Remember, the Vinegar Man loves you.
December 5, 2008 11:18 AM Subscribe
This is your Grand Central Station for Vinegar Information. Learn how to make use and enjoy vinegar.
On Top Chef just a couple nights ago, one woman made a salad of tomatoes and watermelon with a balsalmic and basil reduction. I'm kind of curious about it, but I'm just not sure that the vinegar would be the right balance for the watermelon. She won the challenge though.
posted by klangklangston at 11:27 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by klangklangston at 11:27 AM on December 5, 2008
klangklangston, balsamic goes fantastic with strawberries, I can see how that might work with watermelon as well.I'll give it a try that next time I can find fresh watermelons, thx for the idea.
posted by ShadowCrash at 11:34 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by ShadowCrash at 11:34 AM on December 5, 2008
Does the Vinegar Man know that Grand Central Station is a place where people come together, not knowledge? I think a library metaphor would have worked better. Unless there are cute little electronic vinegar buses I missed on that site.
posted by explosion at 11:38 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by explosion at 11:38 AM on December 5, 2008
Like my mom always says: "You can catch more flies with piss than you can with vinegar."
Thanks for this, yet another thing to do in the kitchen.
posted by Floydd at 11:45 AM on December 5, 2008
Thanks for this, yet another thing to do in the kitchen.
posted by Floydd at 11:45 AM on December 5, 2008
Should you choose to make your own vinegar, beware the vinegar eel.
That's right. Vinegar eels.
posted by mudpuppie at 11:48 AM on December 5, 2008
That's right. Vinegar eels.
posted by mudpuppie at 11:48 AM on December 5, 2008
I learned that Portland has places that serve drinking vinegars.
They say they're more mild than the kind of vinegar you'd put on a salad, but still...
Drinking vinegar. Yick.
posted by Laen at 11:50 AM on December 5, 2008
They say they're more mild than the kind of vinegar you'd put on a salad, but still...
Drinking vinegar. Yick.
posted by Laen at 11:50 AM on December 5, 2008
I'd drink it.
posted by Astro Zombie at 11:52 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by Astro Zombie at 11:52 AM on December 5, 2008
Ooh, fun find.
A balsamic reduction can be a powerful thing, especially with decent-but-not-fabulous vinegar. Sweat two minced shallots in a tablespoon of butter; add half a cup or so of vinegar and reduce to a sticky, syrupy glaze. Haricot verts blanched, shocked, and reheated with a dollop of this stuff are my favorite fallback goes-with-anything side dish - complex and sweet and tart, the acid cutting the grassiness, the incorporated butter making everything silky.
A tablespoon of vinegar will instantly add depth, but not sourness, to almost any stew, braise, soup, or other saucy thing - lemon works too, but sometimes all you want is the clean acid. I find myself routinely adding some with the final correction of seasoning...if your dish tastes flat, despite being well-seasoned, add a little vinegar and taste again; you will be surprised.
We've had lots of fun with vinegar pies (the poor man's lemon pie) and vinegar as a soda flavoring, too. I love vinegar!
posted by peachfuzz at 11:53 AM on December 5, 2008 [4 favorites]
A balsamic reduction can be a powerful thing, especially with decent-but-not-fabulous vinegar. Sweat two minced shallots in a tablespoon of butter; add half a cup or so of vinegar and reduce to a sticky, syrupy glaze. Haricot verts blanched, shocked, and reheated with a dollop of this stuff are my favorite fallback goes-with-anything side dish - complex and sweet and tart, the acid cutting the grassiness, the incorporated butter making everything silky.
A tablespoon of vinegar will instantly add depth, but not sourness, to almost any stew, braise, soup, or other saucy thing - lemon works too, but sometimes all you want is the clean acid. I find myself routinely adding some with the final correction of seasoning...if your dish tastes flat, despite being well-seasoned, add a little vinegar and taste again; you will be surprised.
We've had lots of fun with vinegar pies (the poor man's lemon pie) and vinegar as a soda flavoring, too. I love vinegar!
posted by peachfuzz at 11:53 AM on December 5, 2008 [4 favorites]
Good post, thanks. Very interesting.
posted by seagull.apollo at 11:54 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by seagull.apollo at 11:54 AM on December 5, 2008
Funny enough, I love vinegar but I cannot stand pickles. Am I weird?
posted by backseatpilot at 11:56 AM on December 5, 2008
posted by backseatpilot at 11:56 AM on December 5, 2008
Drinking vinegar. Yick."
