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- Apple Cider Vinegar
I don’t often get into the recipe side of things (although I really should) but today I wanted to give you something practical that is in season.
Today we’re going to go over how to make apple cider vinegar (and any other fruit vinegar for that matter) and why you’ll want to!
Why Make Vinegar?
You may be wondering why even bother making vinegar if you can just buy it right?
Well around this time of year everyone is making apple pies and naturally have scraps leftover. Why not use them instead of throwing them away?
Some store-bought vinegars don’t actually have live bacteria for your gut due to the process of making it commercially, and additionally many big name brands are owned by companies you may not want to support (there are very few family-owned brands anymore!)
Whatever the case, making it is super easy and fun and you can rest assured knowing exactly what ingredients are in it and how it was made.
Fermentation Explained
While I will probably write an article on fermentation more broadly, I wanted to go over the basics of what the process is and how it works:
Firstly, there are multiple types of fermentation including lacto-fermentation, alcoholic fermentation, propionic-fermentation, and the one we’re talking about today: Aceto-fermentation.
Essentially what is happening is you are using bacteria (yeasts in this case) to consume sugars and convert them into alcohol (ethanol) and CO2 (the fizzy part), then once the yeasts die off aceto-bacteria (the “mother”) move in and feed on the ethanol and use oxygen to convert it into acetic acid (the vinegar).
This sounds technical but all you really need to know is that you’re feeding yeasts and bacteria which transforms the liquid into vinegar over time.
To do this, all you need are a few ingredients:
A yeast source (apple scraps/peels)
Sugar
Water
A container
ACV Recipe
You can use any container that has a sealing lid.
I start by putting some sugar in the bottom of the container (for a half-gallon jar I usually do around 1 cup of raw sugar) then, I heat up a little water to dissolve the sugar (maybe a bit less than 1qt if I’m fermenting a half gallon).
After dissolving the sugar, I fill it the rest of the way up with cold water to cool it off (this ensures that the yeasts won’t be killed by the heat) and put in my fruit scraps.
After that, all I do is seal it and wait. Every day I shake or stir the liquid and release some pressure, after a few days it should start bubbling and foaming a lot depending on how warm it is (warmer temps generally mean faster ferments).
After a day or two you may notice a thin hazy white film that forms on top of the liquid, this is NOT mold! This is most likely kahm yeast.
Kahm yeast is a harmless yeast that is often mistaken for mold and in other foods it tends to make it taste funny or smell yeasty, however in vinegar this doesn’t matter at all!
Allow the vinegar to ferment for several weeks to months (I get the best vinegar after 3-4 months usually) and taste test it periodically.
It took me awhile to realize that you need to allow the vinegar to ferment past the kahm yeast stage for it to start tasting like vinegar. This often takes a few months.
If it tastes yeasty, just wait longer!
Uses
Apple cider vinegar can be used so many ways.
In our home, we use it for cleaning, dressings, sauces, adding to herbal drinks, cooking, baking, as a replacement for white vinegar, pairing with fatty foods, using in coleslaw, and for medicinal purposes like to settle gastrointestinal issues.
This year we also hope to use it as a base for non-alcoholic tinctures since in the past we’ve always used 90 proof vodka to extract the plant compounds.
In the past there have been a lot of health claims about apple cider vinegar, and some have been stretched a little so I want to clear things up:
ACV can regulate blood sugar levels slightly
It does aid in digestion and settle the stomach in many people
It can topically act as an antimicrobial, it’s unclear whether this happens inside the body.
Can lower bad cholesterol and raise good cholesterol
Reduces blood pressure
Balances and improves mood
Clears skin (WHEN DILUTED! Too much acid can strip hair and burn your skin over time)
ACV does NOT:
Detox the body (so far no research indicates this)
Act as a magic weight loss serum (although it may curb your appetite a little)
Other Fruit Vinegars
The good news is, you can do this with pretty much any fruit!
I’ve done it with pears, wild grapes, apples, and crabapples.
So far I’ve seen great results from all of them, but this year’s crabapple find seems to be one of the best fermenting fruits I’ve found so far. It’s fast and beautifully foamy!
Experiment with different fruits, especially ones with wild yeast blooms on the peels (such as wild grapes or juniper berries). The flavors could blend so well in dressings and herbal tonics!
I recommend experimenting with any fruits (I’ve heard people love peach vinegar!) but here are some ideas:
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