how to MAKE YOUR OWN VANILLA
Vložit
- čas přidán 15. 09. 2022
- So a few months ago, it popped into my head that I had no idea what vanilla actually is. Like for something so common, where does it come from and why is it so expensive and not going to lie, why is it kinda odd looking. It turns out that vanilla is a lot weirder and more complex than I had originally thought. The bean itself, when harvested tastes very little like the flavor vanilla, and it’s actually only through a complex process can that it can be turned into the flavor powerhouse that we all know and love.
So today I wanna go through my attempt at making vanilla from scratch by curing vanilla, or basically taking a raw vanilla and turning it into something that can be cooked with. Honestly I wasn’t really sure how this was going to work out, but in the end the results were pretty awesome, and frankly this is something that is totally doable at home. So let’s start this party train.
Discord Server: / discord
=========== LINKS ===============
The Vanillery: vanillery.com/
Roland Barker's CZcams Page: / rolandbarker
===========Affiliate Links==========
Anova Oven: amzn.to/3xQ3I6j - Věda a technologie
I had a girlfriend once who dried her own beans and made her own vanilla extract. She would also keep dried beans in her dresser alongside her wardrobe, so she would have the strongest scent of vanilla upon her clothing. It was really pleasing, and, remembering it at the start of the pandemic, I started to do the same with my masks throughout the mask mandate - storing them in a plastic container with a dried vanilla bean. It was really nice, and it made the whole thing a lot more bearable.
Had?
What happened?
@@GeekFreak007 She ran away with a guy who smelled like cinnamon.
@@omnipedia-tech This genuinely made me crack up.
You tell us this now
Idk why vanilla is used as a synonym for boring because its the best flavor ever. And now I know why it tastes luxurious, it comes from orchids, the most luxurious flower of all lmao
It's because Vanilin. Scientists discovered this compount which is super easy to make, thus cheap to produce and flavor everything with it. For most people, it's good enough/close enough to real Vanilla, so it became very popular.
most people never tasted actual vanilla so...
Real vanilla is more complex than the artificial stuff
@@franciscogranados7225 It's like the difference between Marvel and DC. They're both comics, they're both for nerds, and I prefer chocolate like somebody with a real life.
It’s used as a synonym for boring because ice cream companies put a small amount of artificial vanilla in their ‘vanilla’ flavor to the point where they should just call it ‘original’
Seeing how complex and arduous this process is makes me think about all the other flavors out there that we haven’t found yet.
Like how many different plants out there can you process in different ways to get some special taste out of them that we don’t know about.
When making an extract, it's best to use an amber bottle instead of a clear one. Bright light can break down and degrade some of the compounds pulled out during the extraction process. A clear bottle won't ruin it, but make sure to keep it in a dark place.
This is also the reason why real vanilla extract should be sold in dark bottles.
I made some extract and wondered why it seemed to lose flavor over time. The bottle sat on a rack near a window. Now I know. Thank you.
@@samw8452 It'll also lose flavor if you raise the temp above 300. Around that, imitation vanilla and vanilla made this way will taste nearly identical. To get the most of the complex flavors, it's best to incorporate the pure vanilla into cold or cooling foods.
Have recently done an assignment on genome sequencing for vanilla tahitensis. It was very very hard 😂 vanilla tahitensis pods brown on the plant.
Always makes me wonder how people figured out how to do this kind of stuff. Very cool.
If you go the traditional way it has a really good flavor at any part of the process, people just had to enhance it a little bit more every time over centuries (literally) until they found the amazing end product. After that people found out faster ways to get the desired final product probably studying what each step did to it and figuring out how to do it better and/or faster
Same as in chocolate, there are lots of products made with the not yet chocolate pods here in mexico, a shame its harder than ever to find them because people want chocolate not cocoa beans, so its easier to get fermented cocoa powder than the intermediate products, also chocolate is much more stable than those so its clear why we almost don't get them industrially
Maybe people first ate them fresh, then they dried them to preserve them and then the whole process started
hes mimicing a tropical climate. like he said, originally, u'd leave them in a humid place with specific temperature for the most part and leave them in the sun to dry once a day for a short period of time. there were probably vanilla pods in nature that laid in a specific spot where there was shade the entire day apart from one hour during the midday, and when someone stumbled upon these pods they'd notice the more intense smell of the pod. its just random chance.
