Non Alcoholic Alternative To Sherry For Chickpeas With Rocket

Our answer

Nigella's Chickpeas With Rocket And Sherry (from NIGELLA EXPRESS) is a versatile side dish that would also be good as part of a tapas spread. The sherry cooks down to create a thick, slightly sweet sauce for the chickpeas. Cream sherry is a sweet blended sherry and you could instead use another sweet sherry, such as Pedro Ximenez, or a sweet Marsala or Madeira wine. You can make sure that the sherry boils for a minute or so to evaporate most of the alcohol, so that only traces remain.

If you need to avoid alcohol altogether then it is difficult to suggest an alternative that will taste exactly the same. However, a strong, good quality chicken stock (broth) would be a possible substitute. Add a pinch of soft dark brown sugar at the same time, then taste the dish before serving to see if a little extra is needed. If the dish is to be vegetarian then use vegetable stock, though this is usually lighter in flavour.