Recipe for gastrique with palm sugar
One of the secrets of French cuisine. This caramelized vinegar syrup is brilliant for enhancing the flavor of a sauce, stew, or gravy. Gastrique is typically made from sugar and vinegar. In this version, we have chosen to use palm sugar instead of regular sugar.
The gastrique adds bitterness, sweetness, acidity, and fruitiness to your dish, so it is often the first thing we add to our sauce when we struggle to achieve a good flavor.
Ingredients
- 125 gram Palm Sugar Can be replaced with regular sugar
- 250 gram Apple Cider Vinegar
Instructions
- Place a thick-bottomed pot over medium-high heat (on my stove, it's set to 10 on a scale of 1-14).
- Add the palm sugar to the pot and let it melt and turn golden. Do not stir the pot while it melts. Be patient; it can easily take 10 minutes to melt.
- Add the vinegar when the sugar has melted. When you add it, it will bubble up. Be careful it doesn't splash on you, and don't hold your head over the pot.
- Reduce the heat to medium (6-7) and let the gastrique simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- To ensure all the palm sugar dissolves, give the pot a gentle swirl a couple of times. If you accidentally stir the pot, it won't make much difference.
- Once all the palm sugar has dissolved, pour the gastrique into a sterilized bottle.
- The gastrique may seem very thin, but it will thicken as it cools.
- Perfect for seasoning sauces or stews.
