A Sip for the Cook

A Scotch Chick stands behind a kitchen counter in a little black dress, red stiletto heels, and a tiny ruffled white apron. "Today, we talk about the importance of single malt whisky in cooking…."

Julia Child used to sip from her cooking wine as she created her masterpieces. The Scotch Chix prefer to cook with their sipping scotch to create theirs. Single malt whisky is a perfect cooking companion. Not only does it give the chef inspiration, it is excellent for caramelizing onions, deglazing pans, standing in for sherry, and adding depth to the dish. 

The Chix cook with whatever scotch is on hand. Since Highland Park 12 is usually on the Drinks Table, it finds its way into a lot of their recipes, and it serves quite well as a multi-purpose cooking scotch. If one is choosing a whisky for cooking, however, obviously sweet scotches, such as Bruichladdich 12 and Glenmorangie 10 perform well in sweet dishes, and Caol Ila 12 is the Scotch Chix choice for a spicy or savory dish. 

Since the Scotch Chix are as passionate about their food as they are about their whisky, and since they never slide behind a wheel of a car after indulging (Scotch Chix Rule #7), cooking sessions are always part of their tasting weekends. The Scotch Chix Fourth of July Tasting, was no exception. 

CA Scotch Chick forwarded her recipe for Szechuan Red Cooked Spicy Scotch Beef, and DC Scotch Chick laid in the supplies. The soup served as a final celebration of a fantastic weekend. Glenrothes Select Reserve took the place of the sherry in the recipe, and the Scotch Chix paired the soup with some Highland Park 12.

Below, please find CA Scotch Chick's recipe for Szechuan Red Cooked Spicy Scotch Beef.