It's not really any weirder than drinking something flavored with lemon and sweetened. Mild vinegars - rice wine comes to mind, and a lot of the fruit vinegars - can be complex and delicious enough on their own, and are really good stirred into soda water with simple syrup.
posted by peachfuzz at 11:57 AM on December 5, 2008
It's not really any weirder than drinking something flavored with lemon and sweetened. Mild vinegars - rice wine comes to mind, and a lot of the fruit vinegars - can be complex and delicious enough on their own, and are really good stirred into soda water with simple syrup.
posted by peachfuzz at 11:57 AM on December 5, 2008
Drinking vinegar. Yick.
You do what you gotta do when you're broke and have to pass a piss test. (I have no idea if that actually works; I didn't try it; seems like a nice way to let your kidneys know you're upset with them.)
posted by Dark Messiah at 11:59 AM on December 5, 2008
You do what you gotta do when you're broke and have to pass a piss test. (I have no idea if that actually works; I didn't try it; seems like a nice way to let your kidneys know you're upset with them.)
posted by Dark Messiah at 11:59 AM on December 5, 2008
Raise a bunch of vinegar eels.
Market them as "Goth Sea Monkeys."
?????
Profit!
posted by Floydd at 12:07 PM on December 5, 2008
Market them as "Goth Sea Monkeys."
?????
Profit!
posted by Floydd at 12:07 PM on December 5, 2008
I used to stump people by asking them what vinegar was made out of. The kicker was that I didn't know the answer, either.
posted by The Card Cheat at 12:11 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 12:11 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
Vinegar eels close up
Growing vinegar eels
Someone waaaay too into vinegar eels (Rule 34 exemplar)
posted by bonehead at 12:13 PM on December 5, 2008
Growing vinegar eels
Someone waaaay too into vinegar eels (Rule 34 exemplar)
posted by bonehead at 12:13 PM on December 5, 2008
Very cool post.
When I was working in the wine business, once place I worked at had a vinegar barrel. We'd top it throughout the year with red wine, whatever was extra at the time, and once or twice a year we'd bottle some up for the employees. Very tasty stuff, and it was made with a blend of some of the best red varietals in the Napa Valley.
And yeah, good balsamic vinegar is a treat on fruit. Watermelon doesn't have a lot of tartness on it's own, so I can see a little acidity to give it some flavor.
posted by Eekacat at 12:21 PM on December 5, 2008
When I was working in the wine business, once place I worked at had a vinegar barrel. We'd top it throughout the year with red wine, whatever was extra at the time, and once or twice a year we'd bottle some up for the employees. Very tasty stuff, and it was made with a blend of some of the best red varietals in the Napa Valley.
And yeah, good balsamic vinegar is a treat on fruit. Watermelon doesn't have a lot of tartness on it's own, so I can see a little acidity to give it some flavor.
posted by Eekacat at 12:21 PM on December 5, 2008
Drinking vinegar.
Yeah. Well, I love sour tastes, and I love a nice vinaigrette (I'll take a piece of bread and soak up the vinaigrette pooled at the bottom of my empty salad bowl, for example), so one evening, a propos of nothing, I decided to take a swig of what I thought would be a nice, mild vinegar, just right for drinking - some kind of white wine vinegar.
Holy fucking shit, it felt like I had ripped out the inside of my throat! Aaaagh! Drinking white-wine vinegar, at least, is not recommended.
posted by kcds at 12:22 PM on December 5, 2008
Yeah. Well, I love sour tastes, and I love a nice vinaigrette (I'll take a piece of bread and soak up the vinaigrette pooled at the bottom of my empty salad bowl, for example), so one evening, a propos of nothing, I decided to take a swig of what I thought would be a nice, mild vinegar, just right for drinking - some kind of white wine vinegar.
Holy fucking shit, it felt like I had ripped out the inside of my throat! Aaaagh! Drinking white-wine vinegar, at least, is not recommended.
posted by kcds at 12:22 PM on December 5, 2008
My wife drinks vinegar. Worse; she is making her own wine variants in an effort to create something so potent that it ceases being a vinegar and starts being considered a biological weapon.
I just think she likes watching me twitch uncontrollably when I eat some of made-for-her-level-of-tolerance salad dressings she concocts.
posted by quin at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
I just think she likes watching me twitch uncontrollably when I eat some of made-for-her-level-of-tolerance salad dressings she concocts.
posted by quin at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
Thanks for the nightmares featuring vinegar eels for like the next six freakin' months.
I've got a batch of white wine vinegar brewing at home right now, so I'll have to go check on how my new pets are making out.
posted by Keith Talent at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
I've got a batch of white wine vinegar brewing at home right now, so I'll have to go check on how my new pets are making out.
posted by Keith Talent at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
Remember the Vinegar Man loves you... awwwwww
And he has a special note to extraterrestrial visitors.
Covers his bases well this vinegar man does.
posted by pixlboi at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
And he has a special note to extraterrestrial visitors.
