If you’re in recovery, getting into cooking can be a great way to eat and live well. But, cooking means experimenting and working with food – and alcohol is in so much food. Whether you’re cooking for yourself or for your loved one, you probably want to know if cooking with alcohol affects your sobriety.
That’s a good question because the answer is “maybe”. It depends on how long you cook and at what heat. If you’re just adding alcohol to a sauce or even a vinaigrette, the old adage that alcohol cooks off isn’t true. Instead, like many things, alcohol “cooking off” is a chemical process.
So, cooking with alcohol may actually affect your sobriety. In fact, it can get you drunk. Plus, there are other reasons you may want to avoid anything that tastes or smells of alcohol – especially in early recovery. We’ll go over those reasons so you can decide if cooking with alcohol is a good idea.
Yes and no. The longer you cook food, the more the alcohol will evaporate. But it’s nowhere near as fast or as thorough of a process as most people think. For example, many drinks are actually served hot. E.g., mulled wine which is actually boiled in spices before being served – and it still gets people drunk. So, how much alcohol is really “cooked off”. That depends on the heat, the duration of cooking and some other, more unpredictable factors, like altitude.
For example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s nutrition retention program did research on alcohol retention in food. That research shows it depends on many factors. For example, food cooked for 15 minutes at a rolling boil still has about 40% of the original alcohol content. 2.5 hours later it has about 5% of the original alcohol content. That’s not usually a lot of alcohol in a serving of food but maybe more than you want for your sobriety.
In fact, depending on the type of alcohol you use, retention rates could be even worse. Plus, the research shows average alcohol content per serving of popular dishes, after cooking.
For example, a standard serving of alcohol is about 14 grams of pure alcohol. A normal beer which is 5% alcohol is about 12.8 grams. A serving of wine (3.5 ounces) is about 9.3 grams. And, a shot of vodka or tequila is about 15.9 grams. Compared to some popular dishes with alcohol used in cooking:
Pot-roast Milano – 0.2 grams of alcohol per 168 gram serving
Orange Chicken Burgundy – 0.6 grams of alcohol per 196 gram serving
Scalloped oysters – 1 gram of alcohol per 108 gram serving
Cherries jubilee – 2 grams of alcohol per 87 gram serving
Grand Marnier sauce – 1 gram of alcohol per 26 gram serving
That may surprise anyone who thought alcohol completely cooks off. And, while some people say alcohol completely disappears from food after 3 hours of cooking time, there’s no proof that’s true. So, in any case where you add alcohol to food, there’s a good chance there’s still alcohol in the food after cooking.
None of them have a lot of alcohol – after all, you’d have to eat over a pound of cherries jubilee to get to a single serving – but they do have alcohol. And that may not be good for your sobriety.
Exposure to alcohol is important in early recovery. But don’t practice long term avoidance of alcohol. Why? When you do run into alcohol you’ll relapse if you’re not prepared. But in the short term, avoiding alcohol is usually a good thing. That’s important because even the smell of alcohol can cause a relapse. In fact, smells can have more impact on someone’s relapsing than actually drinking.
In one study, people were exposed to things that tasted like alcohol versus smelled like alcohol – such as beer in the bottom of a dixie cup – and the latter group was more likely to relapse. That’s because for most people, submitting to cravings is about the dopamine response – the hormone/neurotransmitter responsible for “wanting” and feeling good about wanting things.
That’s easily triggered by smells which remind most of us of good things and good times – without the added reminder that alcohol is bad for us and has led to very bad times.
So cooking with alcohol can be bad for your sobriety by exposing you to the taste and smell of alcohol. That can trigger a relapse. That’s why some specialists recommend avoiding even alcohol flavored or things like “bourbon barrel aged syrup” in early recovery.
Eventually you’ll have to increase your exposure to alcohol so you can live life without avoiding places that have alcohol. But do it in early recovery in limited doses until you’re sure of your stability, your mental health and your coping mechanisms.
For a healthy person with a good history of stability and no cravings, there’s probably no problem with a little bit of alcohol in your food every now and then. For someone in early recovery or who still has cravings, that’s not the case at all. Just like with alcohol free beers, even that tiny bit of alcohol can prolong your addiction and dependency on a substance.
Most importantly if you can’t stop looking for ways to have alcohol, you probably need treatment and counseling – even if you’ve had it in the past. Part of recovery is being able to recognize when you need help and ask for it and then make that a recurring process as you move on with your life.
The amount of alcohol in food is finite. But it’s not zero and never will be. If you cook a dish for 3+ hours it will have very tiny amounts of alcohol in it. If you flambé a dish with brandy it will have 86% of the alcohol in it. And with no way to know exactly how much alcohol is in a dish you’re risking your sobriety every time you cook with alcohol.
If you have any questions about our drug rehab and alcohol rehab programs, contact us today to speak in complete confidence with one of our experienced and caring addiction treatment team.
When dining out, individuals in recovery should take the following steps:
Alcohol can often be used in cooking, particularly in sauces, marinades, and desserts. For individuals in alcohol recovery, even small amounts of alcohol in food can act as a trigger or prolong cravings, making it critical to ensure meals are alcohol-free.
What are common foods or sauces that contain alcohol?
Some common foods and sauces that may contain alcohol include:
No, alcohol does not completely cook off during food preparation. Even when simmered or baked, trace amounts of alcohol can remain, depending on the cooking method, duration, and temperature. For individuals in recovery, it’s best to avoid foods cooked with alcohol altogether.
How can you substitute alcohol in recipes?
Alcohol in recipes can often be replaced with non-alcoholic alternatives. Some options include:
If you suspect alcohol is in your meal:
Yes, many desserts often include alcohol for flavoring or as part of their preparation. Examples include tiramisu with rum or liqueur, rum cakes, bourbon-glazed pastries, cherries jubilee, and flambéed desserts.
For individuals in recovery, even small amounts of alcohol can act as triggers, reigniting cravings and jeopardizing sobriety. It’s essential to avoid foods or drinks containing alcohol to maintain recovery progress.
Be clear and upfront with the server or chef. Politely explain that you cannot consume any food or sauce containing alcohol and ask detailed questions about the preparation methods to ensure your meal is safe.
Yes, meals that are typically safer include grilled, baked, or steamed dishes without sauces, simple salads with oil-based dressings instead of vinaigrettes with wine, and non-marinated meats or vegetables that avoid alcohol in preparation.
It’s generally not recommended for individuals in recovery to consume foods made with alcohol-free beer or wine. While labeled “alcohol-free,” these products may still contain trace amounts of alcohol that could act as triggers.
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