Exactly, me too! It’s just fantastic how humans have figured these things out! There must have been some really brave human beings in ancient times! Wonder how many died from trying poisonous plants etc?
Slicing the bean(s) down the center lengthwise before putting it in a jar with vodka will speed the process of it becoming extract. And as you use the extract you can top off the bottle with more vodka and repeat for a LONG time (just one bean will make a shocking amount of extract before being depleted of it flavor). Great video! Thanks for making it.
And u can enjoy some vanilla vodka
I'm just shocked at seeing that amount of vanilla bean at one time. One chintzy little pod is like 12$ where I live.
Try Amazon. I found a place that had bulk vanilla beans for reasonable prices. I bought a quarter pound for $50. Single pods are about the same price in grocery stores here
I'm selling them $12 for 10 pods of Vanilla with shipping included.
I don't get the feeling this guy cares about the price.
Makes me wonder what other types of plants are out there that could be delicious if we experimented with them.
You should look into foraging
when I make vanilla from bean at home, I split the pods and cut the length in 3. It seems like the majority of the flavor comes out of the beans in the first couple weeks and then slowly over months. I also mix vodka and Irish whisky like Tullamore Dew, and it makes a richer tasting vanilla extract. Definitely split your beans though you get the flavor out better.
Something I've seen dying to see is for someone to take spent pods and freeze dry them, then ground them into powder, then trying it in different applications. Like, does it work as a suitable substitute for vanilla beans in ice cream? I love vanilla, the beans/seed pods are so expensive, and I hate the idea of just throwing them out after use. I usually just put used pods in my sugar, but with about 20 used pods in there, I've got to figure out something else.
You can scrape out the seeds and then use the pods to make vanilla sugar or vanilla extract.
@@chronic_daydreamer but at some point my extract jar and sugar bin are going to be more pod than anything
Yes it does. Ground vanilla pods are a really common baking ingredient and can be used to sprinkle on top of ice cream, baked goods and so on.
So glad I found your channel, your content is so educational, inspiring and humble. Thank you for existing & working hard to provide us with content like this
Awesome video! Always looking forward to Fridays to see what experiment you have in store for us.
We live in Oahu and have been growing vanilla orchids in our backyard for about three years. Yes they must be hand pollinated. The way the guy on your video 1:20 was pollinating was wrong. If you pull the pedals off the orchid, the bean will turn yellow and fall off the plant. I found out the hard way. First year we got about six beans, second year about 15 beans. This year I have about 400 beans but we have not harvested yet. We are selling vanilla extract ($25). Lord willing, we will have a lot of extract to sell next year.
Any particular reason for the hand-pollination? Lack of pollinators due to climate? Or is it something with the plant?
@@galvanizeddreamer2051 Lack of pollinators is the correct answer. It takes the Melipona bee to pollinate. It does not live in Hawaii.
@@darylefleming1191 Ah, I see. Thank you!
where i'm from, preparing quality vanilla is very labor intensive and takes months to get them to fully mature.
i believe they would also regularly sort of "massage" each invidual pods to help release their oils inside and keep them supple and smooth on the exterior. the best vanilla pods (and most expensive) we can find usually look shiny, more often than not smooth and "fat" (as opposed to riddled, thin and dried out) from all the grains they contain, with very powerful aromas (almost dizzying) you can litterally smell several feet away.
Where is that
@@Vanguardkl french polynesia
Yeah I worked at an airport and we got in a Shipment or vanilla from Madagascar and it made the entire warehouse smell heavenly. I wanted to swipe some😂
i looove your videos so much. they always cheer me up. i'm glad the beans turned out so well!!
Awesome man. keep these types of videos coming. I have an interest in knowing how flavors are made, for a long time now.
Fun fact: The word "Vanilla" comes from the spanish word "Vainilla" which literally means "little sheath" because the shape of it resembled the sheaths (Vaina) that the Spanish settlers had on them
I am spaniard and never figured this out by myself, omg, and you are completely right btw
Wait I speak spanish and never figured that out
@@phantomguy55: How would you, without studying 19th century and earlier Spanish history?
