Apple cider vinegar
Ingredients
- Apples. Can just use the scraps (core, peel, etc.). I've seen different opinions on the seeds, so I leave them out.
- Ratio of 1 cup of filtered, boiled water to 1 tbsp sugar
- Optional: Mother from previous vinegar
Recipe
Fill sterilized jar 3/4 way with apple and scraps. Add enough sugar water to fill the bottle. Make sure the apples are submerged. Cover with cheesecloth.
Place jar in cool, dark place for 2-3 weeks, checking regularly to make sure apples are submerged. Bubbles indicate that fermentation is starting. A white foam will eventually form on top. This will become the mother in a few weeks. After 2-3 weeks, it should taste apple-y and sweet, but not yet acidic.
Strain the liquid into the original jar, cover with cheesecloth, and let sit for another 3-4 weeks, stirring every few days. Start tasting after a week. When it reaches the desired acidity, you can start using it.
If you have some mother from a previous ferment, use that in initial mixture. That will speed up the fermentation.
It's better not to use homemade vinegar for pickling unless you can assure that it has an acetic acid level of at least 5%.
History
November 2019
November 6, 2019
Noon-ish, started a jar.
November 7, 2019
No foam. Turns out Eun-Joung had some store bought raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, so decided to add two spoonfuls. In retrospect, wish I had done this with Mom's homemade persimmon vinegar instead, but all good. Curious to see how much this accelerates things, if at all.
November 8, 2019
No foam. Smells sour (a la the vinegar) — not as pleasant as it was before, but not bad.
November 9, 2019
No change.
November 10, 2019
Foaming! Wonder if this was accelerated by using the same wooden spoon I had used to mix the apple wine without washing it first. Either way, it's a good sign.
November 11, 2019
Still foaming away.
November 12, 2019
Foaming seems to have slowed. Starting to smell sour again. Time to filter for second ferment soon?
November 14, 2019
Strained solids, rinsed jar, added liquid back. Filled the gap with water, and covered with cheesecloth.
Worried that I ended this initial fermentation too soon. Was supposed to be 2-3 weeks, only did about a week, but I did add a few spoonfuls of raw vinegar which may have accelerated this.
November 15, 2019
Noticed a little film forming on top. Maybe the mother? Also smelling more vinegary. A little relieved.
November 17, 2019
Starting to turn dark in color, perhaps from the oxidization. Much darker than the wine. Think it’s going well.