Covers his bases well this vinegar man does.
posted by pixlboi at 12:35 PM on December 5, 2008
If you make vinegar, and get vinegar eels, drop me a line, or just put them directly on aquabid and make some cash.
posted by dirty lies at 12:51 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by dirty lies at 12:51 PM on December 5, 2008
As a person Allergic to Vinegar, I am disappointed by the utter lack of vinegar avoidance tips.
posted by QueerAngel28 at 12:57 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by QueerAngel28 at 12:57 PM on December 5, 2008
Holy fucking shit, it felt like I had ripped out the inside of my throat! Aaaagh! Drinking white-wine vinegar, at least, is not recommended.
Ah, you just have to work your way up to it. And don't breath in right after drinking it, or you'll throw your vocal cords for a loop.
I usually take a swig o' vinegar when I can't find anything really sour around the house. There is nothing quite like a good, potent vinegar. The drinking vinegars above are interesting but I suspect they wouldn't be sour enough for my tastes.
God I wish I had some here.
posted by [insert clever name here] at 1:05 PM on December 5, 2008
Ah, you just have to work your way up to it. And don't breath in right after drinking it, or you'll throw your vocal cords for a loop.
I usually take a swig o' vinegar when I can't find anything really sour around the house. There is nothing quite like a good, potent vinegar. The drinking vinegars above are interesting but I suspect they wouldn't be sour enough for my tastes.
God I wish I had some here.
posted by [insert clever name here] at 1:05 PM on December 5, 2008
When I eat french fries, I eat approximately 50% potato and 50% vinegar. Hell, I even put vinegar on a baked potato or mashed potatoes. Try it sometime. Just don't inhale anywhere near it or prepared to choke and die
posted by tehloki at 1:28 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by tehloki at 1:28 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
As a person Allergic to Vinegar, I am disappointed by the utter lack of vinegar avoidance tips.
I've never heard of this, ever, in all my years of cooking for a living. I've also been unable to find anything concerning this, written online.
Are you sure you don't mean "intolerant"? I'm genuinely curious here. (I also have a cook's built-in extreme skepticism of allergies, so pardon me if I sound snarky -- not my intent.)
posted by Dark Messiah at 1:29 PM on December 5, 2008
I've never heard of this, ever, in all my years of cooking for a living. I've also been unable to find anything concerning this, written online.
Are you sure you don't mean "intolerant"? I'm genuinely curious here. (I also have a cook's built-in extreme skepticism of allergies, so pardon me if I sound snarky -- not my intent.)
posted by Dark Messiah at 1:29 PM on December 5, 2008
Holy crap I love dipping batter-fried fish or chicken in malt vinegar. Hush puppies, too.
Damn you, vinegar man! Starting my mouth watering like that. Shameful.
posted by owtytrof at 1:31 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
Damn you, vinegar man! Starting my mouth watering like that. Shameful.
posted by owtytrof at 1:31 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
I've met the Vinegar Man several times and, as you might expect, he is completely fascinating. Also of note, the Museum he runs is really in the middle of nowhere.
Map
But from all accounts, it is a really awesome place to visit.
posted by limmer at 3:07 PM on December 5, 2008
Map
But from all accounts, it is a really awesome place to visit.
posted by limmer at 3:07 PM on December 5, 2008
I drink vinegar all the time. The other day I found myself adding a dash of balsamic to a little glass of white wine vinegar - just to take the edge of, you understand. (Possibly a sign that I have a problem?!) I had no idea there were vinegars designed for drinking.
posted by jack_mo at 3:13 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by jack_mo at 3:13 PM on December 5, 2008
I love all kinds of vinegar. My favourite find so far has been balsamic glaze. If only I could find a way to use it more often.
I like vinegar so much, I've begun wonder if it's a physiological need.
posted by sunshinesky at 3:29 PM on December 5, 2008
I like vinegar so much, I've begun wonder if it's a physiological need.
posted by sunshinesky at 3:29 PM on December 5, 2008
I like vinegar so much, I've begun wonder if it's a physiological need.
I've wondered that too - is there anything in vinegar that we might be missing out on, due to the nature of our diets? (I eat salt a lot too - the sweet crystals of Maldon! the perfumed sel gris of the Ile de Ré! - which makes me wonder the same thing.)
posted by jack_mo at 3:48 PM on December 5, 2008
I've wondered that too - is there anything in vinegar that we might be missing out on, due to the nature of our diets? (I eat salt a lot too - the sweet crystals of Maldon! the perfumed sel gris of the Ile de Ré! - which makes me wonder the same thing.)
posted by jack_mo at 3:48 PM on December 5, 2008
I am SO gonna go to The Vinegar Museum in Roslyn, South Dakota someday. I am SO there.
"Instant scholarships for those too poor to pay".
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:58 PM on December 5, 2008
"Instant scholarships for those too poor to pay".
