What Is Basil vinegar and How Can I Use It?
If basil vinegar has turned up in a recipe or caught your eye at the store, here's what you need to use it with confidence and how to choose it, cook it, store it, what to substitute, and 2 recipes to try it in.
Key Points
- White wine vinegar steeped with fresh basil; sharp and clean with a green, peppery note.
- A salad vinegar above all, pairing with tomatoes, summer fruit and soft leaves.
- Make it by steeping bruised basil in warmed white wine vinegar one to two weeks.
- No bottle? Use plain white wine vinegar and tear fresh basil into the dish.
What is basil vinegar?
Basil vinegar is white wine vinegar that has been steeped with fresh basil until it takes on the herb's sweet, peppery aroma. The vinegar stays sharp and clean, but it carries a green, anise-edged note that plain wine vinegar does not.
It is a salad and dressing vinegar above all. The basil pairs naturally with tomatoes, summer fruit and soft leaves, which is why it suits a Spinach & Fresh Fruit Salad or a sharp vinaigrette like Don's Piquant Salad Dressing.
Making your own is easy. Bruise a handful of clean, dry basil leaves, submerge them in warmed (not boiling) white wine vinegar, and leave the jar in a cool, dark spot for one to two weeks before straining.
Keep the leaves fully covered by the vinegar so nothing sits exposed above the surface to spoil.
No basil vinegar on hand? Use plain white wine vinegar and tear a little fresh basil straight into the dish. Stored sealed and strained, a finished bottle keeps for months in a cool cupboard.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 紫苏醋
- British (UK) term
- Basil vinegar
- en français
- basilic vinaigre
- en español
- vinagre de albahaca
Recipes using basil vinegar
There are 2 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Don's Piquant Salad Dressing
A zesty homemade salad dressing with olive oil, two types of vinegar, Romano cheese, garlic, and a kick of hot sauce. Mixes up in 5 minutes flat and gets better as it chills.
Spinach & Fresh Fruit Salad
Spinach and fresh fruit salad with strawberries, blueberries, avocado, brie, and walnuts in a bright lemon-basil vinaigrette. A no-cook 10-minute summer salad that eats like a full meal.
