How to make herbal vinegar at home, with ten suggestions and a recipe for herbs de Provence vinegar. This easy method is a great way to use garden herbs, and herb vinegar can be used in any number of dishes. See below for more guidelines on this!
For some more easy summertime preserves, try making my pickled jalapenos, confit tomatoes, or your own herbal oil for homemade natural cosmetics.
Jump to:
Ingredients
You can use any single herb or blend of herbs you like, along with vinegar. See below for more information on both of these.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Vinegar: the base can be as simple as white distilled vinegar, which is clean and bright, great for pairing with stronger herbs and add-ins like hot peppers. Red and white wine vinegar are softer in flavour, best to pair with herbs, whole spices, fruits, and other aromatics. For a sweeter vinegar try apple cider, coconut, or rice wine vinegar. I recommend white wine vinegar.
- Herbs: this is a herbes de Provence blend, but you can see below for some herb suggestions and how to best use them. If you have a herb garden, this is a great way to preserve some of the herbs and makes such a nice gift!
Step by Step
Step 1: add the herbs to a sterilised glass container.
Step 2: top with hot vinegar, then refrigerate to steep for 1-2 weeks.
Simple Herbal Vinegars
- Basil: for tomato salad or summer pasta salad.
- Chives and chive blossoms: these give an onion flavour to dishes and chive blossoms will make a beautiful purple vinegar.
- Dill: ideal for potato dishes like potato salad!
- Salad burnet or borage: both give a slight cucumber flavour, very good on light green salads.
- Mint: a rather strong flavour, good for fruit salads or Mediterranean dishes.
- Lavender, elderflower, scented geraniums, rose, or violets: for desserts that have a hint of acidity.
- Nasturtiums: good for salads, this will add a bold peppery taste.
- Fennel: another strong flavour, great if you like aniseseed.
- Tarragon: good for green and grain salads.
Top Tips
- Stick to a ratio: use the ratio of ½ cup fresh herbs (or ¼ cup dried) to 2 cups white wine or red wine vinegar, no matter what herb blend you're using.
- Try add-ins: whole spices like juniper berries, fennel seeds, black peppercorns, coriander, and even dried, food-grade rose petals are just a few supporting spices that add richness and depth. For 2 cups vinegar, use anywhere from 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of whole seeds or arils. For lighter, fluffier items, like rose petals, you can increase that by a couple tablespoons.
- Stick to the fridge: while some methods state to use the sun for a few weeks, using the fridge will take longer but prevent any funkiness.
- Decant into a bottle: it's easiest to infuse the vinegar in a wide-mouth jar, like a canning jar, and then decant into a pretty bottle if you want to gift it. Try tying a sprig of the herbs used plus a pretty label on the bottle for a nice present!
How to Store
Storage: keep in a cool, dry place for up to a year. To prevent any uncertainty, the vinegar can be stored in the fridge, and make sure to toss it if there's any sign of mould in the container.
FAQ
What is herbal vinegar?
It's a vinegar that's been infused with fresh or dried herbs, making a flavoured vinegar. You need herbs, vinegar, and a sterilised jar to easily make it yourself at home.
What are herbal vinegars used for?
Excellent additions to salad dressing, also us them as a shrub, in a mignonette, as a marinade, or with grilled veggies. You can use herbal vinegar anywhere you might use another unflavoured vinegar or as a substitution for lemon juice.
What herbs are good for vinegar?
You can use virtually any soft or woody herb in vinegar, but different herbs will match better with different types of vinegar. Dill, for example, is best with something light like white wine vinegar, while rosemary can stand up to a darker vinegar like apple cider.
More Hippie Kitchen Staples
If you make this Herb Vinegar or any other kitchen staples on Wholehearted Eats, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more WHE, follow along on Instagram or subscribe for new posts via email.
Recipe
Herbal Vinegar (Herbes de Provence Vinegar)
Equipment
- 1 sterilised glass bottle or jar
- 1 Small saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 1 sprig thyme
- 1 sprig lavender
- 1 sprig marjoram
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups white wine vinegar
Instructions
- You will need need a clean, dry, sterilised bottle or jar. Canning jars work very well for this. Heat the vinegar until it’s steaming (but not boiling). Fill the jar with your herbs then top with hot vinegar.1 sprig rosemary, 1 sprig thyme, 1 sprig lavender, 1 sprig marjoram, 2 bay leaves, 2 cups white wine vinegar
- Cool completely at room temperature before placing it in the fridge to infuse. Refrigerate for 1-2 weeks, tasting the vinegar periodically until it has reached the herb flavour you'd like.
- You can start using the flavoured vinegar after a few days, but for best results, allow it to infuse fully. Once it has infused, remove the herbs from the jar.
- Herbal vinegar can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to a year. Use the vinegars in salad dressings, as a shrub, in a mignonette, as a marinade, or with grilled veggies.