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:58 PM on December 5, 2008
another vinegar drinker here. and malt vinegar on french fries? heaven. i never thought about making my own ... until now. thanks for the post.
posted by msconduct at 4:38 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by msconduct at 4:38 PM on December 5, 2008
Does the Vinegar Man know that Grand Central Station is a place where people come together, not knowledge? I think a library metaphor would have worked better. Unless there are cute little electronic vinegar buses I missed on that site.
Also, I don't think the Vinegar Man knows that it's Grand Central Terminal, not Station. /pedant
posted by suedehead at 5:15 PM on December 5, 2008
Also, I don't think the Vinegar Man knows that it's Grand Central Terminal, not Station. /pedant
posted by suedehead at 5:15 PM on December 5, 2008
It works great with baking soda
in an airtight container.
posted by Balisong at 6:10 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
in an airtight container.
posted by Balisong at 6:10 PM on December 5, 2008 [1 favorite]
Vinegar and salt potato chips plus iced Pepsi. Snack of the gods.
I regularly buy two gallons of vinegar a month for cleaning and cooking and other mundane stuff, but I'd never seen this page. This is great!
posted by lysdexic at 6:18 PM on December 5, 2008
I regularly buy two gallons of vinegar a month for cleaning and cooking and other mundane stuff, but I'd never seen this page. This is great!
posted by lysdexic at 6:18 PM on December 5, 2008
There was a rumour when I was a teen that drinking enough vinegar - if you could get past the urge to retch - could get you righteously munted.
posted by scruss at 6:53 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by scruss at 6:53 PM on December 5, 2008
Neat. The "Vinegar Cheese" link in the "Cooking" section is borked—unfortunate, because that sound like a good combination.
I will favorite any post about food, cooking, and ingredients :)
posted by greenie2600 at 7:30 PM on December 5, 2008
I will favorite any post about food, cooking, and ingredients :)
posted by greenie2600 at 7:30 PM on December 5, 2008
Oh, and a fun fact: did you know that real balsamic vinegar isn't actually vinegar? It's not. But it is delicious on strawberries, with a bit of sugar.
posted by greenie2600 at 7:33 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by greenie2600 at 7:33 PM on December 5, 2008
I always get annoyed when the malt vinegar on the table is Heinz. It's made with corn. Corn malt? That's just wrong. Malt is barley malt, period. Four Monks sell the real thing.
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:10 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:10 PM on December 5, 2008
I hate vinegar.
Why? Well, when I was a young kid, I had psoriasis all over my head. It itched, hurt, and even bled. It was so bad behind my ears that I used to have nightmares about my ears falling off. It also made me very self conscious. My mom read, in some ancient book, of some old cure for psoriasis. It involved soaking it in vinegar for some period of time (probably five minutes, but in my scarred memory it seems like it was hours), followed by warm olive oil, a part that was actually very pleasant. I guess you could call it the salad dressing cure. The horrible acid burning scent still haunts my nose to this day. Why would anyone voluntarily digest this awful burning rotted wine?
The psoriasis? It went away, never to come back.
Probably happened despite the vinegar.
posted by eye of newt at 10:33 PM on December 5, 2008
Why? Well, when I was a young kid, I had psoriasis all over my head. It itched, hurt, and even bled. It was so bad behind my ears that I used to have nightmares about my ears falling off. It also made me very self conscious. My mom read, in some ancient book, of some old cure for psoriasis. It involved soaking it in vinegar for some period of time (probably five minutes, but in my scarred memory it seems like it was hours), followed by warm olive oil, a part that was actually very pleasant. I guess you could call it the salad dressing cure. The horrible acid burning scent still haunts my nose to this day. Why would anyone voluntarily digest this awful burning rotted wine?
The psoriasis? It went away, never to come back.
Probably happened despite the vinegar.
posted by eye of newt at 10:33 PM on December 5, 2008
Oh yeah, you have to do the salad cure for a week or two (? don't quite remember--seems like it was months), and I absolutely refuse to admit that malt vinegar and olive oil makes a good bread dip.
posted by eye of newt at 10:39 PM on December 5, 2008
posted by eye of newt at 10:39 PM on December 5, 2008
and I absolutely refuse to admit that malt vinegar and olive oil makes a good bread dip
Good lord, nobody's saying it does. The two have nothing to do with each other. Balsamic vinegar (even the relatively cheap) kind and olive oil does, though. The only oil I think malt vinegar would go with is fryer oil that had been used to cook scotch eggs.
posted by George_Spiggott at 10:49 PM on December 5, 2008
Good lord, nobody's saying it does. The two have nothing to do with each other. Balsamic vinegar (even the relatively cheap) kind and olive oil does, though. The only oil I think malt vinegar would go with is fryer oil that had been used to cook scotch eggs.
posted by George_Spiggott at 10:49 PM on December 5, 2008
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