A Spirited Affair

Nothing makes a mundane idea exciting than the sheer thought (and liberty) of adding a generous part of your drink to it. It is a guilt-free way of having your favourite dram. The great tasting food of course is the added bonus, and the perfect ruse to do it again.
Fascinatingly, cooking with alcohol isn’t anything new. The good old Romans used it to flavour their daily bread, the Mongolians made meat tender and tasty with it; and the British based their fine dine on the powers of the spirit. So did the French. Think: sauces, basting, reduction and even desserts, alcohol made them all. Impressively, when it comes to alcohol and cooking today, little has changed for the best of kitchens and chefs. The best of culinary hands still swear by their handpicked drams when it comes to interesting discoveries into the culinary world.
After all, alcohol — much like salt — is easily one of the amazing flavourant in the kitchen, which can elevate the dish, crank up the taste and give you the happy high — without the calories and the tipsy-ness. But is cooking with spirits that easy? We get some of the best culinary minds in India and abroad to decode ancient cooking world’s best kept secret – and how their favourite dram inspired great masterpieces.