What table vinegar is made of: composition, useful properties and features

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Every housewife knows that vinegar is very useful and simply necessary in the house, but few people wonder what it is made of. Let's take a closer look at vinegar: composition, useful and harmful properties and unusual uses.

Vinegar is…

Product that contains the most acetic acid obtained during microbiological synthesis using acetic acid bacteria from alcohol-containing food raw materials. To put it simply, by fermenting an alcoholic liquid. Vinegar is a clear liquid with a slight tinge of color or colorless. Most often used in cooking or domestic purposes. To understand what ordinary vinegar is made of, you need to know that table vinegar is sold in a concentration of 3% to 15% aqueous acetic acid.

The history of the appearance of vinegar

Vinegar is one of the most ancient fermented products. By its "age" it can easily compete with wine.

The first mention of vinegar can be found in Babylon 5000 BC.e. Ancient people made vinegar from dates, as well as wine from these fruits.

In ancient times, vinegar was used not only in cooking, but also as a disinfectant (disinfectant) for everyday life, for medical and sanitary purposes.

Vinegar is mentioned many times in the Bible, and the oldest reference is in the Old Testament (Num. 6:3).

How exactly the first vinegar was obtained, unfortunately, is unknown, but we can consider a modern variation of this product.

What is table vinegar made of?

Modern table vinegar is produced from ethyl alcohol and secondary products of its production: apple, grape and other fruit juices, fermented wine materials.

There is also synthetic vinegar, which ends up in our kitchen more often than others. It will be discussed in more detail later.

Table vinegar and its varieties

Let's take a closer look at what housewives use in their kitchens. So, below is about table vinegar, properties, types and its use in cooking and everyday life.

Wine Vinegar

Get from the fermentation of grape juice or wine. This vinegar has a pleasant taste and smell, thanks to the esters it contains.

There are two types - red and white. What this table vinegar is made of, we will analyze in detail.

White is most often made from dry white wine, for which light grape varieties are used. Due to this, vinegar has a lighter taste and is used for cooking meat dishes and salad dressings. Alsooften, with the addition of sugar, white vinegar is substituted for white wine in recipes to reduce the cost of the dish.

Red wine vinegar is made from classic grape varieties such as Cabernet and Merlot. It has a distinctive taste and aroma, because before bottling it is aged for a long time in oak barrels. Red vinegar is great for marinades, salad dressings and sauces.

Balsamic Vinegar

Many people consider this particular vinegar to be the main one in the kitchen, as it is used for fish marinade, meat dishes, salad dressings, soups and even desserts. This type goes well with cheese, fruit and is used in large quantities in Italian and Japanese cuisines. What is it made from? This table vinegar is made from light grape varieties, which contain the highest amount of sugar. First, the berries undergo natural fermentation, then aged for 12 years in oak barrels, gradually losing volume every year. Due to such a long production time, the price of this vinegar is quite high.

M alt Vinegar

What table vinegar is not made of! This one is made from fermented wort that has not yet been used in brewing. It has a pleasant smell, fresh taste and fruity flavor. Most often used in English cuisine, especially in the preparation of their traditional dishes. Also suitable for preservation, preparation of marinades for vegetables and fish.

Apple cider vinegar

Apple cider vinegar has a mild taste, becauseit is made from delicious cider. It is very loved by the French and Americans, because it contains a large amount of useful substances and minerals, it is used in the preparation of poultry, fish, seafood, sauces and sometimes even drinks. It is widely used in pickling garlic, pickles, capers, shallots and more. Apple cider vinegar is also often used for self-medication. It can be diluted with warm water and gargled with sore throats, compresses with cloth moistened with it for tired muscles, and even diluted with water and sprayed on hair to make it silkier.

Rice Vinegar

The most popular vinegar in Asian countries. It is divided into several types: white, black, red and sweet with spices.

It is made from rice wine or fermented brown or black rice.

White rice vinegar is most often used in Chinese cuisine, as it gives dishes a sweet and sour taste. Black vinegar is milder and is used as a sauce ingredient.

It is also difficult to imagine Japanese cuisine without rice vinegar, because it gives dishes a sour taste and amazing aroma, therefore it is used as a dressing for rice for making sushi and rolls, for sauces, marinades and meat dishes.

Synthetic vinegar

This is the most common vinegar for us, and no one asks what it is made of. But in fact, it is produced on the basis of mineral fertilizers from natural gas or by synthesizing sawdust. This vinegar is the most common in our kitchen.

Thanks to this, it has almost no expiration date and is very cheap, unlike its natural counterparts. Why is there almost no time limit? If you buy vinegar in a glass bottle, then indeed, you can store it for a lifetime, but plastic containers tend to decompose over time, release harmful substances that precipitate, so the shelf life of such vinegar is very limited.

The most commonly used table vinegar is 9%, which is what makes most pickles for preservation - completely synthetic!

It is added to salads, sauces, soups, marinades and pastries - as a baking powder in combination with soda. When adding it to borscht or hodgepodge, to a vitamin salad or vinaigrette, we don’t think about what table vinegar is made of and whether it can be dangerous for us. Although it is approved by the Ministry of He alth, it is better to reduce or completely abandon its use and use a natural product.

Using vinegar for cleaning

What table vinegar is made of, we already know, and that even in ancient times people came up with the idea of using it as an antiseptic, because it kills harmful bacteria and removes fat. But here's how you can use it in today's world:

1. To remove sweat stains from white clothes, it is enough to soak them in ordinary white table vinegar for 10 minutes before washing for 10 minutes, then there will be no trace of them.

2. Vinegar is able to remove rust from small items if they are boiled and then rinsed well.water.

3. If a cat or cat has marked an area or furniture, wash the area and then wipe it down with a vinegar cloth, and all you're left with is its scent. But it's better to do it right away, before the cat's "aroma" has ingrained, especially in the fabric.

4. Vinegar eliminates unpleasant odors in the refrigerator, cabinets and other surfaces, just wipe them with a cloth dipped in it.

5. Vinegar is great at removing scale, just boil vinegared water in a kettle or add a little to the rinse aid compartment of your washing machine.

6. To remove dried paint from brushes or rollers, boil vinegar in a pot of water, then dip the brush into it and rub it against the bottom. There will be no trace of paint left.

7. You can clear any blockage in the pipe if you pour 180 g of soda into it and pour 100 ml of vinegar, and after 30 minutes pour boiling water over the kettle.

8. If your pan is burned, any soot can be removed. First, clean the surface with soda, then pour vinegar and let stand for 30 minutes. Then boil the pot with water, and all the soot will come off by itself.

The main thing to remember: when working (especially with a product with a concentration of more than 5%), use gloves, because, regardless of what table vinegar is made of, it is still an acid, and it can corrode your soft tissues.