I have 20 pounds or so of pears that are about ripe enough to freeze for pies. Maybe tomorrow, or sometime this week. So I am about to have a lot of slightly underripe cores!

Dave

I will try making some vinegar, unless somebody says they did it and it was awful :).

I make pear sauce and butter, why not asian pear?

Then AFTER use as compost.

Dave

With wine, you'd want to put the juice into a container fitted with an airlock to prevent bacteria from entering and converting the alcohol into acetic acid. With vinegar, this is what you want so you don't need the airlock. I'd keep it covered though to prevent dust and other stuff from getting in but it doesn't have to be airtight.

Rodney

http://rockfarmer.me/2012/10/05/its-fruit-scrap-vinegar-season/

Quoting the text here, but the link has beautiful pictures :).

All fruit scrap vinegar roads seem to lead back to Sandor Ellix Katz and his book Wild Fermentation. I use the method outlined by No Impact Man Colin Beavan, and he credits Sandor Katz. I owe them both a big thank you �" I love everything about fruit scrap vinegar. Well, everything except for the smell of pineapple vinegar as it ferments; that’s the only fruit I’ve tried so far that just doesn’t float my boat. I’ve got a jar of it here for someone who’d like it…Anyone?

Experiment with a few batches to discover what you like. Transform your autumnal fruit waste into vinegar to spice up your winter foods. You won’t regret it.

Make your own:

Fill a large jar with fresh, clean water. I use half-gallon Mason jars to make big batches of each flavor.

Add 1/4 cup of honey or the sugar of your choice for each quart of water. Stir until completely dissolved.

Add fruit scraps. Use whatever you’ve got, peels, cores, and whole fruit. Chop up big things such as apples, leave small things such as berries whole. Add at least a couple of handfuls of fruit for rich flavor and color.

Cover the jar’s open mouth with a clean square of fabric. Use a rubber band or string to hold the fabric in place. This will keep out flies and let in the wild yeast you want.

Set the jar in a dark spot or swaddle it in thick fabric to protect it from the light. I tie a couple of clean old cloth diapers around my jars and set them in a cool spot on my kitchen counter.

Stir the jar every day or so and check to make sure the fruit is submerged. Don’t worry about yeasty white growth on top; scrape off any other colors of mold and toss that into your compost bin.

After a week or so, or whenever the liquid has darkened and everything is smelling nice and boozy, strain the liquid to remove the fruit. I use a doubled piece of cheesecloth to remove all of the big pieces and most of the small pieces. Compost the fermented fruit.

Pour this strained liquid back into its original jar, replace the fabric square on top, and let it sit for another week or two. When it smells and tastes like vinegar, it’s ready. Put a solid lid on the jar to keep it from evaporating, store at room temperature, and enjoy.

If you see a translucent growth in the liquid, either a blob or wispy strands, be happy. This is your Mother of Vinegar, and it can be used to start another bottle of vinegar or just left to live where it is. The mother is proof that you did it, you cultured your own vinegar.

- endquote -

I made some with grapes, and it is delicious! Very fruity, and unlike wine vinegar.

Both the method I described and the method you posted will eventually lead to the same thing. They will result in a very young wine vinegar. So it would still be fruity either way. Evidence: "After a week or so, or whenever the liquid has darkened and everything is smelling nice and boozy" (wine! lol). The primary fermentation of a wine usually only takes about a week.

In the method I described, the reason for pouring boiling water over the scraps is to kill any wild yeasts and/or other things. Then by adding yeast back in (it doesn't have to be wine yeast, baker's yeast or bread yeast should work), it results in a more controlled and more reliable primary fermentation.

In short, either way works. :)

Rodney

http://www.wildfermentation.com/

Another bit of info from Ohio State
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/5000/pdf/5346.pdf

The main difference between the two is that my method uses yeast that has been introduced into a fairly clean environment (due to the boiling water) which results in a quicker, more controlled, and more reliable ferment. As opposed to relying wild yeasts that have to first make their way into the juice (which isn't too difficult) and then they have to compete with other things like mold initially.

Rodney

I guess I've just never gotten into flavored vinegars - other than balsamic - enough to know much about vinegar uses other than pickling, with beans and ham, cooked greens, and cleaning the coffee pot. :)

Dave

And thanks, Rodney and seysonn, for the more details and helping me understand the process better :).

I put my cores in sugar water last night.

@Dave:

Use for salad dressing and cooking. Not for preserving, never fear :).

The grape one tastes a bit like balsamic, and might make a good substitute. I could use it in your carmelised figs recipe :).

Number One: disinfectant ....kills the germs that make bad odor .

Fruit scrap vinegars or not heavily flavored or scented but you can smell the fruit. Check your basic suburban grocery shelf. Often dozens of vinegars. Most so called 'top shelf' are impostors with added sugars and flavorings. I had a good fruit crop this year and made salsas, syrups, dehydrated, etc. but also made 3 gallons of vinegar from the scraps for cooking. 80% of cooking has a bit of vinegar. Just made 30lbs of sausage and about 5lbs of Boudin...all recipes have a bit of vinegar. I make my own mustards...1/2 cup vinegar, etc.
The list is endless. Braised a couple pork tips and made a batch of fresh fridge pickles for a salad and to use for sandwiches...2 cups vinegar...

Might be interested in following recipe for your vins. It says raspberry or strawberry because those are what my herb Guild sells, but your fruit ones should be lovely.

Quinoa Salad With Apples, Raisin & Walnuts

· 1 1/4 Cups Stock or Water
1 Cup Quinoa, Rinsed Well
· 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
· 1 Tablespoon Guild Raspberry Lemon Thyme Vinegar or Strawberry Mint Vinegar
· ¼ Cup Parsley, Chopped
· ¼ Cup Chives, Chopped
· ¼ teaspoon Salt
· ¼ teaspoon Pepper
· 2 Golden Delicious Apples, Cored and Diced
· ½ Cup Golden Raisins
· ½ Cup Chopped Walnuts, Toasted

Prepare the quinoa. Bring 1 ¼ cups stock or water to a boil then stir in the quinoa. Return to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until the quinoa is tender, (about 25 ��" 30 minutes). Let rest for 5 minutes, fluff with a fork, then set aside.

While the quinoa is cooking, whisk the oil, vinegar, parsley, chives, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the apple, raisins and walnuts tossing to coat. Add the quinoa to the fruited vinaigrette mixture, folding and tossing to combine thoroughly.

Tasting it by itself, diluted with water, it does have a touch of astringency. But used in a recipe (green beans) it is fine.

A lovely, light flavor. I'm glad I made lots!