balsamic vinager
balsamico Vinegar
is a authentic viscous flavored vinegar commonly used
in Tuscan cooking. It is often used as a salad
dressing when combined with vinegar 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
brand is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
table vinegars, it is very dark and thick with a complex,
sweet taste and is much more pricey. True Aged balsamic
vinegar has been aged fifteen years or more.
The best aged balsamic vinegars
have nothing else added to them - only
the trebbiano grapes. Lesser ones will add brown sugar or caramel
to simulate the sweetness of the authentic balsamic vinegars. If a company
creates a "traditional" balsamico vinegar,
they will also create a less expensive, but high quality
vinegar as well.
View
our complimentary Balsamic Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Vinaigrettes.
Balsamic vinegar is Made
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 balsamic vinegar,
with a slow aging process
done in oak barrels that concentrates
the flavours. The flavor is deepened over decades,
with the vinegar being kept in fine wood barrels, becoming
sweet, viscous and very concentrated in flavor. Some
aged balsamic vinegar is added to the "must"
to produce 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 begins the long evaporation and aging process
that makes aged balsamico vinegar striking and unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not deteriorate after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can cherish your finest bottle
and use it on special recipes. Do
not heat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will destroy the flavor.
As a key ingredient
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic blends
particularly well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is wonderful with seafood,
artichokes and asparagus. A balsamic salad dressing does well
with winter veggies 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.
