The 6 Best Bourbons To Use When Cooking, According To Chefs

While many of us grab whichever bourbon is handy when we cook with it, we wanted to know which bourbons chefs use. It turns out that most have a favorite and often don't use anything else. However, we also found that a lot of chefs guard their favorite cooking bourbon closely.

Luckily, we found several chefs willing to let us in on their favorite one to use for cooking — or second favorite, if they didn't want to divulge too many secrets. We got recommendations from chef Sara Salzinski from The Chopping Block, chef Caroline Barrett from Capital Cooks, chef Matt Finarelli from Red Jacket Cooking School, chef Matthew May from Matthew May's Teaching Kitchen, and chef Timothy J. Galloway form Old Bourbon Country Kitchen. All of the chefs we talked to either work for a cooking school that teaches bourbon cooking classes or they regularly make bourbon-infused dishes in the restaurant where they work. So, they know a thing or two about cooking with bourbon.

In all, the chefs we talked to offered up six bourbon brands they thought were among the best for cooking. If you already have one of these in your liquor cabinet, you're just a good recipe away from a tasty bourbon-infused meal.

If you're looking for bourbon that can fit nearly any dish you might want to cook, Bull Run Straight Bourbon Whiskey may be just that whiskey for you. It's the only one that The Chopping Block in Chicago, Illinois, uses when it teaches its bourbon-based cooking classes. Chef Sara Salzinski, a chef instructor and curriculum coordinator for the school, explains that Bull Run "has a depth of flavor many other spirits lack. It not only adds familiar booziness to your dish, but it enhances notes of vanilla and caramel."

The Bull Run Distillery is in Portland, Oregon, and its small batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey is an 86.80 proof bourbon and has plenty of rye (25%), along with corn and a little malted barley. Chef Salzinski says that its "high rye content and at least four years barrel aging add an intense layer of spice to this rich, well-rounded bourbon. Hints of cinnamon, allspice and vanilla meld with brown sugar and caramel to balance out the sweet, spicy notes."

Being extremely versatile is what allows the cooking school to use it in all their bourbon-infused dishes. She says that she particularly likes to "pair this bourbon with strong flavors like beef, pork and fish such as salmon." She says it also "shines in sauces, glazes, and desserts." As an example of how to use it, the school includes it in their class recipes for bourbon-glazed cedar-planked salmon and bourbon-cider glaze that goes over spiced apple hand pies.

Another great option for cooking with bourbon is Four Roses Bourbon. This one is a favorite of chef Caroline Barrett, who is the chef and co-owner of the Capital Cooks cooking school in Albany, New York. She says, "Like Julia Child said about cooking with wine, I apply the same philosophy to baking with bourbon: 'I love to bake with bourbon and sometimes I even put it in the cake!'" Priorities!

Four Roses Bourbon is an 80-proof bourbon from Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. It's made with springfed water, and a combination of corn, rye, and barley and has hints of apple, pear, baking spices, and honey. It also ranks high on our list of best bourbon brands.

If you've tasted this one, it's a no-brainer to use for cooking, especially if you're making something sweet. Chef Barrett says, "We like to have a nip at the end of a long day, and Four Roses is a favorite. Since it's what we like to drink, it is what I end up using in baking." She goes on to explain that it has "a good bite of bourbon of course, but there's also a gentle sweetness in flavor." The flavor being smooth and light rather than heavy helps it blend well into dishes. When chef Barrett uses Four Roses Bourbon in her baking, she means business. She says, "My favorite recipe is a chocolate bourbon cake, complete with chocolate bourbon buttercream."

The owner and an instructor at the Red Jacket Cooking School from the Washington, D.C., area, chef Matt Finarelli, has some very specific things he looks for when choosing the right bourbon for cooking. Those things come together in Woodford Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey, a triple-distilled 90.4 proof bourbon from Versailles, Kentucky.

So, what are his criteria? First, he says, the bourbon should be one that you want to drink anytime, not just when cooking, which Woodford Reserve is. His second criteria is affordability. Woodford reserve costs around $50 per liter rather than hundreds. Finarelli explains that "the subtle nuances of flavor that make those [more expensive] bourbons distinct are likely to be lost when flambéd in a pan, or baked into a confection." A third criteria is consistent flavor and availability so his dishes always turn out the same. And this is one that he can easily find.

