With wine, the rules are fairly clear: Cook beef bourguignon with Burgundy or cabernet sauvignon, poach fish and chicken in chardonnay or sauvignon blanc. But what kind of beer would you use for a dish of veal consomme with bleu cheese?

If you're Bill Aydlett, chef at Sisson's restaurant and brew pub, you use Dos Equis, a Mexican beer in which the tangy flavor of hops is not predominant. Suppose the dish is roast duck? Kreick Lambic, a lush, almost wine-y brew from Belgium. Grilled salmon with beer salsa? A hearty ale, such as the house Stockade Amber.

It's a subject into which a lot of thought -- and a lot of beer -- has been poured, by Mr. Aydlett and by Hugh Sisson, who's the beer brewer at the restaurant he runs with his family in South Baltimore.

"We've been experimenting over the last six months to a year in cooking with beer," Mr. Sisson said at a recent "culinary showcase" dinner. It is hardly a new technique: The English, he noted, have produced such pairings as beer and cheese soup "forever"; the Belgians, with their great variety of brews, have probably had the most success in mating beer and food.

There are plenty of reasons to continue the tradition -- not just that the South Baltimore Brewing Co. microbrewery is attached to Sisson's restaurant. Cooking with beer is much like cooking with wine: The flavor of the barley, hops or grapes gives an extra fillip to the taste of a dish. And, "Some people are intimidated by wine," he says.

Still, it's not quite as simple as pouring a bottle of Guinness into the stew, or a can of Coors into the apple pie. The astringency of the hops, which may be what you love in the beer, has to be taken into account when you're cooking.

Reducing the liquid -- a common technique with wine -- can bring out the hoppy bitterness of beer. His experiments have convinced Mr. Aydlett that there's no way to counteract the hops with other liquids, such as water or stock. "Beer is just stubborn," Mr. Aydlett says. "It stays what it was."

That's why it's important to match the beer with the food. The astringent taste will be fine in piquant dishes such as cheese soup or salsa; but a sweeter, maltier brew will work better in sauces.

"Cooking with beer is great," Mr. Aydlett says, "but you just want to flavor the food."

He suggests experimenting carefully, starting with just a little bit of the flavoring brew. "You can't substitute, across the board, any beer for any wine, any stock, any liquid in a recipe. But if you have something you feel would be a good flavor, give it a try."

And when it works -- as it does in the dishes developed by Mr. Sisson and Mr. Aydlett -- nothing could seem more natural.

They suggest adopting the "Rule of the Three Cs," propounded by Dane Wells, of the Victoria Inn in Cape May, N.J., and using beer to cut, complement or contrast the flavors in food. For instance, cut the flavor of a rich, creamy sauce, such as lobster with cream sauce, with a beer that is slightly bitter; complement spicy foods with spicy ale; and contrast bland foods, such as oysters, with a robust brew, such as stout.

And don't stop when you get to dessert. Mr. Aydlett's repertoire includes a pilsner zabaglione with a delicious tart-sweet taste that perfectly complements fresh fruit.

Mr. Sisson is still scouring beer aficionado publications and cookbooks -- it isn't easy getting the best Belgian ones translated from the Flemish, he laments -- for recipes that use beer in tasty new ways. He wants to give the restaurant a "stable" of 40 or 50 dishes that can vary with the season, with beer production, with customer tastes.

"We don't claim to have written the final chapter" on the subject of beer in food," he says, "but we're working on it."

Here are three of Mr. Aydlett's recipes, plus some others that illustrate the techniques of cooking with beer.

Grilled Canadian salmon with ale salsa

Serves eight.

2 red bell peppers

2 poblano peppers

2 Anaheim peppers

4 large jalapeno peppers

2 green bell peppers

2 red onions

1 bunch of green onions

2 ripe tomatoes

12 ounces hearty ale (see note)

8 filets of Canadian salmon

Grill all the peppers on a grill or under the broiler until the skins are charred black and can be easily removed under running water. Remove the seeds and stems and cut into fine strips. Cut the green onions into fine dice; cut the onions into thin strips. Peel and seed the tomatoes (skewer each tomato on a fork and dip in boiling water for 30 seconds; skin will then strip right off) and cut into 1/2 -inch chunks. Put all vegetables into a bowl with the ale and let sit approximately 12 hours. Correct seasoning with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Grill the salmon to taste. Remember that the longer it cooks, the drier it will be; you might want to leave it slightly opaque in the center. Serve topped with the salsa.

(Note: Mr. Aydlett uses Sisson's Amber Stockade ale in the salsa. It is available in half-gallon "growlers" at the brewpub for $12; refills are $7.)

Roast duck with Kreick sauce

Serves four.

2 Long Island ducks, approximately 4-6 pounds each

2 cups duck stock (recipe below)

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons rosemary

1 bottle Kreick Lambic beer

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Remove any extra fat from the ducks. Cut off the wing tips. Rub with salt and pepper and put 1 tablespoon of rosemary into the cavity of each. Roast approximately 2 hours or until the juices run clear. Allow the ducks to cool enough to handle. Cut the skin all around so you can remove the halves from the carcass.

About half an hour before serving, place duck halves in a roasting pan with the beer and the stock and place in a 400-degree oven. (Allow time beforehand for oven to heat, if necessary.)

