Pedro Ximenez balsamic
aged balsamic Vinegar
is a authentic heavy flavored vinegar usually used
in Italian cooking. It is typically used as a salad
dressing when combined with olive oil or as a marinade. It
is a traditional food product developed in Modena, Italy,
where it has been Created since the Middle Ages and the
name is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
table vinegars, it is very dark and heavy with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more pricey. True Aged balsamic
vinegar has been aged fifteen years or more.
The finest balsamico vinegars
have nothing else added to them - only
the trebbiano grapes. Lesser common vinegars will add brown sugar or caramel
to model the sweetness of the better ones. If a company
makes a "traditional" aged balsamic vinegar,
they will also produce a less expensive, but high quality
vinegar as well.
View
our free Balsamic vinaigrette Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Produced
by concentrated white grapes (typically,
trebbiano grapes) that has been boiled down to approximately
50% ("must") and fermenting that into alcohol.
It is then once again fermented to balsamic vinegar,
with a slow aging process
done in oak casks that concentrates
the flavors. The flavor is heightened over decades,
with the balsamic vinegar being kept in fine wood barrels, becoming
sweet, viscous and very concentrated in flavour. Some
aged balsamico vinegar is added to the "must"
to make a more complex and intricate taste, and to
add acidity.
The thick syrup is transferred
to oak casks to ferment in the open
air and then starts the long evaporation and aging process
that makes aged balsamic vinegar unusual. Balsamic vinegar
does not deteriorate after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can treasure your finest bottle
and use it on special occasions. Do
not heat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will destroy the taste.
As a key component
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic goes
very well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is outstanding with lobster,
artichokes and asparagus. A balsamic vinaigrette does well
with winter vegetables such as carrots, turnips, squash
and sweet potatoes, as well as spring mixed greens or
baby spinach.
The Mediterranean diet,
characterized by cuisine such as Italian food, has been
gaining popularity in North America, where the consumption
of traditional Mediterranean foods, such as cold pressed
olive oil and balsamic vinegar, has been increasing.
Many people are finding this diet as a healthy alternative
to fatty foods and deep fried food preparation.
