How to make vanillin at home. What is vanilla sugar

When you try not a packaged powder “a la”, but real vanilla, you understand why spices and seasonings were highly valued in ancient times. Some tribes even used vanilla beans as a money equivalent. Can you imagine it?
Vanilla is now one of the most famous spices. You know, there is such a "tradition", those products that are most popular are most often counterfeited. But vanilla is a little different. Counterfeits exist "legally"! And everyone knows this, and everyone uses them, believing that this product of chemical production can replace their favorite spice.
To dot all the "i", let's briefly find out what it is:

• vanilla extract,
• batch vanillin.

What is vanilla extract?

This is an alcohol infusion, in which alcohol is 35%.
There are several manufacturing standards for this product. The most famous is the requirements of the FDA (American Food Safety Authority). According to this standard, there should be 100 g of pods per liter of extract. This is a one time infusion. Double and triple contains 200 and 300 g of pods in 1 liter.
Questions about the product:

• What other than vanilla extract contains? - Industrial products may contain caramel, syrups, sugar, flavorings and dyes.
• Can the extract be on artificial raw materials? - Yes. It is worth examining the packaging carefully. If you find that vanillin flavors are in the composition, then this product is not natural. Don't let the high price fool you. It is better to spend money on making your own extract than to buy an outright fake. Moreover, such a tincture will not have such a taste and aroma as a real product. Worse, a bitter aftertaste awaits you.

And one more important point! Often the taste and even aroma of the extract on a natural product has different notes and strength of sound in the dish. The difference directly depends on the type of vanilla. Some varieties give floral notes, others are more spicy.

What is vanilla essence?

In fact, this is a “substitute” for the extract. In the essence, instead of natural pods, synthetic analogues are used.
Hence the weaker, almost indistinct aroma, an unpleasant synthetic taste.
To enhance the taste, many housewives are forced to use more essence.
Essence is bought to save money, since a natural product is more expensive. But the essence is more expensive, as it needs to be added to dishes in more quantities.

Conclusion! In fact, the savings here are questionable. And if we also remember that we are content with a synthetic fake, then there can be no question of saving. After all, there is no real smell of vanilla; no appetizing aftertaste. But there is an extra chemistry for the body.

Powder in a bag labeled "Vanillin"

Here everything is quite simple. This is a pure fake. And although manufacturers claim that the formula of an artificial product obtained in chemical laboratories and natural vanilla pods are identical, draw a conclusion.
Its price is much lower. And this is the only plus. You get an analog seasoning, with an analog flavor and an analog aroma. Just imagine how a spice derived from a natural plant smells!

How to make your own vanilla extract

We have already found out that the extract is a tincture of alcohol. Therefore, for cooking, we need only 2 components: an alcoholic drink and pods.
In my case it is:

• Vodka;
• Vanilla pods at the rate: for every 100 ml - 1 pod.
• And 2 more pods for beauty.

What can be used instead of vodka:

• Cognac;
• Alcohol (96%);
• Tequila etc.

For each product, the number of pods remains the same, but the maturation time varies. It all depends on the taste of the alcohol product. The brighter they are, the longer the saturation of the infusion with the taste and aroma of vanilla will be.

Perhaps the most ideal of all drinks is alcohol itself. It has no foreign odors. And its taste is not "spoiled" by anything. And because the tincture will come out exclusively vanilla.

One moment! Alcohol must be mixed with water. You need to bring it up to 35%. Only in this case, the percentage of aroma pomace increases many times, compared with pure alcohol.

There is only one small requirement for alcohol. Whatever you take, it must be of good quality.

Vanilla Bean Requirements:

• dark color;
• oily;
• With a bright aroma (you need to press to hear);
• Dense.

How to prepare the extract:

1. Cut the pods lengthwise and remove the seeds.
2. Cut the halves of the pods into 4-5 parts.
3. Fill the pieces of pods with alcohol and tightly close the bottle with a lid.
4. We put the bottle in a dark room.
5. In such conditions, the tincture will be a month.
6. All this time, the bottle must be shaken, mixing the contents. We do this in about a day.
7. When the extract is infused, we filter it. Pour into a clean bottle. For beauty, put 2 pods.
   It is believed that it can be stored for several decades.

