September 2012

Vinegar in Food Storage

Info taken from: http://www.versatilevinegar.org/index.html

Vinegar - why should I store it?

From the kitchen to the bathroom and beyond, vinegar is the most flexible of products sure to have a daily use in your home and life. Vinegar is commonly used in food preparation, particularly in pickling processes, vinaigrettes, and other salad dressings. It is an ingredient in sauces such as mustard, ketchup, and mayonnaise. Vinegar is sometimes used while making chutneys. It is often used as a condiment. Marinades often contain vinegar. Many remedies and treatments have been ascribed to vinegar over millennia and in many different cultures, however, few have been verifiable using controlled medical trials and many that are effective to some degree have significant side effects and carry the possibility of serious health risks.

Kinds of Vinegar:

Specialty vinegars make up a category of vinegar products that are formulated or flavored to provide a special or unusual taste when added to foods. Specialty vinegars are favorites in the gourmet market.

• Herbal vinegars: Wine or white distilled vinegars are sometimes flavored with the addition of herbs, spices or other seasonings. Popular flavorings are garlic, basil and tarragon - but cinnamon, clove and nutmeg flavored vinegars can be a tasty and aromatic addition to dressings.
• Fruit vinegars: Fruit or fruit juice can also be infused with wine or white vinegar. Raspberry flavored vinegars, for example, create a sweetened vinegar with a sweet-sour taste.

Storage:

The Vinegar Institute conducted studies to find out and confirmed that vinegar’s shelf life is almost indefinite. Because of its acid nature, vinegar is self-preserving and does not need refrigeration. White distilled vinegar will remain virtually unchanged over an extended period of time. And, while some changes can be observed in other types of vinegars, such as color changes or the development of a haze or sediment, this is only an aesthetic change. The product can still be used and enjoyed with confidence.

 Vinegar Hints in Food Preparation

Getting the last drops:
When you can’t get the last bit of mayonnaise or salad dressing out of the jar, try dribbling a little of your favorite vinegar into it, put the cap on tightly and shake well. You’ll be amazed at how much you’ve been wasting.

Cooking fish:
Try soaking fish in vinegar and water before cooking it. It will be sweeter, more tender and hold its shape better. When boiling or poaching fish, a tablespoon of vinegar added to the water will keep it from crumbling so easily.

Cake icing:
Cake icing can be prevented from becoming sugary if a little vinegar is added to the ingredients before cooking. The same is true when making homemade candy.

Boiling eggs:
When boiling an egg and it’s cracked, a little vinegar in the water will keep the white from running out.

Keeping potatoes white:
A teaspoon of white distilled or cider vinegar added to the water in which you boil potatoes will keep them nice and white. You can keep peeled potatoes from turning dark by covering them with water and adding 2 teaspoons of vinegar.

Freshen vegetables:
Freshen up slightly wilted vegetables by soaking them in cold water and vinegar.

Fruit and vegetable wash:
Add 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar to 1 pint water and use to wash fresh fruits and vegetables, then rinse thoroughly.  Research has shown that vinegar helps kill bacteria on fruits and vegetables.

Frying doughnuts:
Before frying doughnuts, add ½ teaspoon of vinegar to hot oil to prevent doughnuts soaking up extra grease.  Use caution when adding the vinegar to the hot oil. 

Flavor booster:
Perk up a can of soup, gravy or sauce with a teaspoon of your favorite specialty vinegar. It adds flavor and taster fresher.

Meat tenderizer:
As a tenderizer for tough meat or game, make a marinade in the proportion of half a cup of your favorite vinegar to a cup of heated liquid, such as bouillon; or for steak, you may prefer to a mix of vinegar and oil, rubbed in well and allowed to stand for two hours.

Fruit stains:
Remove fruit or berry stains from your hands by cleaning them with vinegar.

Fresh lunch box:
It is easy to take out the heavy stale smell often found in lunch boxes. Dampen a piece of fresh bread with white distilled vinegar and leave it in the lunch box overnight.

Get rid of cooking smells:
Let simmer a small pot of vinegar and water solution.

Fluffy Egg Whites
Soak a paper towel with 1-2 Tablespoons of white distilled vinegar.  Wipe mixing bowl and beaters or whisk with the vinegar-soaked paper towel, then dry with a cloth or paper towel prior to whipping egg whites. 

Fluffier Rice
For fluffier and great tasting rice, add a teaspoon of white distilled vinegar to the boiling water before adding rice.  Rice will be easier to spoon and less sticky. 

The Vinegar Institute has many recipes to use vinegar. Check them out at:   http://www.versatilevinegar.org/recipes.html . Other helpful uses of Vinegar are also found at http://www.versatilevinegar.org/index.html.  You'll be surprised at what vinegar can do for you!

August Newsletter

2009 Preparedness Plan
August Summary
(taken from Syracuse 6th Ward Plan)

Spiritual Goal:
Take time to evaluate your communication with our Heavenly Father. Are your prayers meaningful? Do you talk to your Father in heaven with a sincere heart? Do you remember to pray for your family members? For the people you have responsibility to? For patience? For help with your preparedness plan?

Emergency Preparedness Goal:
Add $20.00 in coin and small bills in your “cash stash”. You should have now
have $160.00.
Stress reducers (i.e. books, games, crayons, scriptures)

Food Storage Goal:
Fruit, Juice: Fruit is what they call an expanded storage item. This is an item expanded beyond basic food storage that would include food that supply total nutritional needs, adds variety and allows for personal preferences. It is wise to first obtain fruits and vegetables that are high in vitamins A and C and food items that make the basic more versatile. Each person should have between 2-4 servings of fruit per day. One medium apple, banana or orange, ½ cup of canned fruit or ¾ cup of juice makes one serving. Only 100% fruit juice counts as a fruit serving.

Vinegar: There are many good uses for vinegar that make it a good item to keep in your food storage. It will last indefinitely. Some uses are: 1). Add a teaspoon to the water when cooking rice to make it fluffier. 2). Add a teaspoon when cooking roast beef to make it more tender. 3). Add cinnamon to some vinegar and microwave for a quick potpourri. 4). Put on hands to remove fishy odors. 5). When hand washing dishes, add vinegar to the rinse water for spot free glassware and china. 6). Drain cleaner – pour ½ cup baking soda down the drain. Add 1 cup white vinegar and follow with boiling water. Flush with cold water for 1-2 minutes. 7). General cleaner and disinfectant – 1 cup distilled white vinegar with 2 teaspoons lemon juice in 1 ½ quarts of distilled water. (Ideas taken from Cheryl Driggs’ Simply Prepared, pg 48)


Challenge:
Try to learn the skill of canning. Decide today to try to can one thing this summer.