In recent memory, the realm of craft beer has been heavily influenced by complex adjuncts meant to impart distinct flavors that go well beyond the impact of traditional non-malt sources or, what is typically found in OG adjuncts: hops and yeast.

Today, whether we are drinking an imperial stout that resembles your morning sticky bun, imbibing a strangely arousing chili beer or sipping a heavily fruited sour, the landscape of beer pushes far past “beer-flavored beer” and plays on the imagination of the consumers who are buying it as well as the creativity and execution of the adventurous brewers cranking it out.

In this piece, instead of focusing on beer that taste like foods, we are delivering notable recipes that include beer as a major ingredient. In these dishes, beer delivers some welcome bitterness, subtle sweetness and spicy notes as well as that delightfully familiar effervescence. With these dishes, you’ll find that cooking with beer is rewarding and fun.

Bon appetit!

IPA Cornmeal Crusted Cod

Ingredients: Yields 4-6 servings

• 2 lbs. Wild Pacific Cod
• 2 Cups of Cornmeal
• 12 oz. IPA or American Pale Ale
• 3 Eggs
• Peanut Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Garlic Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Pepper
• Coarse sea salt
• Lemon
• Paprika
• Organic Cayenne Pepper Powder (if you like it hot!)

Instructions:

1. Pat cod filet dry and slice into palm-sized pieces. Sprinkle both sides of the fish with garlic salt, pepper and paprika.
2. Whisk eggs in a shallow dish and add 12 oz. of your chosen IPA or pale ale. Using a fork, gently combine the egg mixture with the beer. Place the pieces of fish in the egg beer batter and let it take a swim for a few minutes to fully absorb.
3. On the stove, heat two to three inches of peanut oil on medium-high.
4. Cover a large plate with a flat, thick surface of cornmeal and transfer the fish from the egg-beer mixture onto the crumbs. Coat all sides completely.
5. As the oil heats up, place the cornmeal crusted pieces into the oil and fry on both sides until golden brown with a light crisp.
6. Remove fish from the oil and place on a wire rack. (Don’t place on paper products or it will continue to steam)
7. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, paprika and cayenne (if you like it spicy!) and enjoy!

Since I am acquainted with the fact that Southerners know how to host a good fish fry, I chose to use an Ananda IPA from Wiseacre Brewing, located in Memphis, Tennessee, as the base for the beer batter.

This IPA is ideal due to its advertised “fluffy texture” from the malted and flaked wheat. Plus, it nods to traditional fish n’ chips with its English Ale yeast and yields tropical notes that work well with the light fish due to the presence of Cascade and Centennial hops. Delightful!

Chili Beer Peach Pico De Gallo

Ingredients:

• 4 ripe Peaches
• A dozen cherry/grape tomatoes
• Diced Green Chiles
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cayenne
• Cilantro
• Chili Beer (We used Rahr & Sons Paleta de Mango)

Instructions:

1. Roughly dice up peaches, cilantro and quarter/halve cherry tomatoes.
2. Combine diced peaches, tomatoes, cilantro and green chiles in a festive bowl and add 2 oz. of your choice Chile beer into the fruit and veggie mixture.
3. Top pico with additional cilantro leaves and pair with plantain or tortilla chips and the remainder of your chili beer of choice.

Growing up in Texas, I am a big fan of spicy Tex-Mex cuisine and not surprisingly, I’m a sucker for a tremendous chili beer. I gravitate towards the Paleta de Mango from Rahr & Sons Brewing Co., out of Fort Worth, Texas, that showcases pungent spiciness from the Mexican pequin chilis, offers great acidity from the fresh lime and finishes with a round, ripe sweetness that works beautifully with these peak season Palisade peaches.

“German” Banana Beer Bread

Ingredients:

Prep: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 50 minutes

• 1 ½ Cups All Purpose Flour
• ½ Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• 3 Overripe Bananas
• 1/3 Cup Melted Coconut Oil
• ¾ Cup Oktoberfest Beer (We used Seshtober from Call to Arms Brewing)
• 2 Eggs
• ½ Cup Chopped Pecans/Walnuts

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients: flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, mash bananas and add two whisked eggs, melted coconut oil and the beer of your choice.
4. Slowly add the dry to the wet mixture and mix thoroughly until there are no visible, oversized lumps from the bananas or brown sugar. Fold in the chopped pecans.
5. Generously grease loaf pan with butter/leftover coconut oil or baking spray and bake for 50 minutes, golden brown and until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Allow loaf to cool, then slice, dig in and pair with your leftover Oktoberfest.

It’s officially that festive time of year when avid beer drinkers excitedly clink together steins of malty, bready Oktoberfest beer with zeal. I find Seshtoberfest, a session Märzen from Call to Arms Brewing Company in Denver, Colorado, to be the perfect complement in this golden loaf characterized by its similar nutty, toasted and slightly sweet flavor profile.

Since the original brewers were mostly women, i.e., the priestesses of Ninkasi, who would derive beer from bippar (twice-baked barley bread which was then fermented), the frothy liquid is unequivocally tied to baking. This recipe reimagines a classic beer bread using a full-bodied brew and marries it seamlessly with my favorite A.M. indulgence of banana bread.

*High altitude baking tip: As a resident of Colorado, when baking I recommend upping the temperature 10-15 degrees, adding a touch more flour than the recipe calls for and occasionally baking for an additional 5-10 minutes.

Although cooking with beer is not a new concept, it has room to grow and provides you more avenues to explore incorporating your favorite beverage into your cuisine. (Be honest, it’s already in your hand when you’re cooking anyway).

The next time you’re playing chef, consider adding a splash of an IPA to your sauce for more brightness or receive a hint of chewy caramel in your baking from an amber ale. Once added to the dish, you won’t feel as bad about finishing about the six-pack!

We hope you enjoyed these dishes and believe that this story will convey how adding a beer can radically amp up your tried-and-true kitchen favorites.