And during this time, the extract becomes more and more saturated. But I haven't had time to check this yet. This product sells out very quickly for me.

The taste, aroma, and hence the love for the dish directly depends on the quality of the ingredients. It's up to you to decide which products to use. I hope that thanks to your choice you will pleasantly surprise yourself and your loved ones more than once, please them and give them many pleasant emotions!
Share your opinion in the comments, which products do you like to use: extracts, essences, or ordinary vanillin in bags?

In contact with

It is an important ingredient in many desserts, sweet sauces, preserves and confectionery. When buying vanilla sugar in the store, most consumers are oblivious to the fact that they are actually choosing a product called "vanillin sugar". One letter in this case is of great importance.

The composition of a cheaper and at the same time more popular substitute often leaves much to be desired. In other words, vanillin sugar is a synthetic replacement for vanilla.

Vanillin is an organic compound that is present in natural vanilla beans, responsible for their taste and smell. However, the artificially obtained synthetic substance significantly loses its value.

In the food industry, it is produced on a mass scale to reduce the cost of production. Such a product with real vanilla, unfortunately, has little in common, and besides, it has a certain effect on health.

All this is due to the artificial food additives that can be found in its composition. The U.S. National Health Harm has placed it on the Register of Hazardous Chemicals. In sensitive persons, the substance may cause skin irritation, eczema, changes in skin pigmentation and contact dermatitis.

Vanilla, along with saffron and cardamom, is one of the most expensive spices in the world. Therefore, vanilla sugar cannot be attributed to cheap products, and besides, it is difficult to find it in ordinary stores. It is a mixture of beet sugar combined with vanilla pods or vanilla extract.

However, it can be easily prepared at home. This is a much better solution than buying ready-made vanillin sugar, which contains the controversial vanillin (or ethyl vanillin).

It is important to buy vanilla sticks for this purpose, stored in sealed packages that prevent them from drying out.

homemade vanilla sugar recipe

It is necessary to prepare 200 g of sugar and a vanilla pod. It is cut in half and grains are selected from the pod. Sugar is placed in a jar with a good lid, the contents of the vanilla stick are poured and mixed thoroughly.

The pod itself is sliced ​​and added to the mixture, which further enhances its flavor. From time to time it is worth shaking the contents of the jar so that lumps do not appear. One teaspoon of such sugar replaces a pack of vanillin.

Flavored sugar can also be made by adding other intensely flavored ingredients. Lavender, lemon balm, cinnamon violet or grated orange peel are a guarantee of an interesting taste in a natural product without preservatives and artificial colors.

Alexander Gushchin

I can't vouch for the taste, but it will be hot :)

Content

This product is found in many recipes for sweet pastries and even in some sauces. Vanilla sugar is a food additive that gives the finished dish a pleasant aroma. It is always added quite a bit. It differs from ordinary sugar only in that the product is insisted on vanilla beans. A cheaper version of the spice is prepared on the basis of synthetic vanillin. Replacing granulated sugar with vanilla will not work. If you add a lot of the latter, the dish will be very bitter.

What is vanilla sugar made from?

The basis of a pleasant aroma and specific taste is an extract of the vanilla plant, which produces pod fruits. Based on these pods, fragrant sugar is produced. You can purchase a ready-made product or make it yourself at home. The last option is not much inferior to the factory one. The only possible difference is the flavor.

In the food industry

There are 2 ways to create a spice:

• From vanilla extract. This is a natural product that has a positive effect on the body. It improves digestion, tones, relieves pain during menstruation, eliminates muscle cramps, and relaxes the nervous system.
• Made from synthetic vanillin. The product turns out to be cheap, often no less fragrant than natural, but completely useless, and sometimes even harmful to the body.

