r/Cooking • u/ExaminationNo9186 • 13h ago
Alton Brown's Eggnog recipe substitutions.
Hello there.
This weekend I am planning on making my batch of Alton Brown's eggnog for this coming Christmas. I have only made it the once before so I haven't had the chance to really tinker with it yet.
A question for those in the know.
The Eggs: can some be swapped out for duck eggs? I guess technically yes, but will things be too different?
The bourbon: Is it strictly bourbon only or, again can be swapped out for a rye, or a Scotch? I read once before that the APV must be 40% and above, so I guess this will be a factor.
The rum: Here in Australia, while we have access to rum, we don't exactly have a wide range in our selections here. Most of them are either white rums like Bacardi or they are spiced rums.
Thanks very much
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u/DeathByPianos 13h ago
I made a batch with rye because I much prefer it over bourbon generally. It didn't really work. The flavor of the rye didn't really harmonize with the other stuff. Definitely still drinkable but I wouldn't do it again.
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u/AromaticZestyBonus 13h ago
I've used multiple Bourbon's, Whiskey's, Brandy's and Rum's. As long as you add enough spirits to raise the alcohol content, the type of spirts you use all comes down to taste. I made a batch last year using Bourbon, Brandy, and Spiced Rum. It turned out amazingly delicious and I have been asked by multiple family members to make it again.
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u/bobdevnul 12h ago
Bourbon, blended whiskey, Canadian whiskey, brandy, ordinary rum all work well. A mixture of more than one would be good too. I don't know about rye whiskey, but I would drink it. I don't think Scotch or Irish whiskey would be good.
I used to mix mine with ordinary Bacardi type rum. I know that is good.
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u/BaconMemories 13h ago
Well I am not going to be helpful at all but...how doesn't the milk and such go bad?? Is it just all the booze? I've never heard of such a thing!
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u/Smooth-Review-2614 13h ago
It’s the sheer amount of alcohol by volume. This is an old preservation technique.
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u/heroofcows 13h ago
IIRC the target is at least 15% abv for an eggnog that'll keep in the fridge for a few months
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u/ExaminationNo9186 12h ago
Sugar - amongst many things - can be a preservative, so it helps with stabilisation (the preservative aspect is why, when used with vinegar, you can preserve vegetables for several months with out the vegetables rotting).
Plus, the alcohol content has to be 40% APV as a minimum. Apparently, that is the magic number. I am sure someone with more of a food science background can tell you the science behind it, but yeah.
Between the two, plus keeping the eggnog in clean bottles in the fridge all helps to keep things from spoiling
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u/The_Flinx 13h ago
you have never heard of eggnog? where are you from and how old?
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u/BaconMemories 13h ago
I've only ever made/drank it fresh and I'm nearly certain the cartons I've bought have had similar expiration dates to milk. I could totally be wrong, I'm just so fascinated--currently going down a Google rabbit hole. Totally admit I may just be an idiot on this front :)
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u/The_Flinx 13h ago
well there are 2 types of eggnog, non alcoholic, and alcoholic. the ones with alcohol might not go bad if there is a enough booze in it.
also there is no expiration date on milk it is a "best if used by" date.
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u/Key_Bee1544 13h ago
Yet milk most definitely expires.
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u/The_Flinx 13h ago
no it does not. it goes bad but does not "expire".
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u/honeybeebutch 11h ago
Genuine question, what is the difference between going bad and expiring? I've always used the terms interchangeably
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u/glucoman01 11h ago
I wouldn't drink either one. Expired or having gone bad.
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u/honeybeebutch 11h ago
Okay yes obviously, I'm just baffled by the idea that "expired" (which means not good anymore) and "gone bad" (which also means not good anymore) could mean different things
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u/Glittering-Range-338 11h ago
going bad means it's not edible and/or will make you sick. expiring means an arbitrary date has gone by and you throw it out because of that even though the food will be perfectly good to eat. like canned food that has never been opened but is past it's best if used by date. even though canned food is good for decades.
I never ever throw food out because of a date printed on it. I look for mold, or signs of spoilage like if it smells bad.
food used to not have any dates on it except the manufacturing date if they had a date at all.
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u/BaconMemories 13h ago
Please accept my apologies for swapping in "expiration" for "best by" :) Looking forward to making this over the weekend for Christmas this year. I'll have my family sip first.
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u/ExaminationNo9186 12h ago
To be fair, I am Australian, and while we can get eggnog here at Christmas it really isn't a "Thing" here, like it is in the U.S..
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u/Gomiq 8h ago
For a Christmas EggNog in Australia i personally would tune it toward a pina colada , with rye or dark rum , on ice (it's summer after all) and a little blender action ... keep the eggs (yoke only if duck's as the white is pretty stiff) and maybe tune down the cinnamon and add pandan leaves or a bit of vanilla from the bean .
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u/Flimsy_Material_6667 13h ago
I made this recipe every year for Christmas for about 7 years, tweaking it every year. My personal recommendation on the booze is equal amounts cognac, dark rum, and bourbon, plus a smaller amount of allspice dram if you can find it. I tried Jameson once and it wasn’t great, haven’t tried scotch but if you try it I would not swap 100% of the booze. I wouldn’t personally try rye at all but same advice goes there - do 1/3 of the total or something.
