Bourbon Land A Spirited Love Letter to My Old Kentucky Whiskey, with 50 recipes

In his highly anticipated follow-up to the James Beard Award-winning Buttermilk Graffiti, Edward Lee examines his favorite libation—bourbon—with recipes, essays, history, profiles, distillery tours, and more. * Named a Best New Cookbook of Spring 2024 by Eater, Epicurious, and Food & Wine

Knowledgeable, entertaining, and more than a little infatuated with his subject, award-winning food writer and chef Edward Lee gives us his insight into bourbon, telling us everything we should know about the mellow honey-brown treasure that’s put Kentucky on the global map: How bourbon is made. Its history. How to read a label. A look inside the famous distilleries. The influence of oak. Tours of Kentucky’s bourbon regions. How to taste bourbon like a professional. And, in the most delicious surprise, how to cook with bourbon, with 50 recipes from Bourbon-Glazed Chicken Wings and Blackened Salmon with Bourbon-Soy Marinade to a Bourbon and Butterscotch Pudding. Plus the best Old-Fashioned you’ll ever mix.
 

 

Edward Lee is the chef/owner of 610 Magnolia and Nami in Louisville, Kentucky, and the culinary director for Succotash Restaurants in Washington, DC, and Maryland, for which he was awarded a Bib Gourmand from the Michelin Guide. He is also the cofounder of the LEE Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to diversity and equality in the restaurant industry. He operates the non-profit restaurant M. Frances in Washington, DC, as part of the LEE Initiative’s overall mission. He was awarded the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award in 2021. Chef Lee was the recipient of the 2019 James Beard Foundation Award for his book Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting Pot Cuisine. His first book was Smoke & Pickles. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for his role as host of the Emmy-winning PBS series TheMind of a Chef. He has hosted and written a feature documentary called Fermented. 
 

Introduction   
 
Who Is Bourbon?        
But What About Whiskey?     
How Bourbon Is Made          
A Brief History of Bourbon   
How to Cook with Bourbon   
Fire and Toast 
The Cooper: Paul McLaughlin           
A History of Kentucky Cooperages   
Bourbon During Prohibition   
Lapsang Souchong Manhattan          
What Glass Should I Use to Drink Bourbon?       
Ice Cubes and Whiskey        
Fire Is Essential, But So Is Water      
What’s in a Label?     
Bourbon Distillery Tour: The I-65 South Corridor    
Bacon Corn Pone with Bourbon Onion Jam 
Fried Halloumi Cheese with Spiced Bourbon Honey
How to Reduce Bourbon        
Roasted Fennel and Bourbon–Burnt Orange Salad   
Beef Tartare Served on Burnt Oak Planks     
Bone-in Pork Chops in Bourbon Marinade with Bourbon Whole-Grain Mustard Sauce    
Charred Rib Eye Steak with Bourbon-Soy Butter     
Corn and Leather        
Why Corn Is Used in Bourbon        
Beyond Corn: Wheat, Rye, Barley, and Malt 
Boulevardier  
The Names Behind the Labels       
The Chef: Lawrence Weeks 
The Proper Way to Taste Bourbon     
What Is Moonshine, and Is It Related to Bourbon?  
Distillery Cats           
Bourbon Distillery Tour: Louisville City Limits       
Warm Goat Cheese Dip with Bourbon-Soaked Cherries    
Corn, Avocado, and Peach Salad with Bourbon-Sesame Vinaigrette         
Chilled Corn and Bourbon Soup     
Watermelon, Mint, Feta, and Fried Peanut Salad    
Bourbon-Cured Salmon Salad           
Corn Dog with Bourbon Mustard   
Roasted Sweet Potato with Bourbon-Miso Butter     
Bourbon Coffee Glazed Ham Steak with Fried Apples        
Oak and Spice
The Flavors in White Oak    
Straight Bourbon vs. Blended Bourbon        
Barrels After Bourbon          
Classic Old-Fashioned         
Is Bourbon a Masculine Drink?         
The Distiller: Elizabeth McCall         
What Came First: Bourbon Whiskey or Bourbon Street?     
Bourbon and the Mississippi River   
Truth in Advertising 
Bourbon Distillery Tour: Lexington and Environs    
Bourbon and Gochujang BBQ Shrimp         
Bourbon-Glazed Chicken Wings        
Quail with Roasted Banana BBQ Sauce        
Blackened Salmon with Bourbon-Soy Marinade, Bok Choy, and Green Apple        
Pork Meatballs in Bourbon-Gochujang Coconut Broth      
Grilled Chicken Thighs in a Honey, Miso, and Mustard Marinade 
Yeast and Umami    
Bourbon and Umami  
Gold Rush       
How to Taste Bourbon Like a Pro      
The Critic: Fred Minnick       
How to Pair Bourbon for a Dinner Party   
The Importance of a Rickhouse         
The Bourbon Flavor Wheel   
Bourbon Distillery Tour: Central Kentucky  
Mushroom Grilled Cheese with Bourbon Gravy       
Whiskey Vidalia Onion Soup
Slow-Grilled Chinese Eggplant in Bourbon Miso    
Poached Oysters in Bourbon Brown Butter  
Bourbon-Poached Bass with Peas and Scallions      
Brown Rice, Spelt, and Bourbon Risotto       
Braised Beef Shanks in Bourbon Sauce         
Copper and Caramel  
Pot Still vs. Column Still      
Paper Plane    
Starting a Bourbon Collection        
The CEO: Victor Yarbrough
Bourbon in Pop Culture          
Bourbon Distillery Tour: Northern Kentucky and the Ohio River   
Bread Crumb Pancakes with Bourbon Maple Syrup
Bourbon Cherry Ice Cream Sandwich         
Bourbon Balls with Toffee-Popped Sorghum, Milk Chocolate, and Bourbon Pecans      
Fig, Walnut, and Saffron Kulfi with Bourbon Honey 
Lane Cake     
Bourbon and Butterscotch Pudding 
Corn Ice Cream with Bourbon Caramel        
The Legend: Fred Noe            
Bourbon Distillery Tour: Western Kentucky 
Bourbon’s Road Ahead          
 
Kentucky Distilleries  
Further Reading         
Acknowledgments      
Index  
About the Author