Pints of Depiction: Pairing Beer With Pantry Comfort Foods

Which beer goes best with frozen burritos, mac and cheese or cupcakes?

All panels illustrated by Em Sauter

Currently, many of us are at home while practicing social distancing. These are the times when pairing beer and food is more about what we have on hand, rather than what we can go out and get at our local shops (I don’t have to tell you to stay home unless you absolutely need to make a grocery run).

I looked in my pantry/freezer and thought about foods easily available or that are shelf stable that can pair well with beer. Although, to be fair, all food pairs with beer in some capacity—and I stand by that. Here is some comforting beer to drink with equally comforting home comfort foods.

frozen burrito and amber lager

In the deep recesses of our freezer, the humble burrito is there to help quash our hunger. Packed full of protein and some delicious guacamole or spicy salsa on the side, my go-to would be a nice amber lager like a Vienna Lager, International Amber Lager or Marzen (it’s a little early or very late in the season for a Marzen but if you can find a fresh one, delicious!). Toasted malt will cut the spiciness and contrast the saltiness of the burrito. Good ol’ Samuel Adams Boston Lager would be a great choice here.

boxed macaroni and cheese and brown ale

I’m a sucker for the classic blue box. Sorry not sorry. This pantry staple is easy to make and a perfect side dish for a ham steak or by itself with a little cracked pepper on top. The salt content is high on this one, so I’d go for something dark and flavorful like a British brown ale to contrast the high sodium content with caramel smoothness and toasty richness. The cheeses used in boxed mac (if you can call it cheese) are quite mild so a brown ale will complement that too. One to try: Port O’Pints Brewing My Honey’s Brown Ale (silver medal winner in the 2020 NY International Beer Competition)

Hostess chocolate cupcakes and American porter

Hostess cupcakes don’t really have an expiration date so they make great pantry staples when you have a sweet tooth. Since the sweetness of these treats can be heavy handed, I would go for something more roasty and bitter to contrast. A porter will have bitterness from lots of roasted malt. Not as boozy as some (normal American porters top out around 6.5%), this could be a great snack combination as well. One to try: ZYWIEC Porter (silver medal, 2020 NYIBC)