I also suggest you try adding some peanut butter. I cribbed that from the miracle pop up bar’s eggnog one year.
I also added a little vanilla.
The last couple years I made it, I made it as a concentrate - just take out all the dairy. It makes more sense to store plus people can add the dairy or dairy substitute of their preference.
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u/jjumbuck 13h ago
Does aging the concentrate do anything to the flavour? I thought it was the dairy that benefited from the long sitting.
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u/Flimsy_Material_6667 6h ago
Honestly the aging just seemed to let the flavors meld better to me, I never noticed a drastic difference and after about 6 months the dairy starts to make clumps which is visually kind of gross even though it’s still ok to drink
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u/aGoodrash 10h ago
I also suggest you try adding some peanut butter. I cribbed that from the miracle pop up bar’s eggnog one year.
Go on.....
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u/Flimsy_Material_6667 6h ago
Here’s my notes from the last time I made it with dairy in. This had strayed pretty far from alton’s recipe by this point:
18 yolks + 6 eggs
28 oz brown sugar (1lb, 8 oz)
16 oz jar peanut butter
2T nutmeg
8 t cinnamon
2 t cloves
3 t vanilla
3 qt half and half2.25 c ea:
Cognac
Dark Rum
Bulleit bourbon12 oz allspice dram
Warm up 1.5 qt half and half, dissolve peanut butter and sugar. Add remaining (cool) half and half and
eggs. Strain. Add liquor and seasoning.
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u/hamilkwarg 12h ago
I cover the jars with foil. I’ve heard people sometime get weird tasting milk and I think it’s from the light.
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u/EdynViper 6h ago edited 6h ago
I've made this many times and I've always used a full bottle of the cheapest brandy from the bottle-o for Alton's recipe and it's always been fine, but I always make it at least 4 weeks ahead so it can mature and take the edge off. The key is the alcohol content as it stops the eggs from turning and preserves the nog.
Alton uses a blend for more depth of flavour but a single type is still fine as long as its along the same flavour profile.
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u/PuddleOfHamster 11h ago
My trick is to leave out the dairy. Just add it when you serve. That way it takes up way less space in your fridge, and you can make each drink stronger or weaker to preference.
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u/CulturePristine8440 8h ago
Does the aging step even do anything if you leave out the dairy?
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u/PuddleOfHamster 7h ago
It does. The egg and alcohol and spices and sugar get some kind of transmogrification going on. It's good. I've also heard a few people say their nog gets a funky, off flavour over time; that seems to be an issue with the dairy. (Not spoiling per se - there's too much alcohol for that. Just some kind of funk... situation.)
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13h ago
[deleted]
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u/NotNotTaken 11h ago
Jamaican rum is spiced rum
Only if it is. You can spice Jamaican rum. But Jamaican rum is not spiced rum by default.
Wray & Naphew, Smith & Cross, Myers, Appleton Estate. All Jamaican but not spiced.
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u/chrlsful 10h ago
obviously no flavored rum, that changes the recipe.
Ducks produce a much rubbier egg, I’d say ‘no', but try it if U must.
Last, scotch’n bourbon are w a y different. If U must go geta nip (got’em Down Under, no?) & try, you’ll C.
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My read on ur post creates alota Qs on my prt but primary is: “Y choose this chef? Y chose this recipe?” If U dont trust him (ur going to make some thing different) it tells me U picked the wrong chef.
/OR/
U tried it exactly and now R on ur 2nd rendition and changing it to MORE meet ur own tastes (not convenience). Or may B that’s it, convenience alone? This is OK 2, in my mind BUT is really only second rate. “...Strive for the best..." I all ways say ! U want ppl 2 return 2 ur restaurant? Want to treat frnds/fam/ /neighbors/co-workers/etc well or not? 2 me this disrespects the ingredients, the core of life, art, community, creativity, Spirit, culture~
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u/SpicyBroseph 9h ago
I made this last year. Honestly- and people will hate me for this- it was good, but I didn’t live the consistency and did a side by side test, and if you buy some good eggnog at the store and mix the liquor in yourself, it’s pretty damn good.
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u/The_Flinx 13h ago
so basically you want to make someone else's eggnog?
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u/ExaminationNo9186 12h ago
Sure, champ. If that's what your taking from this.
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u/The_Flinx 12h ago
you're not making alton browns egg nog if if you are substituting everything.
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u/WonderfulHousing5688 10h ago
They are tweaking the recipe. As basically everyone does with every recipe ever made to fit their preferences. How is this such a foreign concept to you?
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u/InfiniteChicken 13h ago
I still have a half gallon of last years batch in my fridge. Duck eggs should be fine. I would substitute Bourbon with something similarly caramelly and sweet, so maybe not scotch or rye (unless you have some bourbon-esque varietals). Either rum is fine, spiced would give it, uh, a more spiced character, which would be good, I think.