Balsamic sauce is made from balsamic vinegar. The first known mention of balsamic vinegar dates back to 1046, when a certain Marquis Bonifacio presented a small barrel with a valuable product as a gift to the future King Henry II. So the tradition of “royal gifts” was laid - to give such barrels it was customary for kings and nobles. Barrels with expensive contents testified to wealth and served as dowries in families in which there were married women.
Balsamic vinegar (another name is "balsamic") - perhaps the most refined, having excellent taste overtones and traditionally highly rated among all known food vinegars. In appearance it is a thick, dark brown mass, from the category of sweet and sour seasonings, traditionally made in the Italian settlement of Modena. It is sometimes identified with simple grape vinegar, but balsamic is produced using a completely different technology.
The technology of balsamic vinegar
Balsamic vinegar is made from white grape juice (certain varieties are required). For this, the raw materials are first pressed and then cooked in large open boilers. Further, the resulting wort is cooled, filtered and poured into barrels from certain types of wood - cherries, chestnuts, thuja, oak.
Then vinegar is allowed to “ripen” for 12 to 25 years; the aging time depends on the variety. Unlike wine, it is not produced in the basement, but in the attic. During the aging period, as the excess moisture evaporates, vinegar overflows into barrels of ever decreasing volume. At the end of the aging period, vinegar gets a taste of wood and has a complex aroma. Due to such difficult ripening conditions, 100 kg of grapes are required to produce about 3 liters of vinegar. After ripening, the quality of the obtained vinegar is necessarily tested by a special commission, and, in the case of a positive decision of the latter, the product is called balsamic vinegar.
The production of this vinegar was handled by a limited circle of aristocracy and the middle class. The name "balsamic" appeared because it was originally used for medical purposes, and only later its culinary properties became known - to give food a unique refined taste. They use it literally drop by drop - for making salads, soups, desserts, pickled fish in the most expensive restaurants in the world. Just a few drops of this seasoning perfectly add taste to cheese, strawberry salad, ordinary omelette and even ice cream.
Making the sauce at home is very easy; in fact, the balsamic sauce is boiled vinegar. Below are some of the simplest recipes for making balsamic sauce.
Balsamic Sauce - Recipe 1
Pour balsamic vinegar into a teapot or pot and cook until its amount decreases by 2 times. We observe that after about 30 minutes of boiling over low heat, the sauce will thicken - we try. To do this, lightly dip any clean stick in the sauce and then touch it on a cold surface (board, table, knife blade, plate). If a “string stretches” from a stick, then the sauce with balsamic vinegar is ready. The “thread” should be torn at a distance of 1-1.5 cm, if it continues to stretch further, then the sauce is overcooked. To avoid mistakes, you need to do this test more often.
To prepare drawings from the sauce, we make a cone envelope from parchment paper, pour the sauce there, tuck the edges of the cone, and gently cut the “nose”. Syringe for decor from balsamic sauce is ready.
Balsamic Sauce - Recipe 2
Ingredients:
- olive oil - 6 large spoons;
- chopped garlic - a teaspoon;
- sugar - 1/2 spoon (you can taste more);
- salt - 1/4 teaspoon (you can do without salt);
- balsamic vinegar - 2 tablespoons.
Cooking:
1. Put all components in a vessel with a lid. Shake well. The sauce is ready.
2. Balsamic sauce is best served chilled, shake before use. The sauce will turn out tastier if you make it half an hour before a meal.
Balsamic Sauce - Recipe 3
This sauce is perfect for meat dishes from veal, beef, lamb, it will give the meat spice and a touch of piquancy.
Products:
- balsamic vinegar (Sherry, Modena) - 2 tablespoons;
- parsley, celery, dill. All together - 1 bunch;
- feathers of onions or garlic - several;
- flour - 1 large spoon;
- bouillon cube - half;
- water - ¾ cup.
Cooking:
Mix all ingredients except herbs in cold form. Heat the pot with the contents over low heat. Cook with constant stirring until boiling. Put finely chopped greens in the resulting sauce, mix everything. The sauce should be infused for a couple of minutes, after which it can be served.