Wine

I can't imagine cooking without wine (yes, IN the food, as well as in my glass while I'm cooking!) There are only a couple of rules for cooking with wine:

1. Don't buy "cooking wine." It's very poor quality wine, and has added salt.

2. If you wouldn't drink it, don't add it to a dish.* While wines you cook with don't have to be expensive (I didn't cook with the bottle pictured here!) they do have to be decent. The wine's flavors intensify in cooking, so if it's bad, it will only get worse with cooking. Avoid heavily oaked wines for the same reason--the oakiness will be intensified.

3. Dry wines are best for cooking (unless you're adding wine to a dessert, and then sweet wines, fortified wines, and liqueurs are OK).

*Exception to the "don't use it if you won't drink it" rule: Dry vermouth is a great white wine substitute. I'm not tempted to drink it, it keeps forever without refrigeration and it's cheap!