Scotland’s Finest
Single malt Scotch whisky is a premium spirit produced in Scotland, at a single distillery, made exclusively from malted barley, using pot still distillation, and aged in oak casks for a minimum of three years.
The name whisky comes from the Gaelic “uisce beatha“, meaning “water of life”. Most of the world spells the word the Scottish way, “Whisky”. For reasons unclear to me, the Irish decided it should be spelled “Whiskey”. With the influx of Irish immigrants, the U.S. went with the Irish spelling.
Celebrations in Scotland often include enjoying a “wee dram” of whisky. Robert Burns birthday, January 25th, is a significant event in the spirits industry calendar, celebrated globally with toasts of Scotch whisky. Burns night also serves up a helping of traditional haggis, with a side of tatties and neeps, and a whisky cream sauce. A Scotch whisky cream sauce, of course!
This whisky cream sauce is also rather versatile, and easily customized. You can add more or less garlic, swap out the chicken stock for beef, or even maybe a dash of cayenne pepper to sip things up a bit. If you replace the Dijon mustard with horseradish, then the sauce is a fine addition to a prime rib of beef. For an accompaniment to a roast chicken, replace the thyme with tarragon. The only fixed rule is: single malt Scotch only!
Ingredients
Method
- In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Add the garlic and thyme and sauté for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Add the flour to the butter mixture, and sauté for another 3 minutes.
- Turn the heat to medium and add the dijon mustard and the whisky to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the chicken stock and heavy cream, bring sauce to a simmer and then cook for 5 more minutes, stirring constantly.
- Add salt and pepper to taste, serve warm.
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