To prepare the extract, vanilla pods are heat treated in boiling water and dried in the open air. The process lasts several months, ends when a white bloom appears on the plant. Vanillin is the substance responsible for the characteristic aroma. Pods insist on 35% alcohol. Then sugar is added to the alcoholic extract, aged, dried. Before packaging, starch is often added to prevent sticking of the granules.

At home

If you do not want to use a product with possible alcohol residues or are not sure about the quality of the spice from the store, you can make it yourself. To do this, use dried pods or vanilla extract, which is prepared at home not on an alcohol basis, but on oil. Use granulated sugar, not powder: the latter, due to fine grinding, quickly absorbs moisture and sticks together.

In terms of the strength of the aroma, homemade spice is often inferior to that made in an industrial factory, but it has its own advantages:

• you know the exact composition, control the quality of the ingredients;
• it is possible to adjust the saturation of smell and taste by changing the ratio of the main components;
• spice is cheaper than store-bought vanilla extract.

How is it different from natural vanilla

Both products are interchangeable in recipes, especially in baking, but there is a difference between them. Natural vanilla is white crystals that are collected from the pods of the plant of the same name after processing. They have a very strong persistent odor that is transferred to any product with which they are mixed. The natural spice has a bitter taste, so it is not used in its pure form and in large quantities. If the product is introduced into the dough, then add a small pinch.

Since ancient times, vanilla has been considered one of the most expensive spices. The reason is the huge costs of its cultivation and production. The vanilla tree in nature grows only in the tropics, produces few fruits, and no more than 3% of the volume and mass of the pod will turn out to be a valuable powder.

What is it needed for

Other Uses for Vanilla Sugar:

• Beverages. A pinch in tea or coffee (in the same amount as regular sugar) will give a pleasant aroma, almost no change in taste.
• For oatmeal, fruit salads. Enough 1/2 tsp. per serving to add sweetness to breakfast without breaking the diet too much.
• Pancakes, cheesecakes, pancakes for losing weight Instead of large portions of regular sugar. Take 1 tsp. vanilla product to give the dish a sweet flavor and deceive the body, but not greatly increase the calorie content of the dish.

Ingredients:

• vanilla pods - 4 pcs.;
• granulated sugar - 680 g.

1. Open the vanilla sticks by cutting them open at the top with a knife and scrape out the contents.
2. Mix with granulated sugar in a wooden or glass bowl - this will rid the spice of excess odors.
3. Rub the ingredients with your hands, mixing together. It is better to work with gloves. Another option is to close the container and shake it for 3-5 minutes to mix everything.
4. Infuse the spice in a closed container for 2-3 days or a week, putting it in a dark, cool place. Before using, be sure to sift the mixture so that the beans do not fall into the dish.

The proportions of sugar and vanilla pods can be changed, focusing on your preferences. According to the presented recipe, the spice is very fragrant. If you want to make it lighter, cooks advise taking 270–400 g of sugar per 1 pod. Another option - 1 pc. and 800 g. Taste and aroma depend on the length of time the spice is aged. Increase this period to 2-3 weeks - you will get sugar with a surprisingly rich and persistent vanilla smell.

Vanilla Pod Selection

In the food industry, 3 varieties of this plant are used:

• Madagascar bourbon. The most famous type, with a fresh aroma that has a slight sourness.
• Mexican. The pods are drier, and the smell has distinct notes of spices and tobacco. Valuable, expensive variety.
• Tahitian. Variety with a soft sweetish-floral aroma that opens quickly. It costs less than the previous ones.

To make sugar, you can use any vanilla bean. They all fit, but will give different flavors. According to culinary specialists, the first 2 varieties (from Madagascar and Mexico) have a more delicate aroma, so they are recommended to choose for baking. You can also buy cheaper vanilla for testing: from Indonesia, India. The latter will give sugar a pleasant caramel flavor. You can often find good quality Ceylon vanilla.

A cocktail or cream for a cake becomes softer and more refined, and the unique aroma of fresh pastries will be even richer if vanillin is added to these dishes during cooking. What is it, why do confectioners and ordinary housewives love it so much? This issue should be well understood in order to learn how to apply all the useful properties of the product in practice.

