By Marie Nicola

If I was Ron Burgandy I would sing “I love beer. Beery, beer, beer. Here it goes down, down into my belly…” Regardless of how unappealing incriminating that quote may sound, I’m not ashamed to say it: I understand the value of a good brew. So sue me, I doubt I’ll be the first Canadian girl down with a frosty pint of suds, but I may be the first one to end the opening paragraph with: Beer Bread Is Dope.

Beer bread is totally dope. Seriously.

My quest is to cook with beer and for the first time I can legitimately go “grocery” shopping at the LCBO for a smorgasbord of Ontario brews to sample, share and cook with.

Hilariously enough, it comes to no surprise that Canada was a country founded on beer. Now why didn’t that Heritage Moment air?  Could you imagine if they showed a bunch of guys exploring the frosted Laurentians (i.e. a soundstage in East Toronto) all in an effort to create a smooth, frosty, ice cold beer? Actually that sounds more like a Kokanee commercial than a Heritage moment…

I digress.

Since the 1600s, Canada’s climate has been perfect for brewing beer creating an ideal environment for tons of small “down home” breweries to start up. Unfortunately, with the coming of prohibition, most of these craft breweries went under. Recently a rise in popularity surrounding craft brewing has resulted in a massive boom of stellar North American style beers (Cream Ales, Ice Beers, Red Lagers, North American Pilsners, etc).  Many of the beers are so surprisingly good, it’s easy to imagine enjoying a pint or, if you’re more ambitious, how you could even use them to cook with.-

Cooking with beer can be tricky. First off, it foams – a lot. Secondly, you need to pick the right beer. Bitter beers will reduce quickly and leave behind a horribly bitter flavor. Thirdly, the yeast in the beer seems to impart its own brand of leavening agent to baked goods, so you really need to be careful of exploding batters. Best tip for cooking with beer – keep it pale.

Beer tastes great in cooking because the hops in beer adds a lot of aroma to a dish, so the best time to add it to a recipe is usually at the end. A splash of stout to a chocolate fondue adds a comforting yeasty flavor that really is worth giving it a shot! Of course, choosing your beers wisely is important. For example, adding a Molson standard issue bottle of Canadian to a dish may be like mother’s milk to the elderly and the infirm, but for cooking, you might as well add tap water.

Luckily, finding a good Ontario brew isn’t any harder than going to a local LCBO. Most local breweries are carried in stock. Alternatively, scouring the Ontario Craft Brewers website (http://www.ontariocraftbrewers.com/) makes light work of locating small breweries in local regions with stellar product.

In Toronto, if you want to check out some breweries and sample their wares, Granite Brewery at Eglinton Ave and Yonge has a number of solid bitters, as well as the award winning Peculier Ale. This is a younger ale, so it has a lower alcohol content, but it has a bolder flavor while still remaining very refreshing. To cook with, go with their Ringwood Ale. The light flavor of hops is ideal for beer breads.

Also, I recommend taking the trek out to Great Lakes Brewery. Located in between Royal York and Islington it’s a bit harder to reach, but well worth the trip. Great Lakes produce a number of popular brews including the Golden Horseshoe Premium Lager, Black Jack Lager, Pumpkin Ale, Red Leaf Smooth Red Lager and their Winter Ale.  Their Black Jack Lager is a great substitute for red wine in any beef stew recipe, while the Golden Horseshoe Premium Lager is perfect for beer batters.

So there you have it, a down and dirty guide to the top Toronto microbrews, how to cook with beer and the history as written by Wikipedia. The only thing left is to post the beer bread recipe my boyfriend accidentally tossed in the garbage…. As a consolation prize, I included a recipe for a light and tasty beer batter that you can use for fish, calamari, onion rings or deep frying slices of potatoes in. However, if you happen to come across a maple beer bread recipe (especially one that may have been gifted to you by, my former colleague, Hilary Browning) – send it my way. It’s amazing!

Keep it classy, Toronto.

Beer Batter

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 teaspoons butter, melted
  • 1 cup light beer (such as a North American Lager, Pilsner or Cream Ale)
  • Pinch of baking powder

Directions

Using a fork, mix the melted butter through the flour and salt – thoroughly.

Add the beer and mix. Don’t worry about the lumps of butter. They disappear while frying and make the crispy batter bubbly.

Dredge your fish with flour followed by a quick dip into the batter before frying.

Make sure your oil is at around 375F and fry your fish until a golden brown. Set on a wire rack on top of paper towels to drain and crisp up.