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Video: Add flavor to dinner by cooking with beer

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    >> sinks. how to cook with your favorite brew. but first this is "today" on nbc.

    >>> this morning in "today's" kitchen, what's for dinner. chicken and gravy and one chef that thinks it's never too early to have a beer. sunny anderson . i don't know if we're drinking, cooking or staging an intervention here. gee, where do we start?

    >> we start with beer obviously. a lot of people cooking with beer. i grew up in germany, my formative years there. didn't partake, obviously, i was too young. i've been to many oktoberfest with my family and i grew up loving the idea of beer for everything.

    >> i kid you. i love a good beer, too. you know, what i've cooked with beer on a few occasions but what's the best one for variety.

    >> it's just like wine. if you like the way it tastes, chances are you're going to like the way it tastes when you cook with it.

    >> the alcohol gets burned out.

    >> the alcohol gets burned out. just like cooking with wine.

    >> we're going to do a chicken dish here.

    >> chicken braised -- beer-braised chicken . brown chicken parts without the skin on. take them out. not trying to cook them, just get color on them, carmelization.

    >> don't want to cook them through.

    >> not all the way through. a nice, slow cook, everything fall off the bon yummy.

    >> we have celery, onions, carrots. carrots kbood for switness, helps o sweetness, helps out with the bitter of the beer, thyme, hab naro for heat and garlic.

    >> i like where this is going.

    >> you've got to try this. i love cooking with beer. what you have to do is get it all nice and tender. then it looks like this. that's okay.

    >> i'll put that in the sink.

    >> i make a mess all the time in my kitchen. just get the chicken right in there. then add in the beer.

    >> okay. how much beer are we putting in there?

    >> a cup and a half, two cups. you want to make sure the cup goes up halfway.

    >> the chef should take a swig.

    >> go ahead, lester. you know you want a beer. i poured one for you.

    >> thanks. i'm much better.

    >> cover it up.

    >> gibblets in there.

    >> they are in there, might as well use it. onions in here, sprinkle flour. this is really, really good. strain it at the end. a little bit of chicken stock to glaze a bit. it's going to thicken up. you add in some beer again.

    >> are we going to taste this beer in the final product.

    >> you do taste a hint of it. you're going to be able to taste a hint of it. it's hopy. this one we have here is nice and dark. that's going to thicken up. what you do, sieve it out, pours over the top of everything else when it's done.

    >> how long is the chicken going to be cooking.

    >> you want to leave it in the pot an hour and 45 minutes.

    >> it's going to go a while.

    >> thirty minutes before it's done, take the lid off and let it reduce.

    >> put it over a bed of rice.

    >> yes, white rice . it's great with that. i've also made some quick pickled beer peppers.

    >> yeah?

    >> yes. what you do is take some pickles, some beer, some garlic, a little bit of red and yellow, green.

    >> got the gravy going on over there.

    >> yes.

    >> a little gravy here. hey, ladies.

    >> couldn't help notice down at the end.

    >> these are beer battered peach fritters. very easy to make. just beer, flour, peaches, pumpkin pie spice .

    >> oh my god, that is unbelievable.

    >> oh my gosh. really good.

    >> it doesn't have to be just drinking beer. you can't taste it at all. it's sweet, easy to machlt can you do it with your eyes shut like i do at midnight. seriously, just cook with beer. it's easy. beer braised chicken , beer pickled peppers and onions and fritters.

    >> and beer to wash it down.

    >> thank you. up ahead kathie lee and hoda talk to joe jonas and all your latest news from hollywood after your local news and weather.

TODAY recipes
updated 8/17/2012 1:59:10 PM ET 2012-08-17T17:59:10

Recipe: Beer-braised chicken and gravy with quick beer-pickled peppers and onions

Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 8 pieces chicken (2 breasts cut in half, 2 thighs, 2 legs), skin removed
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 onion, cut into chunks
  • 2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
  • 1 habanero pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 2 dry bay leaves
  • 12 sprigs fresh thyme, tied into a bundle
  • 21/2 cups beer (make it a tasty dark one)
  • 1 tablespoon concentrated gravy enhancer (recommended: Gravy Master)
  • Brown gravy
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • Chicken giblets
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 4 tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 cup beer (make it a tasty dark one)
  • 4 cups cooked white rice, to serve
  • Beer-pickled peppers and onions
  • 4 cups your favorite beer (Recommended: Corona)
  • 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon liquid smoke
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorn
  • 10 garlic cloves, whole, with a thin layer sliced off the brown base
  • 2 yellow bell peppers, seeded, halved and sliced
  • 2 red bell peppers, seeded, halved and sliced
  • 1 green bell pepper, seeded, halved and sliced
  • 1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced
Preparation

Preheat a 7 1/4-quart Dutch oven on medium-high heat, then melt butter and add oil. Season chicken generously with salt and pepper and sear until golden on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside.

Add carrots, onion, celery, and apple, the whole habanero, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and saute until they start to soften, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Add 1 cup of beer and let reduce by half, scraping up any brown bits remaining on the bottom of the pot. Nestle chicken into pot, add gravy sauce and enough beer to almost cover the chicken, about 1 1/2 cups. Cover and simmer for 1 hour 45 minutes or until chicken falls off the bone. In the last half hour, remove the lid and let liquid reduce.

To make the gravy, in a medium saucepan melt butter with oil over medium high-heat. Add giblets and brown on all sides, about 6 minutes. Add onion and continue cooking another 5 minutes, until onions start to soften. Add flour and stir, cooking another 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the stock and beer. Bring to a simmer and strain. Discard giblets and put gravy back in the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Keep warm on the stove and add to braised chicken once it's cooked. Serve atop white rice with beer-pickled peppers and onions.

For the beer-pickled peppers and onions, in a large pan with straight sides or a pot add beer vinegar, liquid smoke and sugar. Heat on medium and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add red pepper flakes, whole black peppercorn, garlic, all of the bell peppers, onion and a nice pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer for 20 minutes. Serve warm or cold.

Recipe: Beer-battered peach fritters

Ingredients
  • 2 peaches (sweet white, rose or purple rose), peeled, pitted and chopped
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 cup flour, plus more for texture
  • 7 ounces beer (Coronita is the perfect size!)
  • Kosher salt
  • Peanut oil, for deep frying
  • Confectioner's sugar, for dusting
Preparation

In a bowl stir together the peaches, sugars and pumpkin pie spice, set aside. In a large bowl add measured flour and a pinch of salt.

Make a well in the center of the bowl of dry ingredients and whisk the beer in until combined. It should be slightly thicker than pancake batter, if not add a bit more of flour until you're there. Gently fold in the peach mixture and let it rest 10 minutes at room temperature.

In a large pan with straight sides bring an inch or so of oil to 360 degrees so when adding the fritters, the temperature rests at 350 degrees. Once the oil is ready, using a small ice cream scoop or large table spoon, gently drop dough into the oil in batches. Fry until golden brown on both sides, flipping once, about 4 minutes total. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Serve with a dusting of confectioner's sugar.

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