Spanish balsamic
balsamico Vinegar
is a authentic viscous flavoured vinegar ordinarily used
in Italian gourmet cooking. It is frequently used as a salad
vinaigrette when combined with vinegar or as a marinade. It
is a traditional product developed in Modena, Italy,
where it has been Produced since the Middle Ages and the
name is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
most common vinegars, it is dark and viscous with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more costly. True Balsamico
vinegar has been aged in casks 15 years and upwards.
The finest balsamic vinegars
have no other ingredients added to them - only
the trebbiano grapes. Lesser vinegars will include brown sugar or caramel
to imitate the sweetness of the authentic balsamic vinegars. If a company
creates a "traditional" balsamic vinegar,
they will also create a less expensive, but quality
vinegar as well.
View
our complimentary Balsamic Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Created
by reduced white grapes (typically,
trebbiano grapes) that has been boiled down to about
50% ("must") and fermenting that into alcohol.
It is then once again fermented to balsamico vinegar,
with a slow aging process
done in oak casks that concentrates
the flavours. The flavour is deepened over decades,
with the vinegar being kept in fine wood barrels, becoming
sweet, syrupy and very concentrated in flavor. Some
older balsamic vinegar is added to the "must"
to make a more complex and intricate taste, and to
add acidity.
The 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 unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not go bad after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can treasure your finest bottle
and use it on special entrees. Do
not heat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will ruin the taste.
As a key component
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic blends
very well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is outstanding with lobster,
fresh spinach and asparagus. A balsamic dressing does well
with winter vegetables such as carrots, turnips, squash
and sweet potatoes, as well as fresh 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.
