Elderflower vinegar

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 4 handfuls of elderflower heads
• 2 liters of water
• 200 g sugar

Instructions

Working time approx. 10 minutes; Rest period approx. 30 days; Total time approx. 30 days 10 minutes

no vinegar – natural fermentation

Shake the elderflower heads to remove insects. Do not wash! Dissolve the sugar in the water. This works best with hot water. Let the water cool. Place the elderflower heads in a large jar and fill with enough cold sugar solution to cover them. The wild yeasts found on all plants will do the rest. Cover the jar with a cloth and place it in a dark place. After two days, you’ll see the first small bubbles rising. The fermentation process has begun: First, the sugar is metabolized into alcohol, which is then converted into vinegar. Stir the liquid daily. After a week, the flowers will have released their aroma into the liquid, and you can fish them out. If you let it steep longer, you’ll get a red vinegar. Let the liquid stand for a few weeks until no more bubbles rise. The vinegar formation is complete. Bottle the vinegar. The longer you let it stand, the more rounded the vinegar will taste. Tip: Adding a mother of vinegar or a dash of natural vinegar to the sugar solution at the beginning will speed up the process. But it also works without.