[Sca-cooks] Verjuis alternatives

Dragon dragon at crimson-dragon.com
Tue Apr 29 11:07:32 PDT 2008


Michael Gunter wrote:

> > You might check to see what the price is for white grape juice. 
> I> have sometimes used that for recipes calling for grape juice or> verjus.
>
>That's a good idea. Or if you happen to have an Oriental or South
>American market in your area you can look for something called
>"Goya Sour Grape Juice". It's inexpensive and works great!
>
>Mixing orange juice or grape juice and some lemon juice works.
>
>Sometimes you can buy fresh crabapples pretty cheap at
>markets. Whiz them in a food processor and strain through
>cheesecloth.
>
>Just a couple more logs in the fire.
>
> > Brighid ni Chiarain
>Gunthar
---------------- End original message. ---------------------

If you have a Middle Eastern market in your area, it very likely will 
have verjus (the English, if there is any on the bottle, will likely 
say "sour grape juice"). I can get three or four different brands at 
my local market, all are quite inexpensive.

The problem with grape juice sold in most mainstream U.S. markets is 
that it is almost always sweetened and almost always made at least in 
part from Concord grapes which are specifically New World and have a 
distinctly different flavor from those that would have been used in period.

A local winery may be a source for some grapes to be juiced, or 
sometimes "health food" stores may carry varietal grapes that would 
be more suitable but often they are also a lot more expensive.

But as suggested by Gunthar, using the white grape juice with 
something to sour it like lemon juice is not a bad substitute in a 
pinch. The cranberry suggestion is also not a bad one if mixed with 
some of the white grape juice as it will approximate both the 
tartness and tannic level of a red wine grape.

Dragon

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  Venimus, Saltavimus, Bibimus (et naribus canium capti sumus)
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