One of the main things I love about beer is that there\u2019s always an element of mad science involved in each brew. Each of its four ingredients can be manipulated a million ways to create the perfect brew for any situation. Lucky for us, cooking is one of these situations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking into cooking with beer as an ingredient, a tried-and-true favourite in my house is the legendary Beer-Can Chicken. But once you give that a go a few times, you\u2019ve basically mastered it, and will likely want to dive a little deeper. Also, our brewers have worked too hard to have a half-can of their beer shoved up the exit end of a chicken carcass (it\u2019s tastier than it sounds, trust me). And this, my friends, is where the fun begins.<\/span><\/p>\n A few cookbooks exist on the topic with some interesting recipes and with some general guidelines. Luckily, more and more books are appearing on the shelves as chefs experiment and discover different flavours. If you don’t want to do a bunch of research, you\u2019re generally safe with the following rules of thumb:<\/span><\/p>\n And since you now have me talking about my favourite brewpub, let\u2019s talk about Spinnakers. There aren\u2019t many places that you can find one of the best views in the city, fresh delicious beer, and a locally sourced menu all under one roof. Unless you’re talking about Spinnakers. <\/span>With beer involved in almost everything on the menu, you\u2019ll want to make sure you stop by the next time you\u2019re in Victoria. But I digress.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Perhaps you\u2019re more of a cavalier in the kitchen like myself. If so, you can take the four rules of thumb from above and have at it. Or, if you\u2019re even more like me, you can throw out all the rules and let the beer flow into everything you cook. I like to play around with my food (sorry mom). I have only one rule in the kitchen: \u201cIf a recipe calls for water or wine, you can just go ahead assume they mean beer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Be warned, If you like exact and precise, you can follow this recipe to the word, but feel free to add or take away from it depending on your own tastes. I\u2019m a culinary cavalier remember??<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ef5pdbk7uqr.exactdn.com\/app\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Beer-Ribs-Uncooked.png?strip=all&lossy=1&quality=90&webp=90&avif=80&sharp=1&resize=978%2C733&ssl=1\")
<\/span><\/p>\nWhere to Start<\/h2>\n
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Follow The Rules, or Not…<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ef5pdbk7uqr.exactdn.com\/app\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Canadian-Craft-Beer-Cook-Book-300x225.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&quality=90&webp=90&avif=80&sharp=1&resize=400%2C300&ssl=1\")
If you\u2019re like my wife, you like rules and structure and you’ll probably want to find a cookbook. My suggestion would be The Canadian Craft Beer Cook Book<\/em>. It has some great recipes that will give you a good start, as well as some interesting profiles on Canadian Craft Beer Icons \u2014 including the BC brewpub that started it all \u2014 Spinnakers<\/a> in Victoria. <\/span><\/p>\nLet’s Get Started<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ef5pdbk7uqr.exactdn.com\/app\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Liquids-in-the-Ribs-300x232.png?strip=all&lossy=1&quality=90&webp=90&avif=80&sharp=1&ssl=1\")
By now, you’re likely excited to try cooking with beer. Good! to get you started, I\u2019m going to share one of my personally developed, beer-infused recipes that could be one of the few reasons my wife is still with me: my “Famous” Shandy Ribs. I\u2019ve made this enough times that I\u2019m willing to put it out there with confidence. If you want the full experience, try out my homemade Beer-BQ Sauce and Rib Rub too!<\/span><\/p>\n– Beer Appetite<\/em>. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do! –<\/h3>\n