Tips on ‘What to Drink with What You Eat’

By: Faith Bahadurian
   As holidays approach, special occasions to enjoy food and drink abound. With them comes a quandary. What is just the right beverage to enjoy with that turkey, that roast — or that Taco Bell Gordita sitting on the car seat next to you?
   Well, once you get home, try a rosé or New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc with that Gordita. The turkey goes with a long list of wines, from Beaujolais to Gewurztraminer to fruity Zinfandel. The roast, if prime rib, calls for young Burgundy or Merlot, but a Cabernet or Shiraz will also go nicely.
   This information, and much, much more is found in "What To Eat With What You Drink," a new book from husband-and-wife team Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page. They are the award-winning authors of "Becoming a Chef" and "Culinary Artistry." Food pros and amateurs alike love their books, which are often a cross between textbook and reference work.
   Their new book is a very detailed cross-referenced compendium of beverage pairing recommendations culled from top American sommeliers and restaurant beverage directors, and even a Canadian tea sommelier. The extensive alphabetical listings come in two sections, one listed by food and the other by beverage, and they get pretty specific, as the Gordita indicates.
   When the authors say "drink," they don’t mean just beer, wine and spirits, but also information on waters, coffee, tea, sake, upscale soft drinks and Indian yogurt lassis. And when they say "food" the list is wildly varied, from challenging asparagus (almost 40 suggestions) to the lowly Kit Kat candy bar (Kenyan and berry tea), to Paella (Rioja and rosé were top contenders). Nearly all the global cuisines are represented.
   You can look up pretty much any main dish or key ingredient or seasoning in your meal, and find a suggestion — or severa— to go with it. And you can look up nearly any kind of, say, beer, and find food pairing suggestions for your brew — be it ale, bock, lambic, lager or saison.
   The first chapters of the book include discussions of the sensory and emotional enjoyment of food and drink, pairing rules, and selecting and storing beverages, including temperature and glassware. Then, after the two large reference sections, there are pairing menus from top American restaurants (reproductions of actual, dated menus, including two featuring sake), and the "desert island" lists of some top beverage experts (the latter is the source of the recipes below).
   The authors’ tone is encouraging, and their approach democratic. "Your palate may be different from my palate, or the palate of your best friend, or the palate of the person recommending a wine — so learn to listen to your palate and to trust it. It won’t lead you astray."
   I particularly enjoyed the information on tea. The list of starter teas for your cupboard includes a breakfast blend or black tea, Assam (good with creamy desserts and salmon or lamb sandwiches), oolong (can work with a wide range of foods), Chinese green tea (seafood and shellfish), Japanese Sencha (particularly good with chocolate) and herbal teas to use as digestives after meals.
   All recipes from "What To Eat With What You Drink," Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, Bulfinch Press, 2006
KATHY CASEY’S

CUCUMBER SAKE COCKTAIL
Serves 1.
   This Asian-influenced martini from a well-known Seattle chef is perfect with sushi or Pacific Rim appetizers.
   3 slices cucumber, each torn in half
   1½ ounces vodka
   ½ ounce premium sake
   ¾ ounce fresh lime juice
   ¾ ounce simple syrup
   Thin slice cucumber, for garnish
   Drop the torn cucumber slices into a cocktail shaker. Fill shaker with ice, then add vodka, sake, lime juice and simple syrup. Cap and shake vigorously until very cold. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with floating cucumber slice.
NICOLA MARZOVILLA’S
GNOCCHI AL RAGU DI AGNELLO
(Gnocchi with Lamb Ragu)
from New York’s I Trulli restaurant
Serves 6 to 8.
   While a recipe for the gnocchi is provided, I suggest you use store-bought potato gnocchi, if homemade gnocchi is not already in your repertoire. FB.
   2 tablespoons olive oil
   1 medium onion, finely chopped
   2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
   1 pound lean ground lamb
   1 28- to 35-ounce can Italian tomatoes with their juice, chopped
   1 tablespoon tomato paste
   1 bay leaf
   Salt to taste
   Freshly ground pepper to taste
   1 pound gnocchi
   ½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
   In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté 10 minutes, or until tender. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
   Stir in the lamb and cook 15 minutes, stirring frequently to break up any lumps, until it is no longer pink. Stir in the tomatoes. Add the tomato paste, bay leaf, salt and pepper to taste.
   Bring the sauce to a simmer and reduce the heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, about 1 ½ hours.
   Serve with cooked gnocchi and grated cheese.
   Sommelier Charles Scicolone’s wine paring: Aglianico del Vulture DOC Riserva 1999, Tenuta del Portale (Basilicata).