Five Great Ways to Cook with Whisky from Appetizers, Entrées and Desserts!

The terrific combination of the culinary scene and whisky is not celebrated enough, and so when I hosted Johnnie Walker sponsored episodes of The Whisky Topic, I was thrilled that we could take a step deeper into cooking with whisky. Matt Jones joined me on the podcast. He started as a bartender, and is now a full-on mixo-gastro chef. Matt was kind enough to provide his five favourite whisky-related recipes, all featuring Diageo products. Have a look at Matt Jones’s website for a full list of services he provides in this theme.

In the meantime, get cooking with whisky and do listen to the podcast.

Talisker Ceviche (or Johnnie Walker Double Black)

Time: 45 mins-1 hour
Yield: 12 portions

Ingredients:

2lb shrimp deveined or white fish like snapper, mahi mahi, tilapia 
1 red onion thinly sliced and sweated with salt
1 ½ cups / 375ml fresh lime juice
4-6 garlic cloves finely minced
2-3 teaspoons kosher salt to taste
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1-2 chopped and seeded jalapeno
1 cup chopped cilantro 
2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cup diced cucumber
2 tablespoon olive oil

Avo Aji Sauce - Garnish 

½ cup fresh cilantro
1 red onion, medium dice
2 jalapeno flesh, no pith or seed 
2 shallots 
2 clove garlic 
2 rip avocados 
35 aji amarillo or habanero pepper sauce 
½ cup lime juice 
Salt to season

 Directions:

1. Combine shrimp, lime juice, minced garlic, salt, jalapeno for minimum 30 mins. Spritz with  Talisker atomizer to taste

2. While ‘cooking’, make Avo Aji Sauce. Combine all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Spoon into squeeze bottle

3. Halve tomatoes, dice cucumber, chop cilantro.

4. Before service, combine all ingredients. Season to taste

5. Dress plate with sauce, add ceviche and serve! 

Johnnie Walker Honeyed Ginger Salmon Dip

Prep: 4+ hours
Cook Time: 30 mins
Yield: 12+ portions

Ingredients:
1lb/16 oz boneless Salmon filet

Marinade:

½ cup/ 125 ml honey
⅓ cup/85 ml low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp minced ginger
Use half marinade with salmon in fridge 1-4+ hours
Other half of marinade to reduce with 1.5 oz Johnnie Walker whisky in sauce pan

 Dip:

3 tbsp lemon juice 
2 tbsp creme fraiche (store-bought or fresh)
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
¼ cup shallot
Lemon zest
S & P to taste

 Directions:

1. To make creme fraiche from scratch, start 12+ hours in advance. Combine buttermilk and cream, cover with dish cloth or cheesecloth (breathable) for 12+ hours. Start the night before. For every 250 ml of cream, ad 15 ml buttermilk (ratio 1:16)

2. Bake salmon at 350-400 for 15 mins

3. While salmon bakes, reduce remaining marinade by bringing to boil, then simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.

4. When salmon is cool enough to touch, break apart and combine with creme fraiche, parsley, shallot, zest, season to look.

5. Portion onto crostini or crackers. Drizzle reduction, garnish with pinch sesame seed and cilantro

Lagavulin Whisky Risotto 

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 1 hr
Yield: Depends on mushrooms! 6-12-20 portions

Mushroom dashi: 

1. Simmer 500 ml mushrooms like shitake and cremini with rough chop scallions for about 45mins with 2L water and 1 sheet kombu (edible kelp). 

2. Remove from heat. Add 3 pinches lapsang souchong. Let steep until cool and strain

Pickled shiitakes:

Handful hydrated shiitakes/creminis from dashi recipe
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup mushroom dash
1/2 cup sherry vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce

Combine and simmer until mushrooms absorb the liquid, about 1 hour.

Coconut duxelles:

1. Purée ½ cup cremini mushrooms in food processor 

2. Add tbsp oconut oil

3. Salt & pepper to taste

4. Cook until browned and dry in sauce pan

5. Add 1 can coconut milk and reduce until the oil begins separating.

Risotto:

1. Toast ¼ cup arborio rice in coconut oil until golden brown.

2. Salt & Pepper to taste.

3. Add remaining rice (3/4 cup), toss to coat, and deglaze with 3 cups white wine.

4. Cook risotto just under al dente with mushroom dashi.

5. Finish with 1 can coconut milk, ½ cup coconut duxelles, and 2 oz Lagavulin 

Combine

• Serve risotto in rice bowl, garnish with sherried mushrooms, carisins, raisins and sour cherries, toasted coconut 

Johnnie Walker BBQ Ribs

Prep: 12+ hours
Cook: 4-10 hours
Yield: 4-6 portions

Ingredients:

4 lbs pork spareribs (meatier)

BBQ Rub:

½ cup paprika, ½ cup kosher salt, ½ cup sugar, ½ cup garlic powder, ¼ cup onion powder, ¼ cup chili, ¼ cup cumin, 2 tbsp black pepper, 2 tbsp dry mustard, 1 tbsp Cayenne Pepper - mix thoroughly 

1/2 sweet onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic
1 cup ketchup
½ cup scotch
½ cup honey
¼ cup apple cider vinegar 
¼ cup Worcestershire 
1 tbsp dijon mustard
Salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Spread rub all over ribs and massage in with your hands.

2. Wrap in foil or plastic wrap on a baking sheet and let sit overnight in the refrigerator.

3. Place all the sauce ingredients into a saucepan over medium heat.

4. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sauce has reduced by about ¼. This will take approx. 30 minutes. Let cool.

