied red wines such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon or Zinfandel. The wine, however, should not be too refined and mature.

Blue cheeses are best paired with either mildly sweet Gewürztraminer or botrytized wines such as Spätlese wines, Sauternes, and Tokay, for example, or fortified wines such as Port, Madeira, Sherry, and Marsala.

Wine Pairing with Sweets and Desserts

When it comes to dessert choices, the wine served can be anything from Gewürztraminer, sparkling wine or Champagne to late harvest Rieslings, Sauternes and fortified wines such as Port, Sherry, Madeira or Marsala.

You can often find these pairings in alcohol gift boxes such as a bottle of sparkling Moscato matched with chocolate and truffles, or a light and refreshing sparkling rosé matched with a fine box of strawberry cream chocolate.

However, as in the case of savory dishes, the proper dessert and wine pairing boils down to the type of dessert you’re enjoying. A long-aged sweet wine such as Vinsanto from Tuscany will pair well with chocolate and nut-based desserts, while fruit-based desserts pair better with a Riesling.

Related: Wine Serving Temperature
Related: How to Decant Wine

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Decanting wines is primarily done for two purposes. Firstly, to pour off any sediment that may have formed at the bottom of a cellar-stored bottle. Secondly, to aerate (breathe) younger wines by allowing it to take in oxygen. This will help the wine to develop its full flavor potential.

Serving wine in a nice crystal (or glass) carafe is also an upgraded presentation on your dinner table. However, it is important that the bottle of the wine is presented next to the carafe so that your guests can find out about the wine’s grape variety, age and origin.

Timing the decanting is important. In general, younger wines and robust wines can be decanted and allowed to breath up to 6 hours ahead of serving, while older and vintage wines are decanted only a short time before serving.

How to decant old wine

Old wines that have been stored and aged in a cellar properly often contain sediment due to the aging process. Decanting means pouring the wine into a decanter (carafe) and leaving the sediment in the bottle.

• The bottle should be taken out of the familiar horizontal position (cellar position) and stood up for an hour. The sediment will then settle at the bottom of the bottle.
• Very carefully open the wine, as shaking the bottle will disturb the sediment that has settled at the bottom.
• Due to the color of the bottle (mostly green glass), it is advisable to work with the neck of the bottle in front of a small light or a candle. This will help you to see the sediment as it reaches the neck.
• Hold the bottle below the neck and bring it to a 140-degree angle to the carafe. Start at approximately 120 degrees and while the bottle empties, increase the angle, letting the wine flow ever so gently into the carafe.
• This process might take several minutes and should not be rushed. Towards the last part of the bottle, watch carefully for the sediment and stop pouring when any appears in the neck of the bottle.
• Let the wine rest for a while before serving as the motion of decanting may have “unsettled” the wine.
• Brass and silver decanting cradles are available, which certainly make sense for the serious wine lover. The bottle is horizontally suspended in a cradle with a cranking system ensuring a perfectly smooth tilting action and as little disturbance to the wine as possible.

How to decant (aerate) younger wines

Young, but full-bodied, robust wines often benefit from being aerated or decanted. The aim here is that the wine comes into contact with as much oxygen as possible, and this in turn will help to develop the wine’s aroma and bouquet.

Contrary to older wines, it is quite alright if the wine splashes around as it is being poured into the decanter or carafe. In general, a wide bodied decanter is better suited for aerating wines, as once inside the decanter, the wine has a bigger surface exposed to the air and can therefore better develop its flavor and aromas.

While the wine breathes, it will settle and calm after being awakened as it was poured from the bottle.

Enjoy!

Related: 10 Best Hungarian Sweet Wines
Related: Food and Wine Pairing Tips from Chef
Related: How to Pair Wine and Cheese
Related: Best Red Romanian Wines

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When I was starting out working in kitchens, the head chef would give me kilos and kilos of onions to slice, dice, julienne and chop.

Though I never realised it at the time, I rarely became teary eyed when working with them. Yet on my days off when knocking up a meal at home, after cutting half an onion I would be balling like a 1960’s teenager at a Beatles concert.

What on Earth could I be doing different at home than at work?

I later discovered it had nothing to do with what I was doing. It had everything to do with what the kitchen itself was doing. You see at work there were 6 huge extractor fans across from me and my chopping board and there was a long corridor running down to a huge door behind me that was kept open to the fresh air.

At home I had the windows in my apartment shut and the tiny overhead fan turned off. So the answer is no more simple than making sure you have great air circulation and air being drawn out of the kitchen.

1. When chopping onions, try to face or be as near as possible to your exhaust fan and open some windows and doors to allow air to flow.
2. If all else fails, take the board out to the patio table and chop them in the great outdoors.

What does the science say?

Cutting onions releases a chemical compound known as propanethial S-oxide, which is an eye-irritant. This chemical compound is what’s causing the tears. So working in a well ventilated room, or outdoors for that matter, substantially decreased the chances that this chemical compound will come into contact with your eyes.

Besides good ventilation, what else can you do to prevent crying while cutting onions?

• Use a very sharp knife. This will greatly decrease the chemical compound released by the onions.
• Refrigerate your onions. Chilling your onions will prevent most of the chemical compound being released into the air, hence, less watery eyes.
• Use a vegetable chopper, which will get the job done easily and without tears.
• Buy some kitchen goggles. These will keep away those nasty irritants from your eyes.

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