DIY (Herb) Infused Wodka - Recipe
A fresh cocktail or an original gift: infused wodka is always a hit!
Click to enlarge
I was invited to join @jaynie's #whatscookingchallenge by @insideoutlet.
Since we are in the middle of the gardening season, I wanted to share with you a recipe that contained products out of my own garden.
Instead of showing you how to make a common dish, I decided to add a twist and give you a recipe on how to create the most delicious wodka-based cocktails.
The best part about this is that you can go a 1000 different ways; everything depends on which flavors you like most. There are numerous ingredients you can use, and countless combinations you can make.
But first... let's start with the basics.
Herb Infused Wodka: The Basics
You can find loads of different recipes online. The one thing they all have in common is the fact that you need a good wodka to start with.
This doesn't mean you have to go for the most expensive one you can find, but you'd better stay away from the cheapest brands. A simple, middle class wodka will do just fine.
The reasoning behind this is that you'll never make a delicious wodka out of a bad one - no matter how many flavors you add.
Once you've chosen your wodka, it is time to select the herb(s) or flavor(s) you want to use.
There are no rules set for this, you can use whatever you like. To give you some examples of recipes that can be found online: oatmeal infused wodka, bacon and eggs infused wodka, caramel infused wodka,... There are no limits.
Just use the things you like and experiment freely.
Adding Flavor
How much flavor you want to add to your wodka is again totally up to you. The final flavor is a result of the amount of flavor products you add, and the infusion length.
There are a couple of guidelines:
For 1 liter of wodka:
Herbs: use approximately 35grams when the herbs are fresh, or 17 grams when they are dried.
Fruits: 1 to 3 pieces of fruit, depending on their size. You can use for example 2 pears. For smaller fruit, you might have to use 3 or more pieces.
If you want to combine flavors, still use the indicated amounts for every flavor.
Some Examples
Pinapple Sage and Clove
Lemon Verbena and Cinammon
Nasturtiums and Pepper
How To Infuse Wodka
They don't come any easier than this.
Clean your herbs (or other flavors) with water.
In case you use herbs, break the leaves to release the flavor.
Put them in a sterilized pot that can be closed with a lid.
Pour the wodka in the pot, close it and give it a good shake.
Set it apart in a cool and dark space. Take it out every day to shake it again.
Finishing Touch
Depending on which products you have used to add the flavor, it can take 3 to 5 days before the wodka has absorbed all that flavor. When you've used fruit, it can take a little longer.
Starting on day 2, use a spoon to taste and find out if you think the flavor is strong enough. Repeat this every day until you are satsfied.
Once you think the taste is just right, use a sieve to remove all herbs or fruits from the wodka.
Pour your infusion in a sterilized bottle that can be closed. Saved in the fridge, you can keep it for about a month.
Use
Use your infused wodka to serve as is, or to spice up your cocktails.
If you pour it into a beautiful bottle and add a creative label to it, it can be an original gift.
Some More Useful Combinations
You can find a lot of examples on my 'Wodka Infusion' Pinterest Board.
Some Examples
- Ginger and lime infused wodka
- Conifer Infused wodka
- Dille pickle wodka
- Salted caramel wodka
- Strawberry infused wodka
...
The only limit is your imagination...
Which flavor would you prefer? Let me know!
Rules
The #whatscookingchallenge challenge a foodie challenge by @jaynie. Here are the current rules for the challenge as far as I know:
- Use the #whatscookingchallenge tag and tag @jaynie in your post.
- Create and publish a post showcasing something that you have prepared in your kitchen which is either a) uniquely yours, or b) has been adapted and made your own. (The more elaborate the post the better, naturally...)
This is NOT limited to "plates of food" - it can be preserves, snacks, baking anything!
- Accompany the post with at least 2 photos of whatever it is that you have prepared as well as a photo of you WITH your dish! Guys this is COMPULSORY - posts without the selfie... won't be considered
(Sorry, @jaynie, I didn't have one. These are pictures from last year's experiment.)
