A Pinot Grigio might be the best wine to go with chicken with garlic if you need to find one.
Garlic chicken is a beloved dish across many cuisines. Garlic goes well with chicken because it has a strong, fragrant flavor. But it can be hard to pair wine with garlic because of how strong it tastes. The important thing is to find a wine that goes well with garlic instead of one that overpowers it. We’ll talk about the best wines to go with garlic chicken in this full guide.
How Garlic Impacts Wine Pairing
There is a sulfur compound in garlic called allicin that gives it its strong taste and smell. When mixed with the wrong wines, allicin can make the food taste metallic. Because of this, high tannin red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah should not be served with garlic chicken. The tannins bind to the allicin, giving the food a bad metallic taste. For this dish, you need a wine with just the right amount of acidity to balance out the rich chicken and strong garlic.
Factors that Influence Pairing
There are a few factors that impact what wine pairs best with your garlic chicken
Preparation Method
-
Roasted garlic becomes sweeter and milder This allows for more wine options
-
Fried or raw garlic is more pungent. Choose wines with very high acidity.
Other Ingredients
- Additions like soy sauce, chili peppers, or lemon change the flavor profile. Sweeter wines help balance spice, while citrus pairs well with Sauvignon Blanc.
Type of Garlic
-
Elephant garlic is milder. More wine options pair well.
-
Stronger garlic varieties like Spanish need wines with higher acidity.
Best Wine Varieties for Garlic Chicken
Crisp, Acidic White Wines
-
Non-oaked Chardonnay: The apple flavors stand out because there are no oak flavors. Acidity cuts richness.
-
Pinot Grigio: This Italian wine has sour acidity and citrus notes that make your mouth feel clean.
-
Dry Riesling – Riesling from Germany or Alsace has acidity, minerality, and subtle sweetness to balance garlic.
-
Sauvignon Blanc – Herbaceous with bright citrus. Refreshing with garlic chicken containing fresh herbs.
Dry Rosé
- Dry rosé from Provence has the acidity, subtle red fruit, and fuller body to stand up to garlic’s intensity.
Light Red Wines
- Beaujolais – Low tannins, bright acidity, and berry flavors pair better than big reds. Serve chilled.
Sparkling Wines
- Prosecco – The bubbles and acidity refresh the palate after the richness of garlic chicken.
Pairing Tips
-
Acidity is the key element for garlic chicken wines. Prioritize wines with lively acid.
-
Avoid high tannin reds like Cabernet, Merlot, and Syrah. Their tannins clash with garlic.
-
Roast garlic to mellow its flavor. More wines will complement milder garlic.
-
Add sweet wines like Riesling or Gewurztraminer to balance spicy garlic chicken.
-
Match citrus-flavored chicken with Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.
-
Cream-based garlic chicken sauces need fuller whites like oaked Chardonnay.
-
For grilled garlic chicken, rosé has the fruit and acidity to match.
-
Vintage matters less than balance and quality. Focus on reputable producers.
-
Dry sparkling wines like Cava and Prosecco refresh the palate with garlic chicken.
Pairing Examples
Here are a few delicious examples of wine paired with popular garlic chicken dishes:
-
Garlic Parmesan Chicken – Unoaked Chardonnay
-
Garlic Chicken Stir Fry – New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
-
Garlic Lemon Chicken – Italian Pinot Grigio
-
Garlic Butter Baked Chicken – Dry French rosé
-
Garlic Chicken Pizza – Prosecco
The Final Sip
Garlic chicken demands a wine with enough acidity and flavor intensity to match the garlic’s robustness. Crisp, acidic whites like Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, and unoaked Chardonnay are foolproof options. For those determined to have red, go for a chillable light red like Beaujolais. Remember to consider preparation method, other ingredients, and garlic type to hone the pairing. With an understanding of garlic’s impact on wine, you can confidently uncork a bottle to perfectly complement your garlic chicken.
Another wine pairing for chicken with garlic
You might also like these other types of wine with chicken and garlic, or this wine pairing for chicken and garlic:
(shar-doh-NAY): A ripe and crisp white with fruit flavors such as apple, pineapple and citrus.
Try This 5 Ingredient Garlic And White Wine Chicken Dish | TODAY
FAQ
What kind of wine goes with garlic chicken?
The wines to drink with 40-cloves-of-garlic chicken Those usefully neutral Italian whites like Orvieto Classico, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and Vernaccia di San Gimignano or, more interesting still, Timorasso, would work just fine. A good Soave, as well.
What pairs well with garlic chicken?
I like to serve mine with a side of saffron rice and lemon parmesan asparagus. Yum. But really, anything goes. Potatoes made any way, steamed, grilled, roasted or sauteed veggies or pasta with a light lemon butter sauce. More healthy alternatives are a quinoa or bulgur wheat pilaf. Just use you imagination.
What wine pairs well with garlic?
What you need with raw garlic is acidity. Just like garlic and lemon go well together, citrusy white wines like Sauvignon Blanc, Picpoul de Pinet, and Vermentino or Falanghina from Italy also go well with food. Even Chablis works well with dishes like Chicken Kiev.
Do you serve red or white wine with chicken?
Pairing wine is mostly simple. White wine goes well with fish and chicken because they are light in color, while red wine goes well with beef because they are dark. Pork can be paired with white or red depending on the preparation. Here are some other pairing examples: