As a savvy brewer, you take simple quality ingredients and—with practical knowledge and techniques—combine them for the best results. When you think about adding an ingredient to a brew recipe, you think about what the ingredient can contribute to the overall flavor profile that you are trying to achieve. Cooking with beer is much like brewing in this sense. You want to choose the right beer flavor and style to create the taste and texture you want on your plate.
Back to the Future
While cooking with beer has really moved beyond fried fish and the infamous beer bread, we can learn something from a quick look at those recipes. Think about the best fried fish you ever ate. The batter was probably light but crunchy, and the fish was rich and flaky. There is a good chance that the fish you have in mind was made with a beer batter. Adding beer to the batter enhances the texture of the fried fish because when the fish hits the hot oil, CO2 in the beer is released, creating air in the coating. This then provides that nice light crunch without having to overcook the fish inside. Think about how the same kind of batter might work with eggplant or zucchini.
Who doesn’t love beer bread for its dense but tender texture, sweet flavor, and nice chew? The use of beer in the bread helps produce this tasty result. As you mix bread, proteins in the flour become hydrated and gluten strands form. Sugar in the beer counteracts this process as it fights for the liquid. This process keeps the bread from rising too much and helps create that tasty tender texture.