Uh oh, no wine? Pick a substitute. Le Creuset French oven available at SurLaTable.com.

There are a number of substitutes for both red and white wine; although, advises chef Louis Eguaras, you need to be sure that the sweetness level of the substitute is appropriate to the dish (i.e., grape juice may not work in every dish).

Red Wine Substitutes

White Wine Substitutes

Keep A Supply Of “Cooking Wine”

To be sure we always have wine, we take the last few ounces from a bottle of wine and fill up small repurposed bottles with tight caps—eight or sixteen ounces, one for red wine, one white. The limited amount of air keeps the wine usable for months and the small bottles tuck into the back of the fridge. You can keep topping off the “cooking wine” bottle: It’s O.K. to mix different wines.

Never buy anything called “cooking wine”: It’s the dregs!

We love this fusion recipe for St. Patrick’s Day: Corned Beef and Cabbage Egg Rolls. It’s from Dietz and Watson, purveyors of fine deli meats.

Chinese egg rolls are filled with cabbage and bits of pork. Here, corned beef substitutes for the pork, creating an “Irish” egg roll. The recipe serves 4.

“FUSION” CORNED BEEF & CABBAGE EGG ROLLS

Ingredients

Substituting lots of corned beef for bits of pork makes this an “Irish” egg roll. Photo courtesy Dietz & Watson.

Preparation

1. COOK CABBAGE. Melt butter in a large skillet over high heat. Add cabbage and cook just until the cabbage starts to give off liquid and reduces in half. Do not overcook; the cabbage should remain crisp. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate cabbage until completely cool, at least two hours.

2. MAKE EGG ROLLS. On a work surface, create double wrappers by layering one egg roll wrapper on top of another, flat. Spread each of the four doubled wrappers evenly with 1 teaspoon of sandwich spread. Pat cabbage dry with a paper towel. Distribute the cabbage on the wrappers and top with the corned beef. Heavily brush the edges of one egg roll wrapper with the beaten egg. Begin rolling the wrapper tightly around the filling. Halfway up, fold in the sides, then continue to roll the rest of the way. Repeat with the other wrappers.

3. FRY EGG ROLLS. In a large, high-sided pot, heat the oil to 350°F. Gently drop in the egg rolls and fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove and drain on a towel. Slice in half on the bias.

4. SERVE. Serve with stone ground mustard or Chinese mustard for dipping.
  

[1] Spicy, creamy, and crunchy Jalapeño Poppers. Here’s the recipe (photo © Ricardo Cuisine).

[2] Jalitos from Leon’s Texas Cuisine, the first commercially-sold Popper-style food (photo © Leon’s Texas Cuisine | Facebook).

[3] The first product to be called Jalapeño Poppers were a frozen product from Anchor Foods (photos #3 and #7 © Anchor Foods | McCain Foodservice).

[4] Bacon stuffed jalapeños. These aren’t exactly poppers—they’re baked. But we like that we “save” calories and fat on the breading and frying. Here’s the recipe (photos #4, #6, and #9 © Taste Of Home).

[5] Poppers appreciate a creamy dip. Or, you can serve them with salsa. Here’s the recipe.

[6] Chiles Rellenos are the ancestor of Jalapeño Poppers. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste Of Home).

[7] If you’re making your own, consider using red jalapeños instead of green. Their “pop” of color makes the Poppers look better, and they have more complex flavor. Commercial ventures use green jalapeños because they’re less expensive.

Who knew that Jalapeño Poppers were invented by a major food company? We always figured they’d come out of some hip Tex-Mex restaurant.

But it turns out that Anchor Food Products of Appleton, Wisconsin invented jalapeño poppers in 1992—making 2012 the 20th anniversary of poppers.

Below:

> The history of Jalapeño Poppers.

> How to serve them.

> Recipes.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The history of chile peppers.

> The different types of chiles: a photo glossary.

> The year’s 25+ Mexican and Tex-Mex food holidays.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF JALAPEÑO POPPERS

Stuffed and breaded chile peppers existed in various forms in Southwestern and Mexican-American cooking long before they were commercialized as “poppers.” Think of Chiles Rellenos, stuffed poblano chile peppers (photo #6).

Per Saveur Magazine, snack-sized stuffed chiles began to appear in the Texas in the 1950s, when import stores began to advertise a canned Mexican product consisting of “jalapeños stuffed with cheese, sardines, red snapper and shrimp.”

Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, recipes stuffed jalapeños—what we now call Jalapeño Poppers—appeared in newspapers, restaurant ads, and elsewhere, occasionally under the name “armadillo eggs.”

By the time Dallas-based syndicated food columnist Dotty Griffith wrote an appreciation of them in 1989, she termed them “standard fare.”
 
 
The First Commercial Brand

The first company to sell breaded, stuffed, ready-to-fry chiles commercially was Leon’s Texas Cuisine of Dallas, a commercial supplier of corn dogs and other breaded, fried products.

 
So Anchor Food Products, a major manufacturer of breaded, frozen, ready-to-fry appetizers and bar foods, applied for a trademark on the term “Jalapeño Poppers” on April 30, 1992.

 

[8] Since the first two manufacturers, other companies have produced Poppers: all cream cheese, all Cheddar, a mix of both, a recipe with more heat, and so on (photo © Fry Foods).
 
 
HOW TO SERVE JALAPEÑO POPPERS

Poppers are delicious with a beer and can be served with a dip or sauce: marinara sauce, pepper jelly, ranch dressing, salsa, or other favorite.

