modena balsamic vinegar
balsamico Vinegar
is a traditional thick flavored vinegar usually used
in Italian cooking. It is typically used as a salad
vinaigrette when combined with oil or as a marinade. It
is a traditional product that was 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 dark and heavy with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more costly. True Aged balsamic
vinegar has been aged 15 years and upwards.
The primo aged balsamic vinegars
have nothing else added to them - only
the grapes. Lesser ones will include brown sugar or caramel
to feign the sweetness of the balsamic vinegars. If a company
produces a "traditional" balsamico vinegar,
they will also develop a less costly, but quality
vinegar as well.
View
our free Balsamic vinaigrette Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Salad dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Produced
by concentrated 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 intensified over years,
with the vinegar being kept in fine oak barrels, becoming
sweet, syrupy and very concentrated in flavour. Some
older balsamico vinegar is added to the "must"
to create 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 unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not degenerate after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can treasure your finest bottle
and use it on special recipes. Do
not overheat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will ruin the taste.
As a key ingredient
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic pairs
especially well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is great with seafood,
fresh spinach and asparagus. A balsamic salad dressing does well
with winter veggies 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.
