Food for thought

We’ve talked about which beers to pair with your meal, but which beers should you use in your meal? Ben McFarland provides some recipes

Like Gordon Ramsay when he’s in a particularly grumpy mood, beer isn’t always the easiest thing to work with in the kitchen.

While masters of the culinary arts are forever sloshing wine into their gastronomic efforts, they tend not to reach for the can or bottle of beer with quite the same regularity.

Yes, the grain may be giving the grape a run for its money when it comes to accompanying fine food, but when it comes to playing an integral part in its creation, beer’s role rarely stretches beyond the cameo variety.

“The flavours within beer are very strong so when you’re cooking with beer you have to treat it with respect and be very careful,” said Marcus Lane, chef and proprietor at the Rafters Restaurant in Sheffield.

“There are so many different flavours to balance and the danger is that you can get too much bitterness or sharpness but if you experiment and get the right balance it really works.” Marcus often teams up with the neighbouring and extremely innovative Kelham Island Brewery – home to the award-winning Pale Rider ale – and hosts a banquet of dishes using beer.

“Until I worked with Kelham Island, I’d rarely considered cooking with beer,” he said. “But, inspired by their enthusiasm and innovation, I really got into it and now firmly believe that beer can work just as well as wine.” You may say he’s a dreamer, but he’s not the only one. Forward thinking brewers are coming up with beer-based recipes that propel the concept well beyond the realms of a steak and .....

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By Ben McFarland

Section : Beer and Food

Page number : 40