Vinegar

amandstu

I have just discovered that you can add a dash of vinegar to almost anything whether in the cooking or at the end.

Does anyone else use it like this very much?

igCorcaigh

Yes, sometimes; a teaspoon of red wine vinegar helps balance things.

Balsamic is great on broccoli.

amandstu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123789089#Comment_123789089

This sees a little proletarian but (amongst other things) I open a tin of sardines, butter a slice of bread and squash a sardine on top with a shake of vinegar (plus a slice of apple etc since they are lying around now)

If I cook lentils I throw it in at the end (I would have chopped cooked onions and stock already in)

I only ever thought of vinegar as part of vinaigrette or with fish and chips up till now.

(and sometimes what I cook can be quite bland)

igCorcaigh

Vinegar on lentils, yes!

The Nal

Huge fan of sherry vinegar

zell12

A dash in milk, to make buttermilk

amandstu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123790742#Comment_123790742

Is that exactly the same as buttermilk proper?

I think you use buttermilk to make scones along with bread soda to make it rise(I always just use self raising flour)

Tree

I like to add a drop when making dipping sauces for springrolls or dumplings.

Also good as a dash towards the end of cooking fried rice.

igCorcaigh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123791043#Comment_123791043

I like to use Shaoxing wine, which is a bit like a salty sherry vinegar, in cooking Chinese food. It does need to be cooked off though.

I'm never sure what type of vinegar to use in dipping sauces though. I tend to use this:

Tree

I use white wine vinegar or cider vinegar for cooking for the most part. Malt vinegar is kept for chips (yum!). I'm never sure if I should buy more vinegars

Oh, and a tiny open bottle of vinegar is a good fruit fly trap…

RedCardKid

Nothing like a good shot of good quality sherry vinegar to anything like lentils, beans or stews/ soups.

Deregos.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123792902#Comment_123792902

Malt vinegar on steak also works very well.

A few drops of apple cider vinegar into half a cup of water with pierced cling film stretched over the top, is another great way of catching fruit flys.

the beer revolu

Cider vinegar, sherry vinegar, 12 yo px vinegar, unaged px vinegar, white wine vinegar, Chinese black vinegar, red wine vinegar, elderflower vinegar, blackberry balsamic vinegar, aged balsamic cherry vinegar. I think that's all 😜 No, I also have 5L of distilled white vinegar!

Currently out of malt vinegar. Also, no traditional balsamic in that lot, at the moment. I'd probably use a rice wine vinegar from time to time if I had it.

The elderflower, blackberry and cherry ones are from Wildwood in Mayo - I'd highly recommend them if you come across them. Pricy but they go a long way.

Planet X

Above……good for flavouring homemade mayonnaise.

One of our sons is a chef in a Dublin 5* hotel and he was advising me to try flavoured vinegars in mayo. Does work.

Dial Hard

It depends on what you're cooking, obviously, but yeah, many if not most dishes that are tasting a bit "meh" at the end of cooking can be seriously elevated by a dash of acid. Mind you, that can just as often be a squazz of lemon or lime juice. Probably safer, in fact, if you're not a particularly confident cook. The wrong vinegar in the wrong dish can easily be a disaster.

magicbastarder

I used to dip popcorn into vinegar. Must try it again.

Dial Hard

Kinda related, I'm currently in Bilbao airport and just saw liquid salt for sale in the gourmet shop. Have literally never come across that in my life. Liquid smoke, yes, but not liquid salt.

Tree

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123793790#Comment_123793790

Brine? I mean, it's not a bad idea… but like, why would they sell that in the airport?

amandstu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123794064#Comment_123794064

Do they do a lot of salting fish there?

Dial Hard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123794086#Comment_123794086

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123794064#Comment_123794064

No, it's way more concentrated than brine, looking at the label. Like, salt, but in liquid form. It's in a spray bottle. I googled it and apparently it's used for salting salad leaves and veg that actual salt will just bounce/fall off.

Dial Hard

Cured fish and meat is always dry-salted, the whole point is to draw moisture out, not add it.

amandstu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123794256#Comment_123794256

Ah ,yes.I remember it being done on pallets with shovels of salt between the layers.

It must have been the watery environment that had me confused.

igCorcaigh

Liquid salt… bizarre.

Sherry vinegar is good stuff, I have just used some in my sardine pate. I use Acetum brand, although I'm sure there are pricier ones available. @RedCardKid

RedCardKid

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123794282#Comment_123794282

I tend to use one of the following:

Olmeda Origenes - Reserva D.O or Brindisa Valdespino D.O.P

Both are pricy but well worth it if you can get either on the net.

igCorcaigh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123799986#Comment_123799986

Oh, thanks, I will!

I do like the Belazu Chardonnay white wine vinegar, but envious of their other selections…

https://belazu.com/shop/vinegars/

Hodors Appletart

I put Vinegar, Soy and Fish Sauce into my daily stir fry of vegetables and turkey/chicken/pork - along with chili, garlic and spring onion.

Vinegar (or other acid like lime juice) is an essential part of cooking.

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123801815#Comment_123801815

Yeah, I've realised what an import element acid is in cooking. Apart from all the vinegar I mentioned above, I use pomegranate molasses, tamarind extract, lemon and lime juice, sometimes Seville orange juice and our homemade salted lemon. Also things like Worcestershire sauce are acidic, too.

And then there's my elderberry pontack sauce which is very vinegary, too.

My wife bought a bottle of date vinegar somewhere. It tasted exactly like malt vinegar to me so it ended up being used for fish and chips.

I really like fresh herb dressings which always has an acid element - the sweet vinegats can be good here.

RedCardKid

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123800531#Comment_123800531

Will place an order tomorrow once I am at a PC ….. hope it is as good as you say. Vinegar is like wine, you have to pay for some of the good stuff.