Home remedies are a common tool in virtually every household in the world, making use of easy-to-obtain ingredients for health benefits. There are all kinds of recipes out there. One of the most common ingredients in many home remedies is apple cider vinegar.
While the effects of apple cider vinegar in these remedies can be beneficial, one common issue is the potent taste of ACV. Vinegar, apple cider, or otherwise, can be highly unpleasant to the tastebuds, making your home remedy less than palatable. Thus, the need to find ways to reduce the potency of the vinegar's taste and scent has become a priority for those who take it regularly.
If you're interested in trying an apple cider vinegar remedy, or you have one you want to make more palatable, here's how.
What Does Apple Cider Vinegar Do for You?
Now, you might be curious about the use of apple cider vinegar in the realm of holistic health solutions. The fact is apple cider vinegar can produce many benefits for your system that can make you a happier and healthier individual. This is because apple cider vinegar is full of healthy substances.
Apple cider vinegar is made using acetic acid, which is responsible for the taste and smell of vinegar but is also considered the source of its nutritional and health benefits. Most cider vinegar contains a concentration of between 5-6% acetic acid. This acid concentration makes the vinegar-based remedies highly effective in killing bacteria and pathogens that might otherwise enter your system.
Vinegar has also been shown to be able to lower your blood sugar and help manage diabetes. Research shows that the consumption of apple cider vinegar might offer an improved insulin sensitivity, increasing it by anywhere between 19-34%. Another study found that a group of 5 people saw a decrease of overall blood sugar by 31.4% after consuming 50 grams of white bread, which is packed with sugar.
There have been claims that apple cider vinegar can be helpful for weight loss; however, that is not necessarily true. There has been no concrete evidence to support the idea that apple cider vinegar can be used to lessen your appetite and aid in your weight loss journey. If you came here looking to make apple cider vinegar more viable as a weight-loss tool, you might want to direct your attention elsewhere to find additions to your diet to help with weight loss.
While apple cider vinegar can be highly useful in boosting your overall health in certain areas, there remains the ever-present issue of the pungent smell and taste of ACV. For those with a distaste for such intense flavors, it becomes necessary to find a way to cover up the taste of the vinegar with more palatable flavors.
Option #1: Dilution
Perhaps the most common way to alleviate the overly powerful taste of apple cider vinegar, dilution can help you keep the substance down so you can reap the benefits without having to choke it back. When using apple cider vinegar as a supplement, you will want the bottles that have sediment on the bottom. Though not necessarily appetizing, that sediment is the source of the vast majority of the nutritional benefits.
When you finally bring the apple cider vinegar back home and decide to take your first swig, you can help to minimize the strong taste by simply adding water. It is advised to always dilute the vinegar as consuming the raw vinegar can be harmful to your teeth and throat.
The average recommended serving of liquid apple cider vinegar is between 1-2 tablespoons (15-30 ml). To successfully dilute the acidic ingredient, you will want to stir it into a cup (240 ml) of water to both reduce the strength of the flavor while also reducing the potential damage it could do to your throat and teeth. If you prefer more flavor to cover up the vinegar taste, you can opt to substitute the water with fruit juice or tea instead.
Dilution is considered a major step in taking apple cider vinegar regardless of your opinion on the taste. However, it is not the only option available to you.
Option #2: Sweeteners
If dilution is not enough to make the vinegar go down and stay down, you can further bury the flavor using one of the most common culinary tools known to man: sweeteners. By adding a sweetener to your apple cider vinegar concoction, you can suppress the natural flavor of the vinegar while adding a sweeter and potentially more satisfying taste than you might otherwise get out of the apple cider vinegar.
We recommend adding 1-2 tablespoons (4-8 grams) of sugar or an artificial sweetener of your choice to the mix of vinegar. If you want a more natural sweetener, you can substitute sugar and artificial sweeteners for honey. You can even add sweeteners with nutritional value, such as a teaspoon of cayenne pepper or cinnamon.
If you prefer a sourer experience, you can instead add two tablespoons (30 ml) of lemon juice to create a more citric experience with your apple cider vinegar.
Adding sweeteners can be extremely helpful in making apple cider vinegar a more pleasant potion to swallow, though in some cases, it might defeat the purpose. Too much of a sweetener can detract from the health benefits it offers, especially in those taking it to ease diabetic symptoms. Fortunately, there are still viable alternatives that will make consuming apple cider vinegar less arduous.
Option #3: Dressing
Perhaps one of the more obvious choices for using vinegar, apple cider or otherwise, is to use it as a salad dressing. Vinaigrettes have been a popular dressing for many years, and even apple cider-based vinaigrettes can be particularly tasty when put on the right kind of salad. If you are looking to make a salad dressing to take advantage of the benefits that apple cider vinegar has to offer you, you will be happy to know it is a relatively simple process to do so.
