You probably have a bottle or two on your shelf at home. You may even consider vodka to be your libation of choice. Three of the top ten best-selling liquors in the world are vodka brands.
You don’t just have to drink it, though — cooking with vodka is another way to get your fix. It adds a spiciness and tang that pushes recipes to the next level.
Ready to try it out? Here are X recipes to get you started:
1. Martini Cheese Dip
Let’s start with a starter. This recipe gets its name from the famous cocktail, which many people drink with vodka and garnish with olives.
You’ll do the same with the dip. To a cream cheese and mayonnaise base, you’ll add olive juice, vodka and coarsely ground pepper.
Once everything’s mixed, you can pour it into a martini glass to serve with vegetable dippers. Now, that’s a new type of vodka mixer.
2. Scallops With a Vodka and Lime Dressing
You can always start a meal with seafood, too.
This vodka recipe takes only 14 minutes to whip up. Indeed, it’s a simple one — you’ll just make a lime-and-vodka dressing to pour over your fresh scallops.
Don’t get rid of the shells, though. They make perfect plates for serving and eating your vodka-laden appetizer.
3. Vodka Lemon Chicken
Most people love the freshness of lemon chicken. You can add a little zing by cooking with vodka next time.
Vodka plays a pivotal role in this recipe. After cooking breaded chicken, you’ll use four tablespoons of the liquor to deglaze the pan and create the base for your sauce. To it, you’ll add capers, lemon juice, parsley, basil and some seasoning.
A few grilled lemon slices top everything off and make your meal look pretty. If anyone asks, try and make them guess where the spiciness comes from — they’ll never imagine vodka.
4. Bloody Mary Soup With Beans
You may buy vodka primarily for drinking. Perhaps you love a Bloody Mary in the morning. Now, you can enjoy a bit of that tomatoey zing with this cocktail-inspired soup recipe.
It requires quite a few ingredients but, altogether, they create a layered, spicy taste. Simmer all of your spices, veggies and beans together for a half-hour to bring out all of the flavors.
The result will be a warm, spicy soup perfect for a wintry day — maybe one when you don’t have time for a proper cocktail.
5. Drunken Shrimp
Sometimes, we don’t have time to wait for our dinner to simmer for 30 minutes. That’s where this drunken shrimp stir fry comes in.
It takes 10 minutes to marinate your shrimp and lemongrass in a tasty blend of soy sauce, garlic, cilantro, jalapeños and lime juice. Then, it takes only three minutes to cook the shrimp. You’ll then pour vodka over the top and cook for an additional minute — or until the alcohol smell dissipates.
All the while, have a pot of rice going, so you can serve your shrimp over it. That’s a 30-minute weekday meal complete.
6. Ultimate KFC – Korean Fried Chicken
On weekends, you probably have more time to dedicate to your culinary pursuits. If you’re looking for a challenge this Saturday or Sunday, then you might want to try Korean fried chicken.
It takes 90 minutes to make and requires 25 ingredients — including 90 milliliters of vodka. However, for all of your hard work, you’ll be rewarded with the juiciest, crispiest chicken.
7. Penne Alla Vodka
We can’t talk about cooking with vodka without mentioning penne alla vodka.
The Italian dish comes with a creamy tomato sauce, made a bit spicy by the addition of — what else — vodka. Just make sure you spend ample time cooking down the liquor, or else it can overpower the flavor of your dish.
When it’s done right, though, penna alla vodka has layers of rich and spicy flavor. You’ll want to keep vodka on hand to whip this one up when you have dinner parties — everyone loves this liquor-laden dish.
8. Vodka Mac and Cheese
The only thing that could make mac and cheese better would be adding liquor to it. This recipe succeeds in seamlessly bringing together two of your favorite tastes.
You’ll start by whipping up a vodka-based sauce, which you’ll cook down to remove the alcohol flavor. Then comes the cheesy part — you’ll mix Parmesan and feta for extra tanginess.
The mac and cheese bakes for 35 minutes until its crispy and golden on top. Then, you’ll spoon it out and enjoy the delicious, unexpected combination of vodka and your favorite childhood meal.
9. Orange-Vanilla Ricotta Cheesecake
On that note, let’s move onto desserts.
You can do a lot with vodka in this department. In this case, you’ll use a vodka and marmalade mixture to coat your ricotta-based cheesecake.
You’ll pour the vodka mixture over the top of your cheesecake, which starts with a shortbread crust at its base. Then comes the cheese-based portion, sweetened with plenty of sugar, vanilla and orange.
10. Vodka Dark Chocolate Mousse
Finally, you might want to try mixing vodka with chocolate. It’s as delicious as it sounds.
You only need eight ingredients — including a mere tablespoon of vodka — to whip up a light, sweet mousse. You’ll also get the delicious flavor of Irish cream in your dessert, which softens the vodka and amps up the chocolate’s sweetness.
This recipe feeds a half-dozen people, making it the perfect dinner party addition, too. Perhaps you can whip up an appetizer and main from this list for your next boozy get-together.
Cooking With Vodka – The Possibilities are Endless
These ten recipes are just a handful of the many ways you can start cooking with vodka. No matter how you use it, it becomes a tasty addition to any dish — it’s not just for drinks anymore.
Which one will you try first? Tell us in the comments section below.
