Homemade Vanilla Extract For Baking
Learn how to easily & with minimal effort, make your own homemade Vanilla Extract. With no special equipment required, making your own can work out less expensive, not to mention taste amazing. Makes the perfect gift too, especially to your baker friends!
Yield: 8 fl oz
Equipment
- 1 Jam/jelly Jar or Mason jar (at least 10 fl oz, 285ml capacity, preferable wide-neck)
- Small sharp knife
- Measuring Jug ( or Liquid Measuring cup)
Materials
- 3-5 Vanilla Pods (grade A or B, see notes*)
- 240 ml Clear Alcohol - spirit (1 cup, 8 fl oz - see notes above and Important Information paragraph)
Instructions
Preparing The Extract
- Clean the jar well, including the lid and allow to air dry completely. (Tip - Place 2 pieces of kitchen paper/paper towel inside while sitting out & it helps absorb the moisture).
- Using a sharp knife, cut the length of the vanilla pod on one side, and open the pod to expose the seeds.
- If the pods are too long for the height of your jar, simply cut in half length ways.
- Place the pods into the jar and cover with the 1 cup/240ml of clear alcohol, making sure the pods are submerged. (If using more pods than recommended, increase your liquid content appropriately).
- Close the jar tightly and label the jar with the production date.
Leaving The Extract To Age
- Place in a cool dark area for at least 8 weeks. (A cupboard or pantry is ideal)
- Every week or so, check on the extract, noting it’s colour, it’s aroma and if the seeds are visible in the liquid yet. After that close the jar tightly and shake the jar for the seeds to become exposed and start infusing into the liquid. Remember to do every week or so.
- At the 8 week-mark, it can be used. In the initial weeks, you will smell the strong alcohol aroma, but once it is ready to be used, the vanilla aroma will be what hits you first as the alcohol aroma becomes less pungent.
- You can leave longer than 8 weeks and in fact the extract will stay good for up to 10 years. Longer it's left, the stronger the vanilla taste will be, however it won't keep imparting flavour indefinitely.
- Use just as you would normally or how your recipe calls for it. You can decant into smaller jars if you want or give out as gifts.
- You can leave the pods and the seeds in the liquid. You can use from the jar and top up with a little alcohol as you go and even periodically add new pods to it. This is how some people have extract that has been going for many years. I suggest however, decanting some extract into a smaller bottle for your regular use, so that when the original jar is nearly finished, you can top that up and make more. Alternatively, dry the used pods and add to a jar of sugar to make vanilla sugar.
Notes
Where To Buy Vanilla Pods - less expensive in long run to buy in bulk (5+) online, rather than single pods in supermarket in fancy glass jars. Try for vacuum packed. I recommend Vanillamart - my sons gifted me Papua New Guinea (PNG) Vanilla Pods on my last birthday and they have been just as good as the Indonesian I previously used.
Alcohol To Use - clear alcohol, preferably a 40% spirit alcohol, (80 proof). Vodka, bourbon, whiskey, brandy or rum. You don’t need to go buying expensive brands.
Type Of Vanilla Pods To Buy - Grade A or Grade B, (B sometimes also being referred to as extract quality and Grade A for direct cooking). Madagascan, Bourbon, Tahitian, Mexican or from Papua New Guinea, (similar to Tahitian).
What To Store The Extract In - a glass jar or large bottle, that you will fill with the alcohol & vanilla pods. Old jam/jelly jars and mason jars are ideal & a wider neck jar is best.
Do I Need To Sterilise The Jars? - clean well before using & allow to dry, no need to sterilise.
How To Store Vanilla Extract - somewhere cool and dark. A cupboard or pantry is ideal.
Remember To Shake! - Every week or so to expose the seeds, (in the first few months)
How Long Does It Take? - agreed minimum 8 weeks. The longer you leave it, the darker the liquid becomes, and the more intense the flavour will get. I started using after 9 weeks. **No need to wait 1 year or even 6 months to use.**
**CELIAC & NON-CELIAC SUFFERS** - some alcohol may contain gluten. Brands below are labelled not containing any.
Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Crystal Head Vodka, Ciroc Vodka, Grey Goose Vodka, Cold River Vodka, Ocean Vodka, Dixie Vodka & Chopin Vodka. Plain rum not made from grain: Bacardi, Havana Club, L. Longueteau, C. Caroni, Flor de Cana, Cruzan, Mount Gay, Myers & Rondiaz. ****Please also check this is still up to date information before using.***
Examples To Use Extract
Use your own Vanilla Extract in cakes, in your pastries, in cookies, pancakes, buttercreams, glazes and in chocolate cakes/desserts to enhance the chocolate taste.
Do I Need To Sterilise The Jars? - clean well before using & allow to dry, no need to sterilise.
How To Store Vanilla Extract - somewhere cool and dark. A cupboard or pantry is ideal.
Remember To Shake! - Every week or so to expose the seeds, (in the first few months)
How Long Does It Take? - agreed minimum 8 weeks. The longer you leave it, the darker the liquid becomes, and the more intense the flavour will get. I started using after 9 weeks. **No need to wait 1 year or even 6 months to use.**
**CELIAC & NON-CELIAC SUFFERS** - some alcohol may contain gluten. Brands below are labelled not containing any.
Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Crystal Head Vodka, Ciroc Vodka, Grey Goose Vodka, Cold River Vodka, Ocean Vodka, Dixie Vodka & Chopin Vodka. Plain rum not made from grain: Bacardi, Havana Club, L. Longueteau, C. Caroni, Flor de Cana, Cruzan, Mount Gay, Myers & Rondiaz. ****Please also check this is still up to date information before using.***
Examples To Use Extract
Use your own Vanilla Extract in cakes, in your pastries, in cookies, pancakes, buttercreams, glazes and in chocolate cakes/desserts to enhance the chocolate taste.