In this installment
Llagar de Oles Cider Vinegar
Blonde Sushi Grade California Japonica Rice
Llagar de Oles Cider Vinegar
This apple cider vinegar is made in Asturias, a stunning coastal region tucked between Cantabria and Galicia in Northern Spain, known for traditional apple cider called “sidra natural”.
For sidra natural, the process begins with apples fermented using only the wild yeasts found on their skins – no added yeast, no added sugar or other flavors. The resulting cider is unfiltered and naturally cloudy with funky, earthy flavors. If we weren’t going the vinegar route and stayed in the cider lane, it wouldn’t be casually poured into a glass to drink it. Instead, it’s “thrown” from a bottle held high above the escanciador’s (pourer’s) head into a special glass held at an angle below the pourer’s hips (about a two feet pour). The still cider does not have any bubbles, so dropping the cider from the right height and angle helps to add air for a light carbonation and to aerate the cider for better flavor and texture. Now back to the vinegar…
The Martínez Sopeña brothers grow all their own apples to make their traditional cider. The cider is turned into vinegar is using the classic Orléans method, a slow, natural oxidation carried out in castaño (chestnut) wood barrels. Five months later, you’ve got a vinegar that’s bright, fruity, apple-y (of course), super dry, and tannic at the end – like a crisp high-five from an apple tree. It’s not quite as sour and tangy as other apple cider vinegars, and the drying tannins and crisp flavor is reminiscent of white wine vinegars. Splash it in salad dressings, quick pickles, and marinades.
Blonde Sushi Grade California Japonica Rice
Grown, milled, and packaged all on the same family-run farm in northern California, this beautiful Japonica rice is the real deal farmstead rice at its finest. The family’s been at it for four generations, and their care shows in every grain.
Japonica Rice is a medium grain rice originally from Japan. Chico Rice uses the haiga-mai style for their “blonde” rice which means they semi-polish it by removing only part of the bran layer. Brief rice refresher – what we call “brown” rice is the whole grain with the hull removed. Typically white rice further has the bran and most of the germ removed. Removing the bran and germ takes away nutrients, fiber, oils, and often a lot of flavor and texture. Keeping the grain more intact keeps the flavor more intact. So this blonde rice is the best of both worlds: the delicate flavor and creamy texture of white rice and the nutrients, minerals, and healthy oils found in brown rice. It’s a little nutty, a little sweet, a little earthy, and creamy with a long-lasting flavor.
Ideal for sushi, Japanese and Korean dishes, but don’t be afraid to branch out. It’s stickier than long-grain varieties, perfect for dishes where you want the rice to hold together a little bit more, so this rice is just as at home in stir fries, rice bowls, and cozy one-pot rice meals.