If you want to make an apple cider vinegar salad dressing, you will need olive oil, salt, and garlic to make this simple dressing. By mixing three tablespoons (44 ml) of olive oil, ¼ cup (59 ml) of apple cider vinegar, a clove of minced garlic, and ½ teaspoon (2.8 g) of salt, you end up with a tasty dressing that is excellent for any salad you might care to consume. Make sure to stir the mixture well and store it in the refrigerator.
By combining the apple cider vinegar with these other ingredients to make it into a dressing, you also successfully mask the otherwise overpowering taste of the vinegar and allow it to mesh with the salad.
Option #4: Cooking
If you are a whiz in the kitchen, masking the overwhelming taste of apple cider vinegar can be an even simpler task than you might have expected. Apple cider vinegar is remarkably common in many recipes, allowing its pungent taste to be merged with the tastes of other ingredients into a lovely meal you would not scoff twice at.
One such recipe comes from the Kiwi and Bean website for their "Sweet 'n Salty Chicken Thighs." To start, you'll need the following ingredients:
- 1 ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoon tamari
- 1 ½ tablespoon pure maple syrup (substitute for sugar-free if necessary)
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Sea salt
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
Once you have gathered the ingredients, all you need to do to prepare it. The instructions are as follows:
- Mix the apple cider vinegar, tamari, maple syrup, and ground pepper in a small bowl. Once mixed, set the bowl aside.
- Pat the chicken thighs dry with a paper towel and then season them with salt.
- Heat the cooking oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers.
- Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken thighs for 3-4 minutes or until browned and crispy, then flip them over and repeat for the other side.
- Pour the mixture of apple cider vinegar, tamari, maple syrup, and ground pepper onto the chicken and bring it to a boil.
- Turn the heat down slightly and let the mixture boil and reduce while flipping the thighs every minute to ensure an even spread of the glaze.
- When the chicken is thoroughly cooked and the mixture has a syrupy texture, remove the chicken from the heat and serve.
This recipe ensures you enjoy a tasty and nutritious meal and helps to reduce the overall impact the flavor of the vinegar has. In addition, a homecooked meal using apple cider vinegar is an excellent method for introducing it to your system without enduring a nasty aftertaste.
Option #5: Morning Beverage
In a similar vein to the 1st option we offered, another way to make the taste of apple cider vinegar less intrusive is to simply drop it into your morning coffee or tea. Most coffee or tea available for consumption today has a strong enough taste to make the vinegar taste virtually undetectable, especially if you add sugar or milk to your morning drink.
While you might pause at the thought of subjecting your morning dose of caffeine to apple cider vinegar, it can be an excellent way to get your daily dose in a way that will not leave you struggling to get the taste out of your mouth for an hour after the fact. Besides, those of us who enjoy our coffee black will barely detect a trace of the vinegar.
While this solution is hardly foolproof, depending on how strong you like your coffee or tea, it is still a viable option, especially for those of us who need to be on the go.
Option #6: Supplements
We live in a world where we are constantly on the move and in a rush, making lengthy preparation of drinks, dressings, and dinners using apple cider vinegar a bit of an ordeal. Fortunately, like most holistic nutrients, some supplements use vinegar as a primary ingredient that will allow you to reap the benefits without lengthy preparation.
Such supplements are readily available across many nutrition stores and websites. We sell a supplement as well. Our apple cider vinegar gummy supplements pack your daily dose of apple cider vinegar in an apple-flavored gummy. Two of our gummies contain one shot of vinegar, and the best part is that there is no potent vinegar taste overwhelming your mouth after taking them.
The supplements are designed to be sweet and eliminate the unpleasant sensations you would experience taking apple cider vinegar in its raw form and can be easily taken whether you are at home or on the go.
Wrapping Up
Apple cider vinegar is not a pleasant thing. It has a powerful taste and smell that is, quite honestly, unappetizing to the vast majority of people. Fortunately, it is not something we necessarily have to suffer in silence due to all the alternatives available to make the consumption of apple cider vinegar less arduous.
Whether you decide to cook it into a tasty meal, dilute it, make a dressing, or even just take a supplement, getting your daily dose has never been easier. So, now you can enjoy all the benefits with virtually no drawbacks. That said, please remember that it is not a substitute for any medication and you should always consult with your primary care physician about the best course of action when it comes to treating a pre-existing condition.
Now that you've read some potential options to get past the apple cider vinegar taste, do any of them interest you? Which one sounds the best to you and why? Is there another alternative method of preparation you were already using instead? What was it that you were using and what made you decide to go with that route? Be sure to leave all your comments, questions, and concerns in the comments section below! We'd love to hear all your thoughts on the topic!
