Admittedly it’s not often that there’s leftover wine lying around my house, but on the rare occasion that we don’t finish a bottle this is what I do with the last dribbles.
1. Easy tomato sauce
This is a foolproof standby recipe that is great served on its own with fresh pasta and a grating of Parmesan, but it’s also the basis for many dishes. Try adding broccoli, bacon (or anchovies) and a splash of cream, and serve it with gnocchi and a bit of crumbled blue cheese.
Fry two to three cloves of garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil. Add two tins of whole tomatoes and roughly two thirds of a cup of red wine. Bring to a boil and simmer for three minutes, allowing the wine to reduce. Add two tablespoons of tomato paste, a pinch of dried chili flakes, a teaspoon of mixed dried herbs and salt and pepper to taste. Gently break up the whole tomatoes. Leave to simmer on a low heat for about half an hour until the sauce is thick, adding a bit of water or wine if it becomes too dry.
Tip: Pour the wine into an ice tray, freeze and defrost when you need it or simply add the frozen cubes to the sauce.
2. Marinade
Red wine marinade. Image by Food Thinkers (Flickr)
Mix together equal parts red wine, tomato sauce and chutney. Add two tablespoons chopped herbs (rosemary works well with red meat, thyme with white meat), a splash of soy sauce and season with salt and pepper.
3. Homemade vinegar
To make wine vinegar, you ideally need to get hold of a vinegar starter, also called the mother. I use unpasteurized vinegar such as Bragg’s Raw Apple Cider Vinegar, which contains a mother, a slimy looking cobweb floating in the liquid. You can use normal vinegar, but it will take longer and the results will be inconsistent.
To make your vinegar, fill a large container with leftover red or white wine and add a generous splash of unpasteurized vinegar. Loosely cover (cheese cloth works well) and leave to stand undisturbed in a dark spot at room temperature for two to three months. Once the mother (the clumps of gunk) has sunk to the bottom, your vinegar is ready to be filtered and the mother can be reused for your next batch of wine vinegar.
Tip: Boiling the vinegar will ensure that it is sterile and will cook off any excess alcohol.
4. Sweet red wine syrup
Sweet red wine syrup, great for desserts. Image by twohelmetscooking (Flickr)
If you’ve got more than half a bottle of red wine leftover (what’s wrong with you?) or 3½ cups assorted red wine lying around, place the wine and a cup of sugar into a pot on a low to medium heat, bring to the boil and reduce for about 45 minutes. Once cool, drizzle over your ice cream, fruit, pancakes or even a slice of cheesecake.
For a kick, add the zest of an orange, a couple of cloves and/or a stick of cinnamon.
Tip: If you’re using white wine, use the same amount of sugar, but add a vanilla pod to the pot.
Got any other tips for using leftover wine? Leave them in the comment box below.
Images sourced from the following Flickr profiles: Food Thinkers, twohelmetscooking and 2create
Originally posted on Winemag.co.za
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