Spinach Artichoke Saké Dip

 

Combine:

16 oz. jar artichoke hearts (drained)
1/2 C. Nama Saké
 

Marinate overnight:

2 Cups mayonnaise
1 Cup Sour cream
1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese
Dash lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
 
  • Top with bread crumbs or panko & parmesan cheese.  Then drizzle with olive oil and bake for 20  minutes or until bubbly.
  • Serve with bagel chips, crackers or corn chips.

 

Cooking with Saké
 My mother Linda Stradley, and I , toured the Sakéry together, she is a terrific chef and put together some information on cooking with Saké.  Her web site, What's Cooking America is full of great information.

The first and most important rule: Use only sakes in your cooking that you would drink. Never, never use any sake that you WOULD NOT DRINK! If your do not like the taste of a sake, you will not like the dish you choose to use it in. The process of cooking/reducing will bring out the worst in an inferior sake. Please promise yourself never, never to stoop to such a product!  Linda's rule of thumb is: I do not cook with something I will not drink.

An expensive saké is not necessary, although a cheap saké will not bring out the best characteristics of your dish. A good quality saké that you enjoy, will provide the same flavor to a dish as a good quality wine. Save the premium saké to serve with the meal. For best results, saké, just like wine, should not be added to a dish just before serving. It should simmer with the food, or sauce, to enhance the flavor of the dish. If added late in the preparation, it could impart a harsh quality.

The function of any alcoholic drink in cooking is to intensify, enhance and accent the flavor and aroma of food - not to mask the flavor of what you are cooking but rather to fortify it. As with any seasoning used in cooking, care should be taken in the amount of saké used - too little is inconsequential and too much will be overpowering. Neither extreme is desirable. A small quantity of saké will enhance the flavor of the dish. The alcohol in the saké evaporates while the food is cooking, and only the flavor remains.