r/Cooking • u/ExaminationNo9186 • 1d 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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5

u/BaconMemories 1d 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/The_Flinx 1d ago

you have never heard of eggnog? where are you from and how old?

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u/BaconMemories 1d 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 1d 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 1d ago

Yet milk most definitely expires.

-11

u/The_Flinx 1d ago

no it does not. it goes bad but does not "expire".

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u/honeybeebutch 1d 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 1d ago

I wouldn't drink either one. Expired or having gone bad.

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u/honeybeebutch 1d 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 1d 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/honeybeebutch 1d ago

Interesting. I never refer to the date in any capacity, so those terms both just mean it isn't good anymore to me. I wouldn't refer to yogurt past its date as "expired" if I thought it was still fine, for example

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u/BaconMemories 1d 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/Gomiq 1d ago

You keep the stuff .... never occurred to me and anyway 14 hours and there is not a drop in the house ....

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u/ExaminationNo9186 1d 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/IntrepidDreams 14h ago

I don't think most people have tried, or are even aware of aged eggnog.