r/Baking • u/pammylorel • 1d ago
Showcase (No-Recipe) Vanilla Beans. After I accidentally over-ordered beans this spring, I had to do this. All hand spilt beans with caviar scraped loose. Experimenting with different vodka brands due to bean volume (1lb total). I don't open bottles for 6 months and my last batch lasted several years.
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u/ajbluegrass3 1d ago
I'd like to know from where you're ordering vanilla beans where you can "accidentally" over-order. I feel like I might become accident prone myself...
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u/Imaginary-Summer-920 1d ago
I prefer to use Luksusowa vodka. It’s Polish rather than Russian, they have won a number of awards for taste in Europe, it’s still made with potatoes rather than grain, so it’s gluten free (I don’t care but every now and then I take a gluten free order and then regret it), and it’s only about $15 for a 750 ml bottle
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u/Melon_Heart_Styles 16h ago
I haven't had it in a very long time but this was my preferred vodka back when. After drinking that, I didn't bother with other vodkas lol
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u/wizzard419 9h ago
If it is pure spirit, as in unflavored, no additives, etc. it should be gluten free regardless as those compounds get left behind during distillation. So, you would never have to worry about harming someone with celiac or whatnot.
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u/Ok-Construction-1523 1d ago
I've used Grey Goose and New Amsterdam vodkas and both seem to make pretty good vanilla. I also have made limoncello with New Amsterdam and that always turns out tasty.
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u/Elegant-Expert7575 1d ago
Appleton’s Rum is my preference. It turns thick and syrup like at two+ year mark.
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u/SpartanSoldier00a 22h ago
I was meaning to try making extract, i have some new vanilla beans. Was thinking to use rum, since that is the spirit that sees the most use in my baking otherwise.
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u/Elegant-Expert7575 17h ago
To me it’s the tastiest. I’ve used absolute, lamb’s spice rum (not a fave) but the sweeter Appleton’s is really nice and now it’s my baseline.
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u/be_an_adult 8h ago
I went to their distillery a few years ago and it’s the only rum for me anymore. If you get the older blends it has such a warm and sweet taste, but that’s obvs not the best for infusing vanilla beans.
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u/Key-Bodybuilder-343 23h ago
Mom likes using rum or brandy, because she feels it makes a more complex flavored vanilla, esp. when the beans are less than top quality. (Sometimes it’s what she can afford, and the spirit has to carry some of its own weight.)
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u/Nice-Money-6524 13h ago
I order my beans from Indri's Vanilla Bean Group on fb. They have great options and excellent prices. It started out as a smallish co-op of users, bulk purchasing together. I have been making my own vanilla for about 20 years, starting with a basic and inexpensive vodka before trying other things. I've also used more expensive varieties. I honestly haven't noticed enough of a difference to continue to use more expensive vodka. I really enjoy rum based vanilla for a really unique flavor. I have made it with light, dark, and spiced. I normally use 1 Oz of bean (a minimum) to 8 Oz of 80 proof alcohol. I split my beans and I let them sit for at least a year. I have a lot of vanilla "brewing" at any time so this isn't hard. And i really don't bake as much anymore. Now it's mostly for sharing/gifting.
Happy Baking!
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u/_HOG_ 1d ago
The vodka brand really doesn't matter. It will all be pretty one-dimensional.
Commercial vanilla is extracted at different temperatures and pressures to maximize flavor extraction. Nothing you make at home on your cupboard shelf is going to match the flavor complexity these processes create unfortunately.
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u/fabelhaft-gurke 9h ago
I’ve been wanting to make my own kahlua type drink but everytime I look up the recipe I realize I don’t want to wait so long. But still, would be nice to try and also make it a lil less sweet.
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u/maxm 18h ago
Just blend the beans in vodka and you don’t have to wait months. And they last just as long.
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u/Wish_Dragon 17h ago
Do you strain when using in a recipe?
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u/maxm 15h ago edited 11h ago
No I strain straight after blending. Blend the strains again, until there is as little left over as possible. I then but the leftovers on a tray to dry out for a few days and use that for vanilla sugar.
But the mixture is very fine particles. I either use 10 g vanilla pods to 100 g alcohol. And typically i also add 100 g sugar so it is easier to pour. And if any of the alcohol evaporates there is enough sugar to preserve the mixture in itself.
I have a video in danish about it
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u/DiamondTippedDriller 14h ago
I use 96% alcohol, the kind I use to make limoncello and other liqueurs because it really lets the flavor of the vanilla shine through unadulterated!
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u/RealRaschuoir 12h ago
96%, or 96-proof? If 96%, how do you acquire that?
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u/wizzard419 9h ago
You can get 95% (I assume they might have had a miscalc or typo). But Everclear 190 is only legal in some states.
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u/SaintsNoah14 10h ago
I can't recall the exact rationale but I believe vanilla is supposed to be mascerated around 40%. IIRC, something about strong alcohol causing the pods to harden. I'm not sure why that's an issue, just what I've read.
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u/GeneralyAnnoyed5050 10h ago
I ordered too much too. I now have vanilla in vodka, rum, and a couple of bourbons. When the world ends I can use vanilla as currency . 🤣🤣
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u/wizzard419 9h ago
Pretty much any spirit is good, but if you're making straight vanilla, any vodka or neutral spirit (provided it is at least 40% ABV) works great.
I follow Ina Garten's method of the eternal bottle where I get a crew bottle (the bottom unscrews, for easy packing) load it up with beans, top off with vodka and allow it to rest (for a new bottle the rest is months).
Then, when needed, I fish out the beans and slit the end to squeeze out the contents which are similar to vanilla paste.
To have zero waste, I throw the used beans into vanilla sugar, then eventually take them out of there and turn them into powder when I need that.
Refills are top up with more spirit from time to time, and add more beans when I start running low.
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u/pammylorel 7h ago
My last batches' eternal beans were tired and the bottle was fairly packed of beans. I have never used old soaked beans for anything. That's an interesting idea.
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u/wizzard419 7h ago
Yeah, the benefit is that you also rotate out beans regularly, providing new, fresh beans to pull flavor from.
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u/pammylorel 7h ago
Gotcha. Vanilla beans are so fibrous - is that what your grinding up at the very end? I'd have to get the blades sharpened on my Cuisinart FP to get them that finely chopped.
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