280222 Tue Oct 11 10:17:45 -0700 2005 19 31 Home Cooking 0 1487957 I found a recipe for roasted eggplant with curry. It calls for making a paste out of the curry powder, some sesame oil, garlic, and sherry (can't remember how much, but less than a 1/4 cup). I don't have sherry and don't want to buy it. Can I just use water? Vermouth? Thanks for any advice. AH Tue Oct 11 10:17:45 -0700 2005 0 Alex Halsey 1 1487959 Vermouth might work, or you could use white wine. Tue Oct 11 10:27:50 -0700 2005 1487957 0 Linda W. 1 1487967 Personally, I would buy a small bottle of sherry, I don't think anything else would substitute well. If you get some Harveys Bristol cream, it lasts forever and is great splashed into winter soups upon serving. (Especially Manhatttan clam chowder). I'm sure they have little half size bottles? Tue Oct 11 11:01:29 -0700 2005 1487957 0 coll 2 1487977 I would have to agree.. I find sherry to be a very versatile ingredient. for salad dressings, deglazing, quick pan sauces, marinades, etc. I don't go as $$ with harvey's... but usually buy christian brothers. I wouldn't drink it straight.. but at $3.99 it will do in a pinch. Tue Oct 11 11:19:14 -0700 2005 1487967 0 withalonge 2 1487986 I would not use a cream sherry, Harvey's or anyone elses to cook with. It will be too sweet. You want something medium bodied or dry to cook with. But if you want go ahead with white vermouth. Tue Oct 11 12:14:20 -0700 2005 1487967 0 Candy 3 1487996 Very preferably French vermouth (Noilly Pratt) rather than Italian. Tue Oct 11 12:28:40 -0700 2005 1487986 0 Karl S. 4 1487999 Absolutely Tue Oct 11 12:31:18 -0700 2005 1487996 0 Candy 4 1488008 Why is this? Is one stronger than the other, or do you think the Italian ones are poorer? Tue Oct 11 12:49:50 -0700 2005 1487996 0 Wisco 5 1488020 They taste and smell very different. Get a bottle of Noilly Pratt and a bottle of Cinzano and do a taste and sniff test. You will see right away that the herbs used are very different. Tue Oct 11 13:19:19 -0700 2005 1488008 0 Candy 6 1488059 Italian is only for drinking, not cooking; its herbal mix tastes much nastier when reduced by cooking. If you cannot get Noilly Pratt, then go (believe it or not) for Gallo, which from what I have heard is not as nasty as the genuine Italian mixtures can get when cooked. Tue Oct 11 14:17:37 -0700 2005 1488020 0 Karl S. 7 1488859 Thanks for info. Taste test, here I come! Sun Oct 16 23:33:13 -0700 2005 1488059 0 Wisco 2 1488019 I am interested in your comment that "it lasts forever". I have always heard that the longest you would want to store an opened bottle of sherry would be a few days to a week, and after that it will be oxidized. Since I never drink sherry, I can't really tell if it tastes right or not, but have assumed that it was no good if it was more than a couple of weeks old. I have often wished that they would sell six-packs of little bottles for those who only use it for cooking. Comments? Tue Oct 11 13:14:33 -0700 2005 1487967 0 John Kent 3 1488023 OK I just ran downstairs and took a sniff of the bottle I have, smells like the day I got it...that was about 10 years ago, by the way (Christmas gift from a long-gone customer). Tue Oct 11 13:26:25 -0700 2005 1488019 0 coll 4 1488025 Just thinking, maybe because it's Harveys Bristol Cream and not some fine vintage stuff? I do have other sherry for drinking, but I find this is great for cooking. Tue Oct 11 13:28:15 -0700 2005 1488023 0 coll 5 1488029 I think there is also a difference in the shelf life of sweet sherries, such as Harvey's, and other sherries, such as finos, manzanillas etc. (which is what I use for cooking). Tue Oct 11 13:35:06 -0700 2005 1488025 0 MMRuth 6 1488094 Yes. Good finos, etc. keep more like regular white wines. Tue Oct 11 16:33:07 -0700 2005 1488029 0 Aromatherapy 5 1488093 I just did a bit of web searching and found this (link below): "Once fortified wines are open, they should be consumed as soon as possible. Fino and manzanilla sherries are the ones that need the quickest consumption. Once you've opened a fino, manzanilla, or even an amontillado sherry, drink it within two days. Keep it refrigerated. With port, madeira, and stouter sherries, such as olorosos, palo cortados, and all creams, a period of one week to ten days is the absolute maximum that they should be allowed to remain open. Once the seal is broken, fortified wines become quite vulnerable." I'm not familiar with the website, but if you believe their homepage they are not motivated by a desire to sell more sherry. Link: http://www.spiritjournal.com/taste101.htm Tue Oct 11 16:31:04 -0700 2005 1488025 0 John Kent 3 1488073 Since sherry is a fortified wine, it lasts longer than a regular wine would. Stored in the classic cool, dry place, it should last for a year or so without a noticeable decrease in quality. You could even keep it longer, but as the years went by you'd likely note a drop-off in taste. Tue Oct 11 14:50:46 -0700 2005 1488019 0 LT from LF 1 1487991 Shao xing or rice wine would work, but you might not have that either. I might use a dry white wine in a pinch, but I think it's wise to just buy a bottle of dry sherry to have on hand. It's the most versatile of my cooking wines. I use sherry alot in fall and winter soups. Doesn't have to be pricey either; I just buy the basic one from Trader Joe's for like $5. Tue Oct 11 12:20:56 -0700 2005 1487957 0 Carb Lover 1 1488003 Sherry adds a lovely kick to many soups, and I often use it to deglaze the roasting pan after roasting a chicken - it has a richness that white wine often does not. As other posters mentioned, I'm sure vermouth (French) would work as well though. Tue Oct 11 12:41:10 -0700 2005 1487957 0 MMRuth