We combine pepper jelly with fat-free Greek yogurt to add a bit of sweetness without the cholesterol; plus a breading of Japanese-style panko breadcrumbs.

One of our favorites dips provides a “fusion” touch: Thai sweet chili sauce. Here’s a brand with reduced sugar.
 
 
RECIPES: MAKE YOUR OWN POPPERS

________________
 
*Why not introduce the product as Jalapeño Poppers from the get-go instead of Jalapeño Cheese Melt (which sounds like a melt sandwich to us)? We don’t know for sure, but it may have been a business decisions—a defensive measure to own the term and prevent competitors from using it. “Jalapeño Poppers” was already becoming street slang on bar menus and in casual usage. By trademarking it, Anchor could potentially control or license the term across the food service industry.

The strategy paid off. “Jalapeño Poppers” became the universal term for the product, which helped propel the dish into mainstream popularity. By early 1995, both Applebee’s and TGI Friday’s had added jalapeño poppers to their menus, firmly fixing the dish in America’s culinary consciousness.
 
 

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

Here are 10 tips to make your salads so exciting, that a small amount of olive oil and negligible-calorie vinegar (or citrus juice) is all the dressing you need.

1. Mix Your Greens. If you’re budget-conscious, use a base of the more affordable iceberg and romaine lettuces, but blend in two other salad greens. Arugula, endive, radicchio, mache, red leaf lettuce, red cabbage, spinach and watercress are generally available, or you can buy a small amount of mesclun to toss with the iceberg or romaine.

2. Add “Secondary Greens.” Choose from broccoli, broccolini, broccoli rabe (rapini), cabbage, cucumber, fennel, green beans (raw or cooked), green olives, green peas, green onions (scallions), seaweed, snap peas, snow peas, zucchini and whatever we’ve left off this list.

3. Add Fruit. A few berries or grapes give natural sweetness and a color accent to any salad. But don’t overlook chopped dried fruit, diced melon or melon balls, figs, raisins, thin-sliced (matchsticks are great) apples and pears, and orange segments. Avocado is also a fruit.

4. Use At Least Three Colors. For red accents, consider beets, cherry or grape tomatoes (larger varieties in season), fruit, red onion, red bell pepper or jarred pimento. For the yellow/orange group, try carrots (for fun, shave them into ribbons), chickpeas, corn kernels or miniature corn, diced/sliced potatoes, shredded Cheddar, summer squash, yellow beets, yellow bell pepper or yellow tomatoes. For black accents, use black beans, black olives, black sesame seeds. For white accents: crumbled cheese, diced/sliced potatoes, cannellini beans, water chestnuts.

6. Add Leftover Proteins & Grains. Toss in a bit of beef or poultry, some cubed tofu, tuna or other fish or seafood, or sliced boiled egg. We’re not talking “dinner salad” but just small flavor accents. Also add any leftover grains or starches for flavor as well as texture.

7. Consider Some Cheese. A tablespoon of grated Parmesan, crumbled blue or goat cheese, or shredded semihard cheeses (Cheddar, Colby, Edam, Jack, provolone, ricotta salata and numerous others).

8. Think Themes. Try to come up with a different theme each week. For example, Asian-inspired salad with baby lettuces, bok choy, daikon and sesame seeds, and a rice wine vinegar/soy sauce vinaigrette; an Italian theme with radicchio, romaine, sundried tomatoes and shaved Parmesan; a Mexican theme with lettuce, black beans, green onions and a salsa dressing, topped with shredded queso blanco or Cheddar cheese.

10. Use fresh herbs. Some herbs make the salad sing: basil, chives, dill, parsley, sage and thyme, for starters. Snip it into the salad prior to tossing, or use as a garnish. If you like heat, add some diced fresh jalapeños (remove the seeds and ribs).

Now, we’re off to make a salad!

The pearl barley used in this recipe has had its outer bran and husk removed, leaving a small white “pearl” of endosperm. Like white rice, pearl barley is not a whole grain.

This recipe, which serves four, is from Justin O’Connor, Executive Chef at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. It will be served at the restaurant on St. Patrick’s Day.
 
 
BARLEY RISOTTO STUFFED CABBAGE RECIPE

Ingredients For Stuffed Cabbage

Ingredients For The Tomato Sauce

 
Tomato Sauce Preparation

1. Sweat. In a pan, sweat onion and garlic with olive oil for 3-4 minutes. Do not allow them to brown.

2. Combine. Add the chopped tomato and tomato purée.

3. Add. Add vegetable stock and season with salt and pepper.

4. Cook. Cook over low heat for 7-8 minutes. Blend and serve.
 
Stuffed Cabbage Preparation

1. Blanch. Blanch the cabbage leaves in boiling salted water for 3 to 4 minutes and cool in ice water.

2. Sweat. In a pot, sweat the onion, mushroom and garlic with a little olive oil for 4 or 5 minutes, without turning brown.

3. Add. Pour in the stock, barley and thyme. Cover with a lid and slow cook till barley is tender, adding more stock if needed. When barley is cooked, add the cream and Parmesan cheese and cook out for 2 to 3 minutes. Season to taste.

4. Stuff. Line 4 small teacups, acting as molds, with plastic wrap. Line each cup with a drained cabbage leaf, leaving some of the cabbage leaf extending over the edge. Fill the cups with the cooked barley risotto and cover with the overhanging cabbage. Use the plastic wrap to remove the stuffed cabbage from the cup. Twist the plastic wrap around the cabbage/risotto to form a ball.

5. Serve. Add tomato sauce to the bottom of each dish; serve stuffed cabbage in the center. Serve while hot or reheat in the microwave.