- Tag at least 5 (but not limited to) of your foodie friends that you think would like to participate.
I don't like nametagging, so please don't consider this to be an obligation to join. If your username is not in the list, you can still join the challenge by following the steps above.
I'd like to invite:
@walkerland
@goldendawne
@beeyou
@fionasfavorites
@mirrors
Claim Your Free Money! Join The Byteball Airdrop Here!
All images are my own.
This post was shared in the Curation Collective Discord community for curators, and upvoted and resteemed by the @c-squared community account after manual review.
Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget rule No.1
Thanks!!
Nice to add recipes with a difference, made from the herbs in the garden @simplymike never thought about this before.
Visiting from #steemitbloggers
Thanks, @joanstewart
Nice recipes
Thanks, @buddin2
Congratulations @simplymike! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :
Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor.
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPTo support your work, I also upvoted your post!
Wow that's brilliant! I have never heard of wodka, but i know infusing herbs, water, and fruits. I will remember that word "wodka".
Thank you for sharing your recipe :)
Maybe it is 'vodka' in English?
Yep, just looked it up. Sorry, my bad.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vodka
Very good tips and, as you said, everyone can spice the vodka to their own taste, even if I think bacon and egg is a bit too much.... but it might work for somebody.... :-)
I'm totally with you on the bacon and eggs, lol.
I tried tomato-basil once to get a pizza-like taste, but that was not the best idea I ever had :0)
Pizza-like taste would be great with beer rather than vodka..... :D
I'm not sure about infusing beer, lol.
Wow that looks very cool to make. I’ve never tried that before. I can’t cook @simplymike! If I ever do anything, will make a post but for now, will simply enjoy reading and learning.
You don't cook? Do you drink? Lol.
You can do the same thing with gin for example ;0)
(I'm not such an awesome cook myself, btw - I stayed on the safe side, lol)
Not much of a drinker only occasional but this looks very interesting. The strawberry infused sounds very inviting. Can all fruits or berries be used?
I must admit I have never tried usinf fruits yet. Only this once, when I tried to make a tomato-basil flavoured wodka, but then I left the tomatoes in for too long. But I think so. You just need to make sureyou take them out soon enough.
I like how you have nice labels for your bottles.
I just settle for a boring "card", if at all.
Lol, I always like to spice things up, whether it's my liquors or my labels ;0)
howdy this fine Sunday @simplymike! so let me get this straight since I've never heard of anything like this before, your wodka is like the Russian Voka correct? ok, I've still never heard of anything like this but it is very fascinating that you are doing this and I salute you for your innovation! God bless you guys over there!
Jep, it is the same thing. Can also be done with gin, btw :0)
sounds good. congratulations on your placing this week in the League!
under tough circumstances that is rather extraordinary.
Thanks. SteemIt can be a great way to escape reality. Unfortunately it doesn't always work...
good Monday to you @simplemike! No Ma'am it doesn't always work but it can at least be a temporary distraction and you have tons of friends on here to talk to. God bless you!
True. That's the great thing about SteemIt: although I don't really feel like meeting my real-life friends, I indeed have quite some people here I consider to be my friends - in spite of the fact that I've never met them :0)
howdy today @simplymike..sorry this is so late, it's probably the middle of the night there but I wanted to ask you what you meant by this "I don't really feel like meeting my real-life friends." you just mean right now at this time? you want to be left alone?
It's the coping with the loss of the cat that makes me not want to socialize with people in real life right now.
But it happens quite regularly that I hold off other people. My friends are a delight, but because I'm pretty hypersensitive, social encounters take up a lot of energy. I pick up every little signal - whether it is something they say, or just what they don't say, or the way they say it. And then there are al the non-verbal signals...
Since I haven't been at the top of my game for the last 10 months (depression, pain, sadness, surgery etc.), I often don't have the energy to deal with all that on top of my own stuff.