This distilled spirit is one of the products of the sugar industry. In the kitchen its use is mainly in desserts, although it may also be used in meat dishes, especially those of Caribbean origin or inspiration.
Light rum – whether clear or caramelcoloured – is preferred in cooking. Overproof (OP) rum has a much higher alcohol content, and is more expensive, but for Christmas cakes, for example, a little OP rum could be added to the prepared fruits.
In French cooking, rum is a very common ingredient of desserts. A rum syrup may be brushed over a sponge before filling; babas and savarins are steeped in rum syrup. Fruits, such as pineapples, bananas and apples, take nicely to a touch of rum, and rum can alternate with brandy in flambé desserts. A sweet soufflé omelette may be flavoured with rum, or a rum sabayon spooned over carefully poached fruits.
Chocolate is one of the best partners to rum, whether as a chocolate cake with a rum cream filling, chocolate truffles with a hint of rum, or rich rum balls to serve with after-dinner coffee.