@@zapa1pnt because it actually makes sense, and it's not far from current spanish
@@phantomguy55: Sure, it makes sense, but not until you hear about it.
Thank you for the great video, I knew about the hand pollinating but I had no idea the curing process was that involved!
To anyone interested in trying the vodka extraction, don't expect getting actual vanilla extract out of it. There's a reason store-bought vanilla extract is as expensive as it is because they do multiple phases of extracting the flavor out of vanilla beans with different temperatures, different concentrations of alcohol and probably some more factors I don't know about. You won't be able to replicate that at home without IMMENSE effort, but it's still worth doing imo. I can actually recommend using unspiced rum instead of vodka because a lot of recipes that use vanilla extract play very well with rum flavor and vanilla rum is really nice in a lot of cocktails as well.
I didn't know this, thanks for sharing!
Not really true, you just can't expect to have vanilla within only a couple of months. You should make sure you carefully split the beans lengthwise so the alcohol can get access to the inner fibres and seeds, and you should expect to wait between 6mo and a year, but you can definitely have home made vanilla that's just as good as most store bought vanilla. Heating and higher alcohol concentrations can speed up the process, but they don't extract "more" flavor out of the pods. Heating -can- change the flavor significantly, and must be done very carefully or it can destroy certain flavor compounds. (Though I definitely agree about using a nice rum over vodka)
That is NOT correct, of course you can expect getting actual vanilla extract making it at home! I’ve made homemade vanilla extract for years and my homemade extract is fantastic! No problem making it at home at all, the most important ingredient is TIME though. IMO it must sit for a minimum of 6 months, preferably a year. I also prefer making it with glycerine or propylene glycol (or a combo) in place of vodka, making an alcohol free, thick consistency extract.
Vanilla infused whiskey is also pretty good.
Let's share this crucial documentary far and wide! 👉 The Connections (2021) [short documentary] 🌳🌳
This is so weird, here in Scandinavia it is completely common to just buy cured vanilla pods, then split them open and scrape out the seeds and goo for the taste. I have never been in doubt as to where it comes from.
I bet you also wouldn't spend hundreds on the power to run electric machines for many days.
I was just going to post this! 😄
I knew that beforehand, but I didn’t know that they looked so similar to beans when fresh lol
i was thinking the same thing, well that and, why the hell does he keep referring to processed vanilla based industrial products as vanilla, and vanilla beans as wierd.
At the moment I'm addicted to vanilla yoghurt. Not shop bought but homemade.
Start out with full fat Greek yogurt. Then add Madagascan vanilla essence & honey to taste. Beat until it's evenly distributed.
It's absolutely gorgeous!
Crazy that I didn't know that I wanted to know how vanilla was made. Thanks man.
Wow, amazing. 👍
I had no idea you can do this at home.
Love your videos. 😎👍
did not know the process took so long, thanks for this.
Well this was unexpected youtube recommendation and I'am so pleased I clicked on it :D Great video!
You are gonna have so much use of your Anova oven, it can be used for waterless sousvide and much more, I love mine! Keeping it on for weeks on end would make for some pretty damn expensive vanilla these days though, considering electricity
Waterless sous vide is called a reverse sear btw! I love the technique, you can actually get some better sears from it because the surface moisture tends to evaporate. Still love my sv machine though!
It does depend on how much loss of that heat you get - you could keep an electric pressure cooker on for days at a time and it wouldn't cost a lot because it's not hard for it to maintain its temperature. If it's possible to reduce the humidity though, it must have a mechanism to let air out
Papantla, Veracruz is the most important producer of vanilla in Mexico. Apparently it is where it originally comes from. The veracruzean vanilla has "certificado de origen", an acknowledgement that the product is actually natural. and not artificial, as there are many artificial flavors which try to imitate the real McCoy.
Absolutely facinating
This was an incredible video
Being enamored with fermentation this seems like a really fun project. I am curious about your tincture or infusion. With many other ingredients the rime or the fruit can throw off the intended flavor. For instance, Limoncello, the zest is all you want because the juice will cause it to be too acidic and rime will create a bitter flavor. Do you have any worry about something like this happening? My experience with vanilla is limited but the experience I do have leads me to believe all you would want is the interior, the seeds and guts, not to mention the increased surface area producing a higher efficiency. Thoughts?
