Beer...It's Not Just For Drinking Anymore!

If there’s one thing I have failed to do with this blog since its inception is to provide more cooking tips and recipes.   Now mind you, I’m not going to profess to be some sort of gourmet chef when it comes to cooking (with or without wild game).   Yet, I must humbly say if you ask any members of my family they will quickly point out that cooking is one of my passions…and that’s mostly because I like good food.

If I look back at the stats for this blog one of the most “Googled” links ever happens to be a fish batter recipe I re-printed from a former Minnesota State Legislator.   You can find it here.   Aside from that, you have to go back to one of the very first posts on this blog site (can you believe it almost four years ago now) to find some of the other cooking suggestions I made here.

What got me thinking about a blog post on cooking was an e-mail I received from a publisher back a few months ago.   It was touting a book entitled The Ultimate Beer Lover’s Cookbook by John Schlimm.   The book contains more than 400 recipes (many using wild game and fish) but all containing a common ingredient — beer.

It got me thinking how not only do sportsmen like to drink beer, but often times some of our best recipes will contain this cherished beverage.   Personally, I will admit that I am NOT a beer drinker, but when it comes to cooking with the substance I have no qualms whatsoever if it ends up in my food.   In fact, in many instances beer is not only a great cooking liquid but it intensifies the flavor of many things cooked with it.

To check out Schlimm’s book you can find it on Amazon.com by clicking here.

In the press release for the book it offered several mouth-watering recipes, such as:

Barbecued Venison

 

Yields 6 Servings

  

Ingredients:

12 ounces beer

3 cloves garlic

Salt (to taste)

Pepper (to taste)

2 onions (sliced)

3 bay leaves

3 pounds venison round steak (trim away excess fat)

2 cups barbecue sauce of choice

 

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the beer, garlic, salt, pepper, onions, and bay leaves, mixing well.  Add the venison to the mixture, coating it completely.  Refrigerate the venison for 12 hours to overnight, occasionally turning it.  Remove the venison and onions from the marinade and place them in a crock-pot.  Pour 1 cup of the barbecue sauce over the venison and cover the crock-pot.  Cook the venison on low for 11 hours or until desired doneness.  Serve the venison with the remaining barbecue sauce.

or how about:

Sweet & Sour Trout

 

Yields 10 Servings

  

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter

2 onions (chopped)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

12 ounces beer

2 tablespoons brown sugar

5 peppercorns

2 cloves

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

3 pounds trout fillets (cut into bite-size pieces)

1 tablespoon vinegar

 

Directions:

In a skillet, combine the butter and onions, sautéing the onions until they are tender.  Add the flour and cook the mixture, uncovered, for 3 minutes.  Add the beer, brown sugar, peppercorns, cloves, and Worcestershire sauce, cooking over a low heat and stirring until the mixture is thickened.  Add the trout filets and cook the mixture, covered, until the filets are done.  Add the vinegar and cook for 2 minutes longer.

Now certainly this blog post would be remiss if I didn’t share one of my own beer-laden concoctions.   It’s rather simple, but check it out:

 

Slow Cooker Venison & Beer

 

Yields About 6 Servings

 

Ingredients:

2 pounds stew venison, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 envelope onion soup mix

12 ounces beer

3 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 tablespoon light brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried leaf thyme

dash garlic powder

1 bay leaf

 

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker except for the beer.   Toss until meat is well coated with the dry ingredients.   Then pour beer over the venison mixture and stir.   Cover and cook on HIGH for 5 to 6 hours.   Remove bay leaf before serving.   Serve over noodles, rice or potatoes.

 

As they say…Bon Appétit.

 

2008 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Tags: cooking+with+beer

Comments

[Tom Sorenson]

I'll admit to having a strong dislike for beer or any kind of alcohol - except to cook with! I love beer battered shrimp and most any type of fish! Wonderful...I will have to check out some of these other recipes, too! Especially the sweet & sour trout - that just sounds delicious!