Regular white vinegar may smell and taste harsh. But apple cider vinegar for cooking balances everything with its tangy, sweet taste. Making it a fantastic fit for hundreds of dishes! It is the ultimate taste booster for food around the world.
From salad dressing to marinades, pickles to chutney, soup to sauce, the list of apple cider vinegar dishes can touch the sky! We may need a 3 part book to learn all the recipes for apple cider vinegar. But there is a much easier way!
By learning how to use and understand what it does to different dishes. You can be creative with apple cider vinegar dishes and make your cooking finger-licking good!
Hi, I am Ismoth Jahan from MyOrganicBD team. A Writer and Home chef with seven years of experience in organic food. Apple cider vinegar is something you can always find in my kitchen. As I love the fruity, tangy taste and richness it brings to my dishes. Keep reading as I share all my ACV cooking knowledge.
In this article, We will help you learn all the cooking magic you can do with the excellence of apple cider vinegar. It will also include the role of OACV in different dishes. What taste and effect to expect from OACV. This will let you harness the true power and get the most out of ACV’s versatility.
Apple cider vinegar: Rapid Intro
Apple cider vinegar is a 5-6% solution of acetic acid. It is made from two-stage fermentation of organic apples. In the first stage, the apple sugar turns into alcohol by yeasts. Second stage, another type of bacteria break alcohol, turning it into vinegar.
As the vinegar is made from organic apples, it carries most of the flavor, sweetness, and nutrition of apples. It has an acid pH of 2.5 to 3.5, which acidity helps to balance the pH of different dishes and adds a bit of pleasant sourness. The low pH of ACV makes it suitable for storing and pickling different types of food.
What is the best apple cider vinegar for cooking? Any apple cider vinegar should work great. But the organic apple cider vinegar with mother generally have the best benefits and taste.
Making apple cider vinegar at home may be much easier than you imagine! Check out How to make homemade organic ACV.
The organic apple cider vinegar not filtered, distilled, or heated. May carry beneficial bacteria that boost your gut health and digestion. They have specific health benefits. Please read organic apple cider to know more.
What’s the role of apple cider vinegar in cooking?
Apple cider vinegar for cooking is not the main character in a drama. Instead, it’s more like a shy character that plays its role perfectly, subtly changing the overall flavor profile. Its role can vary in different dishes. Most of the time, it does not have any negative effects if you use it in moderation.
Let’s check out apple cider vinegar’s roles in different dishes.
Enhance taste and flavor
Apple cider vinegar does an excellent job of adding a hint of tang to various dishes, complimenting meat, vegetables, and different curry dishes. It can fill the gaps in taste and improve the overall delicacy of a dish. Just 1 to 2 spoons of apple cider vinegar is enough to do the trick for most dishes. Here are some example dishes :
- Vegetable curry.
- Soup.
- Fish fry.
- Tomato Sauce.
As Marinade: breaks down protein
Apple cider vinegar is excellent for marinating chicken, beef, mutton, and other meats for grilling, barbecuing, and steak. ACV weakens the protein and allows spice and flavor to get inside. It also improves the tenderness and texture of the meat.
Add marinated ingredients such as black paper, chilly flacks, turmeric, olive oil, and a few spoons of apple cider vinegar. Just 30 minutes of marinating is enough for wow reactions at the dining table! Here are some marinading ideas :
- Grilled chicken.
- Pork chop.
- Steak marinade.
- Salmon marinade.
Don’t have ACV in your kitchen? It may not be a good idea to skip ACV in a recipe. There are at least a Dozen alternatives. Check out the Apple Cider Vinegar Alternatives.
For Tasty vegan dishes.
Apple cider vinegar can fill the gaps in vegan dishes. Add elements of interest to the dishes. For instance, a sparkle of ACV in your potato salad can greatly improve the taste. Also, its health benefits are perfectly aligned with wellness and dieting goals!
Here are some vegan dishes you can cook using ACV :
- Vegan Coleslaw.
- Vegan BBQ Tofu.
- Cooked carrot.
For Salad Dressing
After using apple cider vinegar for dressing your salad, there is no way back. You will love the tangy sweetness to your salad and coleslaw. You can make ACV salad dressing by adding mustard, honey, olive oil, and other ingredients. Here are some salad ideas :
- Raspberry walnut salad
- Mixed fruit salad
- Green leaf salad
As an Organic preservative
Preservatives are tricky. Preservatives that work well are often chemical and have side effects. Most of the organic preservatives just taste bad. But apple cider vinegar stepped down from the list. It’s healthy and adds a present sourness to the pickles, meat, or anything you store.
Apple cider vinegar protects the food from bacteria and microbes that cause rotting. Here is a list of food you can preserve with ACV and store for months.
- Pickles
- Fruits
- Meat
- Salsa
- Sauce
- Kimchi
- Eggs and many more.
Preserves color
Preparing colorful semi-cooked veggies? Add a spoonful of apple cider vinegar. It will preserve the color of the dish. Make it look more vibrant & delicious. Not just look, ACV also improves the taste of the dish. Here are some examples-
- Coleslaw.
- Beat salad.
- Mix veggie fry.
Balances sweetness
Sweet dishes are often one-dimensionally sweet. Apple cider vinegar can add a hint of sourness to balance the sweetness. It adds excellent contrast to your sweet jam, custard, pie, and many other dishes. However, remember that ACV may not be suitable for dairy dishes, as it can coagulate the milk protein.
Here are some example sweet dish ideas-
- Juice.
- Fruit jam.
- Pie.
Baking Enhancer
You may already know the role of baking powder. It releases carbon dioxide gas and helps the dough to puff up. Apple cider vinegar can make the process faster and add depth of flavor. It can also help preserve the final product’s moisture, improving the taste and texture.
Here are some of the example dishes to make using organic apple cider vinegar :
- Banana bread.
- Blueberry muffins.
- Chocolate cake.
- Pancakes.
Caution : Apple Cider vinegar for Cooking
Apple cider vinegar tastes excellent when used in moderation. On the other hand, it can make a dish taste equally bad if you use too much. You can experiment by adding apple cider vinegar to different dishes, but some may not work as well as you expect. But that’s what makes cooking adventurous!
FAQ
Is it better to cook with apple juice or cider?
Apple juice and apple cider vinegar both have different roles in the cooking. Apple cider vinegar lowers the pH with a slight fruity tang, while apple juice may add a hint of fruity sweetness. In simple words, they are not usually interchangeable in most recipes.
Why do you add cinnamon to apple cider vinegar?
Cinnamon may increase the blood sugar-reducing effect of organic apple cider vinegar. However, more studies are required to confirm the results.
Final thoughts : Apple cider vinegar for cooking
Organic apple cider vinegar is extremely versatile. Its unique tangy sweetness can change or improve the taste of countless dishes. Learning the ways to use it in your cooking opens the door to many fantastic opportunities.
If you can master organic apple cider vinegar for cooking, it will add a powerful, cute weapon to your cooking arsenal.
Looking for pure organic apple cider vinegar with the best flavor and taste? After trying several, here is the one we can happily recommend – BRAGG Apple Cider Vinegar with Mother.
She is one of our core team member. She looks after HR department. A great content writer, editor. Beside her daily job, She is a Black belt in cooking.
Mr. Shariful Alam Pavel believes in natural living. To live a healthy conscious living, we need to eat green, live green. MyOrganic Bd is a green wellbeing brand, educating millions to live a better life with mother nature.