You can make natural vinegar at home from apples, grapes, blackberries, raspberries and other berries and fruits, which can be used both for food and for medicinal purposes.
Even from tomatoes!
Vaira Karklina, associate professor at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering at the University of Liepaja, has extensive experience in preparing natural vinegars and is passionate about using wild plants in nutrition.
«I just started fermenting tomatoes to make vinegar, and I did the same with blackberries before, which are already in the second stage of fermentation. For those who don’t know what to do with red currants, I can recommend making vinegar from them – it will have a wonderful red color. Vinegar poured into glass bottles will come in handy not only in your kitchen, but will also be a great gift“, – sure Vaira Karklinya.
«Last year I made vinegar from rose hips, dogwood, quince and grapes.».
Before putting in the jar
First, the fruits and berries need to be washed. Do not do this for too long, so as not to wash away the valuable substances contained in the peel. Red and black currants should be removed from the branches. In order for the fermentation process to be faster and more effective, the fruits and berries are crushed before being placed in a container for making vinegar – grated on a coarse grater, cut or mashed. “If you use rose hips, they are cut in half, the seeds are removed (you can leave them) and crushed so that the useful substances are released faster.”
The power of color
«Vinegars made from fruits and berries delight not only the taste buds, but also the eyes. The first one that comes to mind is redcurrant vinegar with a beautiful light red color. I live by the sea, so sometimes I cook fish dishes, for example, jellied meat, and in the fall I even manage to enjoy lampreys. In such cases, a must-have ingredient for me is redcurrant vinegar sauce“, explains Vaira Karklina.
Blackcurrant, blackberry and cherry vinegars also have a beautiful color, while grape vinegar is light, clean and transparent.
Apple cider vinegar
– 7-8 medium-sized apples
– half a glass of sugar or honey
– water
Wash the apples thoroughly and grate them on a coarse grater together with the peel and core. Place them in a three-liter jar and fill it with boiled and cooled water up to the neck of the jar. If possible, you can use spring water. Add sugar (can be replaced with honey) and stir. Cover the jar with gauze folded in several layers, which is tightly tied with a rope or fixed with an elastic band. Stir daily to prevent mold from forming.
The jar of vinegar can be stored at room temperature, but direct sunlight should be avoided.
After about a month, the sediment will settle to the bottom of the jar. Then the vinegar is filtered and poured into the same jar – only 3/4 of the original volume will remain, since there will be no more sediment. Cover again with the previously used gauze, secure and put in a kitchen cupboard or under the table, where the vinegar will age for two months. The fermentation process will begin, a film will form, which is not mold, but a vinegar fungus that promotes the formation of vinegar. In about two months, the vinegar will be ready. It is poured into bottles, corked and stored in a dark place.
If you start fermenting apple cider vinegar this week, it will be ready by November, in time for the national holidays.
You can make vinegar from other berries and fruits in the same way.
Uses of Apple Cider Vinegar
Traditionally it is added to fresh vegetable salads, such as apple and beet salad, as well as salads containing celery and others.
Apple cider vinegar can be added to the water used to rinse your hair. After your hair has been washed with shampoo and rinsed with water, add a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar to the last rinse water (2 tablespoons of vinegar per 200 ml of water). Acetic acid effectively removes residue from the hair that shampoo could not wash off. After this treatment, your hair will be clean and shiny.
«Apple cider vinegar also helps treat scalp problems such as dandruff.“, notes Vaira Karklina.It is credited with the ability to burn fat, so its use can help you lose weight.».
Vinegar can be used as a facial toner: add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to two cups of water. The acids it contains stimulate blood circulation and reduce skin pores. Mixing apple cider vinegar with water in a 1:4 ratio produces an antiseptic solution in which, after soaking your feet for 15 minutes, you can disinfect them, eliminate unpleasant odor and reduce the effects of fungus.
Source: www.gorod.lv