Ah, what a fragrant vanilla!

Vanillin owes its unusually spicy aroma to the fruits of a plant that grows in South America. Vanilla is a "relative" of the orchid, grows on vines and has yellow-white flowers. After they fade, green pods remain, on which white crystals form when dry. This is the real natural vanilla.

The first mention of it is associated with the Aztec tribes. The Indians added spice to their traditional drink - hot chocolate. The first European to taste vanilla was Christopher Columbus. It happened at the beginning of the 16th century. Since then, the spice has come to Europe and has become widely used in cooking.

Vanilla sugar at home

If vanillin is obtained artificially in the laboratory, then vanilla sugar can be made independently at home. To do this, it is enough to take 1 long vanilla pod, 1 kilogram of granulated sugar, a little powder.

To prepare vanilla sugar, the vanilla pod is cut in half lengthwise, the seeds are removed, ground in a mortar to a powder state and mixed with powdered sugar. After that, the resulting mixture is combined with sugar, a vanilla pod is added there and all together is sent to a dark place for storage for 3-4 days. After the specified time, the food supplement is ready for consumption.

To get fragrant sugar, one vanilla pod will be enough, and the seeds can be used to make some kind of dessert.

Unfortunately, a natural flavor cannot be stored for a long time due to the fact that a pleasant smell quickly disappears. To keep the aroma longer, add it to the dish at the end of cooking.

Difficult Choice: Vanillin or Vanilla Sugar

Before you buy a flavoring supplement, you should know how to distinguish a natural product from a laboratory-synthesized one. After all, in fact, vanilla sugar and vanillin are one and the same, the difference is only in the way they are prepared. Of course, vanillin can also be obtained from natural raw materials, but it is almost impossible to find such a product on the shelves in stores.

When buying vanillin, you should carefully read the inscription on the label. If a product contains a flavor identical to natural, or ethyl vanillin, then this product is synthesized in the laboratory. It is usually packaged in bags of 1 gram. It is this aromatic additive that is most often used by confectioners when baking due to its low price. One bag of vanillin costs about 3 rubles.

Vanilla sugar is sold in bags, packaged in 8-15 grams. As part of such a dietary supplement, sugar is necessarily indicated, as well as crushed vanilla bean seeds or ethyl vanillin. The latter option has the same qualities as artificial vanillin. The price for it fluctuates between 8-10 rubles. Vanilla sugar with a natural vanilla flavor is more expensive - about 30 rubles per bag weighing 15 grams.

When preparing a culinary masterpiece at home, it is better to give preference to a product with a natural composition, and leave artificial substitutes for mass production.

Vanilla pods are the fruits of a perennial plant from the Orchid family. It is used as a spice mainly in confectionery and as a flavoring agent in the perfume industry. The name vanilla comes from the Spanish word vainilla, which translates as "pod". Vanilla fruits are pods.

Vanilla grows in tropical and subtropical climates. The main suppliers of natural vanilla are Madagascar, China and Indonesia. Vanilla gained wide popularity in Europe from the beginning of the 19th century, when it was imported to European countries from Mexico.

Vanilla has a very pleasant aroma, which is inherent only in the fruit of this plant, but the taste of natural vanilla is bitter, so it is added to confectionery products in small quantities. Too much vanilla in a dish can add a bitter taste to it.

Vanilla Pod Information:

Ingredients of natural vanilla:

Vanilla pods contain:

• Carbohydrates - 12.5%;
• Proteins - 1.2%;
• Fat - 0.1%.

The chemical composition of natural vanilla fruits includes such mineral elements as calcium, zinc, potassium, magnesium, copper, iron, manganese, sodium and phosphorus.

Vanilla fruits contain vitamins such as B1, B2, B5, B6, B9 and PP.

Vanillin, gluco-vanillin, essential oils and cinnamon ether give vanilla flavor to vanilla pods. In addition, the fruits of natural vanilla contain tannins.