5. Place sauce in food processor/blender and mix until smooth

Place spareribs in slow cooker

1. Coat ribs with ~½ of the BBQ sauce.

2. Cook on low for 8-9 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

4. Once cooked, carefully remove the ribs from slow cooker and place on foil-lined (for easier clean up) baking sheet.

5. Slather ribs with more of the BBQ sauce and cook for 10-15 minutes in preheated oven, until slightly crispy on the edges.

6. Serve immediately with remaining BBQ sauce.

Talisker S’Mores 

Prep: few minutes + set time for marshmallow 2+ hours
Cook: 10 mins
Yield: 12-15

Ingredients Marshmallow:

4 sheets gelatin or 2 ½ tsp gelatin powder
½ cup water
⅓ cup light corn syrup - plain not high fructose
2 egg whites
2 cups sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp vanilla 
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup Bowmore 12

 Directions:

1. Grease baking sheet plus line with parchment paper or foil. Dust with powdered sugar.

2. Place 4 gelatin in bowl with cold water let stand minimum 5 mins

3. Beat salt and egg whites until peaks form

4. Heat whisky, sugar, vanilla, corn syrup in saucepan to 240 (5mins)

5. Squeeze and remove gelatin sheets (if using) and stir into syrup away from heat until dissolved

6. Pour mixture slowly into egg whites while beating (avoid mixer - splatter). Gradually mix on high about 5 mins until glossy shine and cool to touch 

7. Immediately pour into the prepared baking sheet. Dust with more sugar. Refrigerate 2+ hours

Ingredients Graham Cracker:

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
7 tbsp butter
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp whole milk
⅓ cup honey
2 tsp vanilla 

Directions: 

1. While marshmallow sets, in a bowl or food processor, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and sugar evenly

2. Add wet ingredients including butter, milk, honey, and vanilla. Mix or knead until dough ball formed.

3. Spread dough on baking sheet, press between 2 pieces of parchment paper, form crackers (score and skewer)

4. Bake 15 mins 

Assemble: 

1. In skillet or oven friendly saucepan, melt chocolate chips, cover with marshmallow, brown with torch or under broiler

2. Serve graham crackers on side and dip away! Can also portion and plate individually 

Thank you to Matt Jones for providing us with these recipes, and thank you to Johnnie Walker that sponsored the podcast that inspired this posting. Cheers!

When To Trick Your Whisky Drinking Audience

The Whisky Topic is on its sixteenth episode! I see podcasting as the equivalent to DVD commentary found on many blu-ray and DVD movies (I didn't invent this concept, I think Dan Benjamin may have). This week’s episode is an excellent example. I would rarely write about any of the tastings that I host—it would make for a boring read. I do think, though, it makes for an interesting listen.

This week, Jamie and I are joined by Glenford Jameson to discuss a blind tasting I hosted at my place a few weeks back. I’ve stressed it is important to maintain trust with your audience when doing blind tastings. It insults your audience if you pair two dynamically different whiskies in hopes of ‘tricking’ them. However, I made an exception. I asked a group of friends I regularly drink whisky with to participate in a ‘tricky’ blind tasting. They didn’t know what they were up for, but I broke all the rules. I served them:

• slightly different versions of the same whisky
• the same whisky
• the same mash bill and age statement, but different label

The results were fascinating! Have a listen. Plus, we debuted are new theme song in big thanks to Alan Doyle!

Consumer Protection and The Whisky Industry→

This week’s The Whisky Topic is incredibly insightful. Lawyer Glenford Jameson joins me to talk about consumer protection in the whisky industry. In the old days of the whisky world where tobacco and other substances were added to whisky, consumers needed protection from unwanted substances in their drink. The Bottled in Bond Act passed for that reason.

Today, we’re no longer worried about pesticides and poisons being introduced into our whisky. Consumer protection isn’t necessarily a health issue, but a quality and control issue. Companies are spending more money on branding and marketing than they are on their whisky, and that should tell us something. There are loopholes in the definition of whisky that distilleries are taking advantage of.

Despite this serious topic, it’s a fun podcast! Have a listen. 

Health Claims and Whisky→

Light whisky? Low-corb anti-oxidiant whisky? Jamie and I discuss the various health claims attributed to whisky. We mostly think it's BS. Plus, we discuss how bars treat men and women differently when ordering drinks, and our favourite manhattan and old fashion recipes. Have a listen! We would love to hear your feedback. 

The Whisky Topic Podcast, Episode 4 - No, Not Blanton's!→

This week on The Whisky Topic, Glenford Jameson (Food Lawyer) joins me as we explore the Kentucky whisky scene. It involves us tasting a lot of whisky we can't possibly buy because it has all been sold out. The trip to Buffalo Trace was mind-blowing. We tasted fantastic bourbons and ryes, and we talk about some of our favourites. Of most interest, we talk about the selection process Buffalo Trace uses for Blanton's single barrel bourbon and Elmer T. Lee. Somehow, we ended up talking about Maker's Mark cask strength bourbon, and where it sits against similar products. 

The Whisky Topic - Episode 3 - All About Pappy Van Winkle→

Fresh off our recent gold mine of Van Winkle products, Jamie and I discuss Pappy Van Winkle. Is it worth the hype? Are whisky drinkers a touch sensitive about Pappy? Is Pappy 15 the perfect Pappy? Plus, Mark went to Panama City. 

The Whisky Topic, Episode 2→

Jamie and I got together for the second episode of The Whisky Topic. This time we tackle Irish Whiskey, No-Age Statement whisky, and manage to get side-tracked about how much we dislike flavoured spirits. 

The Whisky Topic Podcast, Episode 1→

On the very first episode of The Whisky Topic, Jamie Johnson and I tackle how best to drink whisky. Neat, on ice, or warmed? We run some tests. It's slightly scientific. We also talk about the mash bill controversy, bourbon pricing, and Sex in The City. Have a listen, and please provide feedback.