Making Garlic Mustard Vinegar

Back in March, I posted about making Spring Pesto with greens from our yard, especially using highly invasive garlic mustard (Allaria petiolata).  As a member of the Brassicaceae family, garlic mustard contains many healthful and medicinal qualities, so please see that post.  Herbal vinegars are truly an excellent way to preserve the goodness of nutritious, tonic herbs and to create a valuable nutritional supplement.  I am not talking about the 'culinary vinegars' decorated with a few sprigs of kitchen herbs like rosemary or thyme, but rather concentrated herbal formulas using nutrient-dense herbs and wild foods like Burdock, Nettles, Dandelion and other wild foods/greens.  The Spring Pesto post from March has great foraging and plant identification books listed.

In April, while harvesting to make yet more pesto - YUM! - I saved the roots and crowns (the part where the stem meets the roots).  Then, after gently washing away the dirt, I chopped them all into small pieces using a scissors since the some of the roots are thick and dense. 

(Wise Woman Tip:  Remember that you should be in a good mood when working in your kitchen and using medicinal botanicals.....    Set the tone with music, etc., whatever puts you in good spirits because the act of creating adds your own energy to the process and the items you make absorb your positive energy.    The same principle applies to making meals:  prepare them with positive, loving, healing thoughts and vibrations, and your family will receive that love two-fold!)

This is the simpler's method for making an herbal vinegar, so you will fill the jar twice. 

Put the pieces into a clean canning jar and fill to the top, gently compressing but not packing the roots down.  Add organic apple cider vinegar and fill the jar to the top again.  Since the jar has a metal lid, place a piece of wax paper between the jar and lid so the vinegar does not react with the metal.

After turning the jar several times to release trapped air bubbles, top off with a little more vinegar, and place the sealed jar on a small dish.  Be sure to check the next day and top it off again because the fairies will take their portion!  <wink>  Next, leave the jar to steep for about six weeks in a cool, dark place.  Check on it about once a week, turn it over to see if there are any more air bubbles - if so, then add a little more vinegar.  Remember you can add positive thoughts and give gratitude to the plants for their contribution to helping your family stay healthy.

After about six weeks, line a funnel with cheesecloth and decant into a similarly-sized clean jar.  Squeeze the cheesecloth to get out as much vinegar as possible, and add the used roots and crowns to your compost.  Label your vinegar appropriately - with date decanted, herb used, what type of vinegar, etc. and store in a cool dry cupboard or refrigerate.  A general rule of thumb is that herbal vinegars can keep from 3-7 years, however, I generally try to use mine within two years.

What is so great about Vinegar?

The use of vinegar comes to us from ancient times, and is an incredible medicine in its own right.  Throughout history, the list of vinegar's healing powers is long and documented.  Vinegar is mentioned several times in the Bible. Hippocrates prescribed the drinking of vinegar for his patients in ancient Greece. Columbus had barrels of vinegar on his ships for the prevention of scurvy. In fact, ancient civilizations as far back as the Sumerians used vinegar as a condiment, a preservative, a medicine, an antibiotic and even as a detergent. It is antibacterial and anti-fungal and gives the immune system a healthful boost. As a high potassium electrolyte balancer, it remineralizes the body and helps normalize the blood’s acid/alkaline balance. Vinegar is proving most beneficial to people with arthritis because it breaks down calcium deposits in the joints while supplying minerals to the bones. Here are just a few of its other benefits:

• Assists in blood circulation
• Helps remove excess sodium from the body
• Reduces water retention in the body
• Regulates the water content in the cells and body
• Can help regulate blood pressure
• Assists in preventing circulatory problems
• Helps increase concentration and memory
• Reduces cholesterol (the dangerous LDL cholesterol type)
• Helps with diminishing premature calcification of the arteries

Note: Any remedies or information listed on this blog are from historical references and used for teaching / educational purposes only. The contents are not meant to diagnose, treat, prescribe, cure or substitute consultation with a licensed health-care professional. This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.