1
Does alcohol burn off during cooking?
I made a casserole and added wine to it before putting it in the oven to bake. My sister-in-law told me there was no way that I could serve that to the kids, because not all of the alcohol burns off during cooking — that’s just a myth. I always thought that if you cook food with alcohol in it, the alcohol dissipates and all that remains is the flavor. Which is it?
This answer was chosen as best by the post author
Many people use alcohol — whether spirits, wine or beer — to add flavor to everything from roasts to cakes. But despite lore that says all the alcohol burns off when you cook it, that’s not always the case.
How much booze burns off?
In general, the longer you heat the booze, the less alcohol remains. For example, if you simmer the food for several hours, only about 5 percent of the alcohol will remain. But if you adding wine, beer or spirits to a boiling sauce just before serving, roughly 80% of the alcohol will still be left behind.
Nutritionists at Washington State University and the University of Idaho, together with the US Department of Agriculture, ran cooking experiments using both wine and sherry, and found that long simmering in a wide pan was the most effective way to remove alcohol from food, while baking appeared to be the least.
Alcohol burn-off chart
30 minutes
1 hour
1 1/2 hours
2 hours
2 1/2 hours
35%
25%
20%
10%
5%
65%
75%
80%
90%
95%
* These figures are based on US Department of Agriculture Research
Low- and no-alcohol
“Nonalcoholic” is officially defined as containing no more than 0.5 percent alcohol — half of one percent.
If you’re trying to burn off as much alcohol as possible and want just the flavor, your best bet is a lengthy simmer. Leave the pan or pot uncovered so you don’t interfere with the evaporative process and let the alcohol go.
Fortunately, if the alcohol is a problem in any way, it’s simple to substitute! For savory foods, consider using broth, stock, vinegar or juice to replace the alcohol — and for sweet dishes, experiment with juice, juice concentrates, extracts and flavored syrup.
loading...