How wound you achieve that?
I look forward to your videos. Please don’t stop
It would have been neat if you'd done one batch with the heat-treated killing process and one batch with the cold-treatment process, to see what differences you could detect between them.
Can't imagine the smell in your kitchen after all that!
I can, with ease.
I have a tropical grow room in my house and grow all 6 different types of vanilla beans. They are SUPER high maintenance. I get to mix and match to play with new strains. The sad thing, they all taste the same to me. The types i have are Mexican, Madagascar, Tahitian, Papua New Guinea, Indonesian, and Ugandan.
That is so cool, I am so jealous.
I had a vanilla tree growing wildly in my backyard in California. It attracted the fattest bees I've ever seen. Bumble Bees.
I'm in California as well and haven't seen bumblebees in so long.
Medieval Beekeepers used Beaver Vanilla as a method of producing more honey. The fact that plant Vanilla works similarly is interesting.
Do you make vanilla stuff?
That's cute i love bumble bees haha bzzzzz
@@thatcoldsweataftershtbutth3025 nope, it was just growing in a creek in my backyard. Was fully grown and had lots of beans growing in the summer. I wouldn't get too close because of the immense amount of bumble bees. And I was 11.
Thanks to your video I went out and got myself the Anova oven. What I'd really like to know is the time frame used to dry the vanilla. How many days did you have the oven at 115 degrees, humidity at 100% and timer? You mentioned to dry them you turned off the humidity for 1 hour. The sweat process you mentioned to repeat 18 days with the heat down to 95 degrees, humidity at 35% for 4 weeks. If I missed a step can you share the exact process including time, days etc... Thanks for sharing!
Vanilla like any other orchid wont sprout that easy it needs symbiotic relationship with mycelium
I didn't know this!
Or agar
This was a fun and interesting video, thank you so much. 🌱👍😊
Protip: You can use Everclear/grain alcohol instead of regular vodka to accelerate the extraction process while saving money on the alcohol! Theoretically, you should also be able to dilute it down to the 35-40% strength of normal vanilla extract or vodka to make a little over double the amount of extract with the same amount of beans/liquid, as more alcohol will be able to dissolve more of the aromatic compounds in the beans. In practice it may not yield quite the exact same result, but I may just have to try it soon to confirm!
vanillin sounds like it could just be vanilla specific DMT for your taste buds
They should just take a carolina reaper and genetically modify it so that the amino transferase enzyme is defective which will create a vanilla producing carolina reaper that is not spicy.
that would be interesting. most modifications are done by fusing the roots with one plant with the roots of another. sound like a fun experiment.
@@justifiably_stupid4998 this would have to be done by straight up getting plant cells, modiying their DNA then using a selective agent to kill off unmodified cells and grow the rest in an agar plate and wait for the miniature plants to grow before transplanting them to soil.
I appreciate the effort he put into making that ofr us all. Thanks man
Awesome process, time consuming and caring. Well done! Why didn't you cut the bean s open and pouring the insides in the vodka? This creates more surface volume and more vanilla taste is tinctured in the alcohol!
6 months?! Holy shit I was waiting for the part when it actually turns into a brown liquid and you do a taste test lol.
Makes for a really good simple syrup we used steeped vanilla beans in the cafe I used to work for. Amazing vanilla flavor. Does not compare to artificial
Artificial vanilla sucks
I LOVE THIS CHANNEL!!!! 😻😻😻😻
Can you show us the results when it’s done? This process was incredibly interesting.
Do you know of any good places to get high quality produce in DC? I know there is the Foggy Bottom/ Rosslyn farmers market as well as the one by Eastern Market. But dont know of any other ones
It has been 6 months. Looking forward to that cream soda video :).
After using the pods you could place then inside the vanilla extratc glass to use the pod till the end. By the way, can you make vanilla extract with a single pod? They're verry expensive, so if I would buy it'll be just one by one
It depends on how much vanilla you're looking for. Expect to wait 6mo to 1y rather than a couple of months, make sure to split the beans lengthwise before soaking. I have a 40oz bottle of vanilla made out of reasonably nice vodka that I believe has about 30 vanilla beans in it. I bought them online in bulk, cost about $60 for the vanilla beans and $40 for the vodka... but that quantity of vanilla would be 20x that if I tried to buy "real" vanilla (not artificial) in store.
