With summer here and salads front of mind on these hot days, we can make use of our steam ovens to create our own bespoke dressings.
Infusing flavour into oils and vinegars traditionally can be a time consuming process, but with the aid of your steam oven, the process can be sped up considerably. If you are lucky enough to have a vacuum drawer it can be sped up even more.
Smeg's vacuum drawer comes with a chef’s mode which is perfect for infusing flavour.
The Chefs mode repeatedly pressurizes and depressurizes several times automatically before sealing. This encourages the liquid from fruits and vegetables is extracted from the fruit into the surrounding liquid and vice versa. This process combined with cooking the contents of the bag at a very low temperature for a long period result in an intensely flavoured vinegar which can either be strained or blended with the remaining fruit for an incredible flavour bomb to add to your salad.
If you don’t have a vacuum drawer, you can simply add the fruit and vinegar to a bowl or large jar and place in the oven at 60C -70c for 1-3 hours. The longer you leave it the more intense the flavour profile. Experiment with times and temperatures to achieve the perfect result for you.
Start with a base of 1 cup of chopped fruit to 1 cup of good quality vinegar for good flavour.
Use a good quality vinegar. I like to use White Wine or White balsamic vinegars with most fruits, and dark balsamic with those berries and fruits that loan themselves to the flavour of dark dressing .
In addition, remember you can use your steam oven to sterilize your bottles and lids easily by putting them in the oven set for steam 100c for 15 minutes. It couldn’t be easier.
The infused vinegars will keep for at least a few weeks due to the acidic nature of the vinegar itself. You don’t need to make large batches. If you have some fruit or berries almost over ripe, they are perfect for a vinegar infusion.
If you are infusing oils, due to the lack of acidity, there is more of a risk of bacterial growth, and the water content in the infused foodstuffs can accelerate this, so for safety reasons, when infusing oils at home, it’s best to infuse dried products such as spices and seeds.
When infusing oils keep the temperature to 55c and infuse for 2-3 hours
An old fashioned, but newly trending option is a shrub. This is essentially a cordial made from infusing fruit, sugar and vinegar. This keeps well because of its acidity and sugar content. The cordial is then added to soda water for a refreshing drink with that slightly healthy edge due to the fermented nature of the vinegar. It can also be used as a unique cocktail ingredient.
The ratio is similar to that of an infused vinegar but add a cup of sugar for every cup of vinegar and steam for 1 hour at 70C
You can also infuse alcohol to make your own unique liqueurs.
Use a neutral alcohol such as vodka. The higher the alcoholic percentage, the better the infusion will be. Vacuum your fruit, lemon peel, or spices if you have that option available, otherwise place in a sterilized jar and cook using your steam or sous vide function at 55c for 1-3 hours. The longer the processing, the more intense the final result. The infused alcohol is then added to sugar syrup and bottled for the final result.
Unlike the traditional method of infusing alcohol, it will be ready to drink immediately it has cooled.
Some ideas for infusions
Vinegars:
Orange Peel and Cloves
Strawberries in Italian White Wine Vinegar
Blackberry and Balsamic Vinegar
Tomato, Basil and White wine vinegar
Peach and Peppercorn with White Balsamic
Fig and Balsamic Vinegar
Cherries and either white or dark balsamic
Mango and Chili
Infused Oils:
Lemon Rind and Fennel
Rosemary
Oregano
Shrubs:
Apricot and Ginger
Spiced Peach (Peach and cardamom and Cinnamon)
Raspberry
Strawberry and Pepper
Rhubarb and Strawberry
