Quick Blackberry Vinegar - Only Five Steps

this year we have a lot of blackberries. Especially the wild (that is, not grafted) blackberries grow everywhere. These are smaller and also the thorns are worse :-(

But since they are free to pick almost everywhere, today we went by bike and collected the berries in the meadows near our river. What to make of it... Blackberry vinegar !  

A quick and great recipe, also very suitable as a gift from the kitchen.

For salads etc...

Important information: blackberries and their juice are extremely staining and splashes on clothes are almost impossible to remove. It is best to wear old clothes.

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Basic recipe: depending on the amount of berries, the quantities must be adjusted 

500 g blackberries

500 ml white wine vinegar or a light neutral vinegar (here apple cider vinegar from Bio Production)

1 tablespoon of thyme

15 g sugar

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A pot

a very fine sieve

bottles 

blender

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Note: i have used here a kitchen appliance that can blend and cook.... so similar to a Thermomix only cheaper ;-)

Wash the blackberries and pour everything in a pot with vinegar,

then add the other ingredients.....

Simmer everything for about 10-15 minutes. So that the mass does not boil over please keep an eye on and stir constantly

For me, the machine does it in one step, but it also works in a pot.

While the liquid is boiling, sterilize the bottles. I have here a sterilizer for baby bottles. This works wonderfully. But you can also wash the bottles out hot. They must be clean, otherwise the vinegar will go bad

Here are more possibilities to sterilize bottles:

(Source: https://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/cleaning-and-sterilising-baby-bottles)

The boiling method

1. Put all parts of the cleaned bottle, including teats, in a large saucepan.
2. Cover the equipment with tap water.
3. Make sure all air bubbles are out of the bottles and that they are fully submerged under the water.
4. Bring the water to the boil.
5. Boil for 5 minutes.
6. Let the feeding equipment cool in the saucepan before taking it out.
7. Place all the feeding equipment in a clean container and put it in the fridge. Make sure the container is covered firmly with a lid.
8. You can store everything in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

The steam sterilisation method

Steam sterilisers are popular because they work quickly, are cheap to use and are very effective. They heat water to boiling point and the steam kills the bacteria. Some steam sterilisers are designed to operate in a microwave.

1. Place the clean bottles and feeding equipment in the steriliser.
2. Make sure there’s enough room between each bottle, teat and screw cap for the steam to circulate around all surfaces.
3. Follow the manufacturer’s directions about how much water to add.
4. Turn on and push the button to start. If you’re using a microwave steriliser, place the steriliser in the microwave and turn on for the correct time.
5. Wait until the sterilisation cycle has finished and the light goes off.
6. Store all sterilised feeding equipment in a clean, lidded container in the fridge.
7. Sterilise all equipment again if you haven’t used it within 24 hours.

 then puree and pass through a fine sieve.

The sieve should be very fine, so that the small seeds of the blackberry do not interfere with the meal later

The mass that remains after draining can be disposed of

Attention: the liquid is hot and the splashes leave stains that is almost impossible to remove from clothes

When the vinegar has cooled down transfer to bottles

now the blackberry vinegar is ready. I have used different types of bottles here. Once the small with swing stopper (to give away) and the screw cap for own use

now design a nice label (see picture for an example) and enjoy. Label via https://www.jamlabelizer.com/

We had collected a little more than 1 kg of blackberries, which resulted in this amount.

Now leave for a few days so that the flavor can fully develop. Salads taste so much better with this fruit vinegar...