I feel like 100% is beyond what you'd see in the tropics since that's death when warm.
can oil extract flavor? can u speed up alcohol extraction via a sonic diffuser or grind it up for more surface area
My European ass thinking "What Vanilla isn't the vanilla pod they sell in stores?" just to see that apparently there are people that've never seen the original plant.
With a soxhlet extractor you could have possibly reduced the infusion time of the extract down to a couple of days Probsbly.
The first time I made vanilla extract, I made with vodka, but that’s real expensive and I don’t drink, so the next time I needed to top up my vanilla, I just turned to the ingredients I already had for making vape juice! Both glycerine (glycerol) and propylene glycol can be used (food grade or pharmaceutical grade). It gives you an alcohol free, thicker extract. I found that I like better to open the beans, scrape out the seeds and add them to the bottle, then chop the beans in around 1cm pieces and add them too. It gives a stronger, more concentrated extract. I also love making vanilla powder, let the bean dry out so it’s «crisp» and easily breaks (can be done naturally or use a dehydrator or the oven on a super low setting, My oven’s lowest setting is 50˚C (122˚F), I just turn it a bit lower than that and let the door sit slightly open), when it’s done I blend it finely in a coffee grinder or my NutriBullet. If you like using vanilla sugar, buying it is silly, because the commercial ones are usually made with 2% real vanilla, the rest is vanillin made from cellulose (trees, basically)! Instead take 1 dried pod and a cup of sugar and blend until fine (like confectioner’s sugar)! Taste it and experience how vanilla sugar is supposed to taste! Vanilla beans are real expensive now, I have bought it on eBay for years now. Now that it’s been priced so high since a bad season/harvest some years back, the most reasonable for me in Norway now, was to buy from SriLanka, from a seller that has free shipping (a.k.a shipping included in the price, nothing’s free! ☺️). I just bought 20 organic premium grade A beans, 16-22cm long for $22.99. At my local store 1 bean costs $4.50 which equals $90 for 20 beans! I am very excited to try this one, as I only bought Madagascar Bourbon vanilla before. I hope I’ll love love this SL vanilla as much! 🤗💚
I didn't read your comment but l upvoted anyway cos it's long
One problem with using PG or VG is that these compounds are probably way less soluble in it than ethanol. Havent looked into it, but it's a common theme in extracts
My wife started making her own vanilla extract for years; it’s great.
Why don't just use the vainilla it self?
Nothing beats homemade.
@@jinxed402 why
I like your videos!
I don't know why, but every time I hear vanilla, cherry blossom pops up in my mind 🌸
that efforts worth it❤❤
I live in Hawaii and bought from the same producer! Their pods made great extract
Great video!
it cost you nothing to properly level the tray in the oven yet here we are...
Great work
Cool content and well documented
i am surprised the quick blanching in the hot water was not enough to ruin the enzymes that you used over that half month to build up the vanillin flavor.
also, dang it, i don't have a humidity oven.
how the hell did people come up with this things? like "yeah let's just take these extremely delicate and rare and tasteless orchid buds and deactivate them en then just put them into a pretty intensive fermentation cicle, something remarkable will certainly come out"
Very interesting! I'm pretty much informed about the all the processes that go into making chocolate tasting like chocolate but I didn't know about the ones for vanilla, like you said.
Would the raw, not dried vanilla, tasting different of cause be food save for use in experiments?
GREAT upload! Those beans sure look beautiful - obviously they didn't send you lower quality. This video shows more detail on raw beans than anything else I've seen. I spent the better part of a year trying different wholesale vanilla sources for our cannabis caramels at work (Peterson in Seattle was the only reliable one out of 8). The US standard for vanilla extract (FDA 21 CFR169.175, + subsection 169.3(c) ) says vanilla extract has to be made w/10% vanilla bean based on their dry weight. What you put into that bottle w/vodka looked to me to be way more than that. Leaving that for a few months will prob result in a fantastic extract.