After 15 minutes, remove pan from the oven. Drain the sauce into a small saucepan. Turn oven to broil and crisp ducks for a few minutes (be careful not to burn them). Meantime, heat the sauce to boiling and reduce by half.

K? To serve, place duck half on each plate and top with sauce.

Duck stock

TC roasted duck carcass with neck and heart (no liver)

1 large onion

2 carrots

1 rib celery

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon thyme

water

Put the roasted duck carcass in a large pot. Coarsely chop vegetables and add to pot, along with spices. Add cold water to cover and bring to boil. Cook, simmering, for 2 hours. Strain. Reserve any extra stock for another use.

Pilsner zabaglione Serves four.

1/2 cup beer (any American pilsner beer)

3 egg yolks

3 tablespoons sugar

2-3 drops of pure vanilla (optional)

fresh fruit

Put all ingredients in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Use a wire whip to whisk gently until sauce is thick. (Be careful not to curdle or scramble the eggs.)

To serve, puddle a small amount of sauce on the dessert plate, top with fresh fruit. (If serving warm, serve immediately. To serve cold, remove top of double boiler from heat to a bed of ice in a bowl and beat until sauce is cool.)

The next recipe is from Faye Levy's "Fresh from France" series, "Dinner Inspirations" (Dutton, 1989, $22.95.) Ms. Levy notes that the sweetness of the carrots and turnips in the dish balances the slight bitterness of the beer.

Chicken braised with beer

Serves four.

4 large thin carrots of uniform shape and size (about 1 pound)

5 small turnips of uniform size and shape (about 12 ounces)

2 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 bay leaf

5 sprigs parsley

2 pounds chicken legs and thighs (4 legs and 4 thighs), patted dry

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon butter

1 onion, chopped

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 12-ounce bottle or can of beer (see note)

pinch of cayenne pepper

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (for garnish)

Dice enough carrot to make 1/2 cup and reserve. Cut remaining carrots in 1 1/2 inch lengths and cut them in half lengthwise. Cut turnips in quarters from top to bottom. Tie thyme, bay leaf and parsley sprigs together with string or in cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni.

Season chicken lightly with salt and pepper. Heat oil and butter in a large deep skillet or saute pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken in several batches and brown lightly on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Pour off fat into small bowl and return 2 tablespoons to pan.

Add onion and diced carrot and cook until onion is soft and beginning to brown. Sprinkle with flour and stir over low heat 2 minutes. Stir in beer. Return chicken to pan and add juices from plate. Add cayenne pepper, bouquet garni and garlic and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes, or until chicken is tender.

Meanwhile, cook vegetables. Put remaining carrots in a saucepan, add water to cover and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until carrots are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well. Cook turnips same way as carrots, but only until barely tender, about 7 minutes. Drain well.

When chicken is done, remove pieces to a plate. Cook sauce, uncovered, until thick enough to lightly coat a spoon. Strain sauce, lightly pressing on vegetables. Return to saute pan. (Chicken and vegetables can be kept in sauce, covered, one day refrigerator.)

Reheat chicken and vegetables gently in sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

(Note: Ms. Levy didn't suggest a type of beer to use in this recipe, but Sisson's suggests amber lager or ale with poultry.)

The next recipe, a traditional use of beer in braised beef, is from "Cuisine Rapide," by Pierre Franey and Bryan Miller (Times Books, 1989, $22.50).

Beer-braised beef with onions

Serves six to eight.

1 4-pound piece of beef top chuck

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 pounds onions, quartered and sliced (about 6 cups)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons flour

24 ounces beer (See note)

1/2 teaspoon loosely packed saffron

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 whole cloves

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 cup fresh or canned chicken broth

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over high heat and brown the meat on all sides. Remove the meat from the pot. Add the onions and garlic to the pot and stir periodically until the onions are brown. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in the flour and beer. Add the saffron, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a boil. Add the tomato paste, bay leaf, thyme and broth. Put the meat back in pot, bring to a boil and braise, covered, in the oven for about 2 hours and 15 minutes, or until done. To test the meat, pierce it with a carving fork. If the fork comes out clean, the meat is done. Slice the beef and serve with the cooking liquid.

(Note: Sisson's suggests amber lager or brown ale for cooking with beef.)

Another traditional use of beer is in making bread. This recipe is from "Black-Eyed Susan Country," a 1987 collection of recipes gathered by the St. Agnes Hospital Auxiliary.

German beer bread

Makes 1 loaf.

3 cups self-rising flour

2 rounded tablespoons sugar

12 ounces beer, at room temperature

1-1 1/2 teaspoons dillweed, cheese, or bacon bits (optional)

pinch of salt (optional)

1/2 cup of butter, melted

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix first five ingredients together well. Pour into greased 9- by 5-inch loaf pan or casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Pour butter over top and cook 10 minutes more or until brown. Best eaten when warm.

(The cookbook is still available from St. Agnes, at the hospital gift shop for $12.95 or by mail order, for $15.60, which includes sales tax, postage and handling, from Cookbook, 900 Caton Ave., Baltimore, Md. 21229-5299. Make checks payable to St. Agnes Hospital Auxiliary. All proceeds benefit the hospital

foundation.)