Guinness For No Knead Black Bread

Asked by craig74. Answered on 19th December 2020

Full question

Hi Nigella and Team,

I am planning to make the No-Knead Black Bread from "Cook, Eat, Repeat". I will have 250ml Guinness left over when I do make it, and would like to use it to make Guinness Gingerbread (from "Kitchen") at a later date.

Can I freeze the Guinness without it affecting the finished result of the Guinness Gingerbread? Conversely, is leftover or frozen Guinness suitable for the No-Knead Black Bread, should that situation arise?

Guinness Gingerbread

By Nigella

Our answer

Nigella's No-Knead Black Bread (from COOK, EAT, REPEAT) uses Guinness as it adds flavour and colour to the bread. However for this particular recipe the carbonation of the Guinness is not that important as you need to let the bubbles subside before you mix the bread and the bread has a very long rise. For the Guinness Gingerbread (from KITCHEN) the fizzing does subside while the cake batter is bring mixed but the carbonation may help the gingerbread to rise a bit and give it a lighter texture.

You can freeze leftover Guinness to use for cooking but we would suggest that the defrosted Guinness is better for the No-Knead Black Bread than for the Guinness Gingerbread. It can also be used for stews or for the filling for Steak And Kidney Pudding.