Q about vinegar in pickling cucs and beets

[blurose]

Is using white vinegar preferable when pickling or can I just use apple cider vinegar? Does it matter one way or the other is what I'm really wanting to know.

 

[patandchickens]

you need to use actual pickling vinegar (like white vinegar but with a higher acetic acid %). If you use anything else the acidity may not be high enough to give you safe preservation (or a good quality product).

Have fun,

Pat

 

[Cassandra]

Really, Pat?

All the recipes I have call specifically for either white vinegar or apple cider vinegar... I don't think I've ever seen especially pickling vinegar.

Crap. Am I going to have to throw out all those jars?

There's that botulism poking its ugly head up again. (I ordered a pressure canner yesterda, btw.)

We need a botulism smiley...

Cassandra

 

[patandchickens]

ok, I looked it up -- you need at least 5% acetic acid in your vinegar. Apparently at least some cider vinegars have this much, so those are ok to use.

standing corrected ,

Pat

 

[Grow 4 Food]

I always use aplle cider vinegar (but I looked at the bottle and it is 5%). Knock on wood, I have never had a problem.

 

[ams3651]

my grandmother has used apple cider vinegar for more years than Ive been alive and never a problem.

 

[blurose]

My mom told me yesterday that the cider vinegar develops a "mother" or solid sedaments over time which will "cloud" your pickles and that using the distilled white vinegar is preferrable because of this. We then got discussing the origins of the distilled white vinegar and neither of us knows. Do any of you guys know how it is made i.e. what is it distilled from? I'm sure it is a more recent innovation in pickling and that my grandmother probably didn't have it available to her. Certainly, my great grandmother didn't. I have checked and the acidity level is the same on both cider vinegar and distilled white (5%).

 

[Tutter]

Blurose, do you have a dietary restriction? There's a lot of controversy about white vinegar amoung people who can't have certain grains, as it's grain based.

The current thought is that the distillation process makes it safe for people who cannot eat gluten (from wheat, rye, barley and maybe oats.), unless it has been fortified.

Personally, if there's a food restriction involved, I'd say use whatever vinegar that is safe for you, as long as it meets the correct acidity %.

I believe that the coloration of white vinegar is considered nicer, but that's just aesthetics. I've had apple cider canned tomato pickles, and they were verrrry tasty!

Personally, I'm trying to find a percentage on rice vinegar, as that's what I would like to use, coming up.

Good luck!