What is vinegar?
Vinegar is a sour liquid made when bacteria turn alcohol into acetic acid. It can be made from wine, cider, rice, malt or other sources and is used in cooking, pickling and cleaning.
Making vinegar is a two-step fermentation. First, yeast turns sugars from fruit or grain into alcohol. Then acetic acid bacteria convert the alcohol into acetic acid, which gives vinegar its sharp taste and smell. Most table vinegar contains about 4 to 8 percent acetic acid.
Different vinegars have different flavors. Wine vinegar is common in French and Mediterranean cooking, apple cider vinegar has a fruity taste, rice vinegar is mild and used in sushi rice, and malt vinegar is traditional on British fish and chips. Balsamic vinegar from Modena, Italy, is aged in wooden barrels, sometimes for decades.
Many uses
Vinegar is used in salad dressings, sauces and marinades and to pickle vegetables, because its acidity prevents bacteria from growing. White vinegar is also a popular household cleaner for removing limescale and grease. The word vinegar comes from the French vin aigre, meaning sour wine.
Did You Know?
A slimy layer called a mother of vinegar, made of bacteria and cellulose, can form in unpasteurized vinegar and be used to start a new batch.