The job where we made those caramels afforded me the opportunity to test out a lot of different scenarios for making extract - higher alcohol content / introducing heat vs. stone cold / just the 'caviar' vs just the husks / etc. etc. Only in the marijuana world will a company pay you to have fun like that (I did lose the job as they were going under though). A cool thing we used to use was a standardized mix of vanilla caviar and sugar (where 1T sugar had the filling from 1 bean). When you scrape the beans use gloves and rub it into the sugar until all the little specs are fully separated (very important to get max extraction). I used to sift to remove husk scrapings. If you mature that sugar for a couple months in a warm spot it gets a beautifully warm and soft flavor I couldn't get any other way. It used to bring the subtle aromas forward. I'd sprinkle it on everything I could
I always wonder: who came up with this procedure in the first place
VERY COOL! Although imagine how crushed I was when I was like that Anova is super sweet! I can proof bread, Manage Tempe, Manage Koji rice, Dehydrate, Convection, Steam, Bake, Broil, Roast you name it... $700 is pretty far outta my price range right now. It doesn't stop me appreciating the tech, it's just non-affordable for the likes of me.
I totally get it, I likely wouldn't be able to get one if it wasn't from the support of you all! One thing to note though is that it does go on sale on occasion, I think I only paid around $500 when I bought it
Bring awareness to the vanilla bee. It is the only one and it's rare
steamed kecombrang flower or kantan flower smell amazing when its eaten or chewed
Maybe you could try making vanilla fudge and vanilla meringues with vanilla beans?
In the right climate the vanilla orchid can actually be quite weed like and not fussy at all. But getting the plant to produce beans is another story.
I smiled when you said 'taste the seed'. I really should grow up 😁
Yeahhh, a few years ago, I was thinking why didn't I grow my own vanilla? It's really expensive. Then I read up on it and thought nope, nope, nope.
I don't see why not
Thanks for your doing the video. Really appreciate it even though it was "Hacky". I loved it and learned something new.
You're the best!
Watching this while eating chocolate and vanilla ice cream
You have such a cool videos Amazing
Props to ANOVA for making a device that can handle that amount of continuous runtime lol
split the pods lengthwise to improve your extract
I made two batches. One I used vodka and the other spiced rum. I have to say I like the spiced rum.
Little advice: cutting your vanilla beans down to pieces is way better than just leaving them whole in the vodka (if you could grind it it’ll be way faster). That makes more surface area, so the extraction occurs faster. Even some casual agitation (more like a stirring without opening the lid) will help to have the same product in less time since it will also favor the rate of diffusion.
I wonder why vanilla extract isn't made from vanilla paste.
@@trucid2 vanilla paste is another product from vanilla. Wouldn’t make sense to bother to make it so you can now make vanilla extract when you could’ve done it from the beggining
Can we have an update video on the extract? 😅
so its been three months, can we get a follow up?
thought this was abt a game and wondered tf it meant until i read the title
Anova CVAP, LETS GO BABY!
I just want to know what thought went through the first guy that put cured vanilla into vodka
Vanilla orchid originated in Vera Cruz Mexico and their, the pollination is done by vanilla bees. The reason why they don’t need human pollination is because nature grows them there and provides the pollination from the bees. All the other places on earth where they grow vanilla, there are no bees so humans have to pollinate the plants. Madegascar, Tahiti, Hawaii, Indonesia are some of the places where they grow commercially vanilla beans.
The reason vanilla has to be hand pollinated is because the insect that pollinated it in it's original origin isn't native to any other region.
Like with tobacco, which needs to be fermented after drying, or else it is unenjoyable.
Now I won't complain about vanilla (pod) prices anymore.
Thanks for saying the temperature also in Celsius.
Awesome!
I think I will just use some vanilla candles!! 6 month process?
I wonder what flavors were commonly used before vanilla and chocolate were wide spread.
Probably other spices like cinnamon and alot of honey.
Herbs, citrus, nuts, rose petals and other flowers, real local fruits and berries
Wow Seth Rogen voice in this video is so clean! Nice video man!
5:46 when he puts it back in crooked 😅
This is how the real vanilla flavor is made
How many of the foods we eat today was just some ancient human being really hungry and picking up something sketchy and going "well lets see if this kills me ". ? Because only the successful ones get passed on. Like who first cracked open an oyster and thought " That's not so bad..."