The calorie content of vanilla pods is only 287 kcal per 100 grams of product.

How to use vanilla beans in baking:

To make vanilla-flavored dough, not the pod itself is used, but the seeds inside it. Therefore, you first need to extract the seeds from the vanilla pod as follows:

1. Just before adding the vanilla seeds to the batter, place the vanilla bean on a clean and dry board with the folded end of the vanilla bean pointing up.
2. Hold the vanilla pod in one hand and take a small knife in the other hand.
3. Carefully cut the vanilla pod lengthwise to the center, so that its edges can be pulled apart, but not into 2 parts. Don't hurt your hands! If you want to add half a vanilla pod to the dish, then it must be cut lengthwise to half its length.
4. Open the edges of the pod with your hands.
5. Gently scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod into the dough, following the proportions indicated in the recipe. If you add more vanilla than required, the dish may start to taste bitter.

How to make vanilla sugar from a natural vanilla pod:

1. Take a small clean and dry, hermetically sealed container.
2. Slice the vanilla pod lengthwise as above and empty the contents into a container.
3. Place the vanilla bean in a bowl.
4. Pour 40 grams of sugar or better powdered sugar into a container, it will be saturated with vanilla aroma faster and more intensively.
5. Seal tightly and leave for one week.

How to make vanilla extract from vanilla beans:

1. Take a small clean, dry and glass half-liter, hermetically sealed container.
2. Place 3 vanilla pods in a bowl.
3. Pour half a liter of good vodka or rum into the container.
4. Close hermetically and leave to infuse in a dark, cool place for 3 months when using vodka and for 1 month when using rum. Shake the container periodically.
5. Add as an ingredient to dishes in the proportions indicated in the recipes.

The longer the vanilla extract is infused, the more intense its flavor and aroma will be.

How to properly store vanilla beans:

In order for vanilla pods to retain their vanilla flavor for a long time - up to 5 years - they must be stored in a hermetically sealed glass jar in a dark and cool place.

How much vanilla lines weigh:

One vanilla pod weighs about 3 grams.

How to replace natural vanilla pods:

If the recipe calls for a vanilla pod as an ingredient, but you don't have it on hand, you can substitute it:

1. Vanilla sugar. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 15 grams of vanilla sugar.
2. Vanillin. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 1-2 grams of vanillin.
3. Vanilla extract. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Vanilla pod production technology:

The technological scheme for the production of vanilla pods is quite complicated, which is why natural vanilla is so expensive. The production line includes 7 stages:

1. At the first stage, vanilla fruits are harvested from trees.
2. Fruits are immersed in hot water heated to 85 degrees Celsius in order to wash and disinfect them.
3. The vanilla fruits are then immersed in water heated to 60 degrees Celsius and left to ferment for a week. After that, vanilla fruits acquire their unique aroma and recognizable brown color.
4. Next, the vanilla is dried in the shade in the open air for several months.
5. Once the vanilla pods have a slight white coating, they are ready to use.
6. Vanilla is placed in a container and sent to the warehouse.
7. At the warehouse, natural vanilla is packed in packages and sent for sale to retail outlets and various industries.

Benefits of natural vanilla pods:

The benefits of natural vanilla lies in the beneficial effect of the essential oils contained in it on the human body. Vanilla helps restore the functioning of the nervous system, get rid of anxiety, irritability and stress.

It improves appetite, normalizes the digestive system and improves metabolic processes in the human body.

Natural vanilla is also useful for the work of the muscular system. It helps to get rid of muscle cramps.

In general, vanilla aromas calm a person, improve mood, create a feeling of peace and comfort.

Harm of natural vanilla pods:

Vanilla can be dangerous and contraindicated for people with its individual intolerance and allergy sufferers. The essential oils contained in it can cause an allergic reaction. Therefore, people with allergies should consult a doctor before consuming vanilla.

Pregnant women should use vanilla with extreme caution. Regarding its use, they should consult their doctor.

For everyone else, vanilla can only benefit, when consumed in moderation, as an ingredient in proven dishes.