Chef Finarelli describes Woodford Reserve as being "rich in caramel and vanilla with only a hint of smoke, and a warm oakiness." He says that it makes a " great addition to chilis and for sauces on pork. I love to make maple-bourbon sweet potatoes for meals in the fall, and chocolate bourbon pecan pies any time I get the chance. Bourbon is the backbone of most of my BBQ sauces, and it pairs especially well with peaches, blueberries, and chipotle peppers." He also likes to pair it with chocolate and to use it to infuse his whipped cream.

Chef Matthew May told us about a fairly unique bourbon he likes to cook with, Jefferson's Ocean Aged At Sea, a very small batch Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. Chef May is the owner and a culinary instructor at Matthew May's Teaching Kitchen in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

While this is Chef May's favorite bourbon, he indicates that its unique qualities make it better for some dishes than others. He says, "I only use this special bourbon for my seafood courses in my bourbon cooking classes as this bourbon is aged on the deck of a freight ship and absorbs salt water air into the barrel as it expands and contracts with the temperature changes of day and night." Not only is the barrel contracting and expanding, but the bourbon is constantly moving inside the barrel with the waves. All that extra barrel contact with the salt-infused wood from the barrel pulls out even more sweet notes from the oak. Plus, the ship travels to 5 continents and spends extended time at and near the equator, which provides humidity and helps bring out rich caramel notes.

Chef May notes that "this unique bourbon has a very slight sea air (salt) flavor that is perfect in the cooking of seafood." Beyond a flavor of wood and sea salt air, this 90-proof bourbon contains caramel, espresso and light brown sugar notes. Plus, there's a hint of cinnamon. So, it's got plenty of character.

Another option that chef Matthew May suggests for cooking that will work in more applications than his ocean one is Elijah Craig small batch Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. This Elijah Craig has the distinction of being slightly smokey instead and being 94 proof. It's also one of the best small-batch bourbons under $40.

One way chef May says you could use Elijah Craig is for crème brûlée (although he won't give away the secret of his favorite bourbon for making the dish). However, there are plenty of other ways you can use it for cooking when you want added smokiness. Its smoky flavor comes from being aged in Level 3 charred oak barrels. This charring also helps the hemicellulose in the barrel turn into wood sugars for a carmel-like, earthy, and spicy flavor.

While chef May says it works great for cooking, he also likes to use it to make a smoky handcrafted old fashioned cocktail to drink to enjoy alongside the other bourbon-infused dishes his students are learning to make in his bourbon cooking classes. He says, "I add blood orange bitters, my own flavor of simple syrup, a dehydrated orange slice, and I finish with smoke." Adding extra smoke intensifies what you already get from it aging in charred barrels. When cooking you can use Elijah Craig for both cooking and drinking, or you can choose to use two different bourbons to create a varied flavor experience.

Chef Timothy J. Galloway from Old Bourbon County Kitchen in Lexington, Kentucky, has been using bourbon in dishes throughout his cooking career. When wanting to infuse dishes with bourbon, he tends to gravitate toward 90 proof Buffalo Trace Kentucky straight bourbon, coming from the Kentucky bourbon brand that we rated number one.

This bourbon comes out of Franklin County, Kentucky, where it's made from barley, corn, and rye and aged in oak barrels. Chef Galloway describes this whiskey as "a full body bourbon packed with vanilla, molasses, brown sugar, strong oat taste, with subtle fruity and liquorish notes." You might also detect toffee or candied fruit notes in it, which can bring out a natural sweetness in foods, particularly with your cooking fat, or cream. That said, chef Galloway insists that Buffalo Trace is the secret weapon in a baker's arsenal: "With the sweetness of the bourbon, I feel it is best in baking. It creates a new demotion when it comes to cakes, custards, compotes, and glazes or frostings." The profile of Buffalo Trace can provide layered complexity in these cases, without being overwhelming. 

Chef Matt Finarelli from Red Jacket Cooking School said he also likes Buffalo Trace. However, since he wants to get the same flavor from his dishes every time, he often avoids it because it's so popular that it can be difficult to source sometimes .