I didn't know where to post this, so it's going here.

I'm getting internet feeds warning of 4% vinegar showing up on store shelves. My understanding (true?) is that 5% is needed for safe pickling/canning.

Tormato wrote: ↑Sun Jul 21, 2024 7:52 am I didn't know where to post this, so it's going here.

I'm getting internet feeds warning of 4% vinegar showing up on store shelves. My understanding (true?) is that 5% is needed for safe pickling/canning.

All the stuff I've seen starts with 5%.

I did a 4% vinegar search.
One thing that came up was it was starting to show up in bargain brands.
I always look at vinegar before I buy it for acidity anyway.
I accidentally used 10% to pickle something one time.
That was a mistake I'll never make again.
Thankfully all my cheap HEB store brand vinegar is 5%.
Personally I'm not really good at percentages and ratios.
I mean I can do it but it makes my head hurt.

Some approved recipes call for dilution of 5% vinegar and others recommend no dilution.
I think pickled beets is one of them that say straight vinegar.
I've almost completely stopped buying white vinegar for anything I'm going to eat and buy 5% apple cider vinegar.
I do keep a gallon around though.
Well anyway 5% of 128 is 6.4 ounces.
4% of 128 is 5.12 ounces.
6.4 minus 5.12=1.28.
Now isn't that interesting.
1/4 cup is 2 ounces.
So my guess is if you get stuck with the 4% you can add a little more vinegar to the ratio or add citric acid.
I keep citric acid around just for this reason.
There's all kinds of information on line about citric acid instead of vinegar.
Or in this case to boost the acidity.

Probably one of my favorite subjects.
I noticed that the new site has a revised recipe for pickled beets or im losing my mind.
I could have sworn someone got into an argument about this on another forum about the amount of vinegar to use for beets.
What I'm trying to say is you don't always use straight 5% vinegar to can or pickle with.
So you have to do a little math if you're stuck with 4%.
People saying 4% isn't safe to can with us just not accurate.
https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/pickle

Rice vinegar I've seen is always 4%. But that I use for flavoring, not pickling. But you could get the % up, by just a little math, if you wanted to use it for pickles - more vinegar and less water.

I didn't look at that 30% vinegar they were selling in Home Depot was food grade.

I just checked the Marukan brewed rice vinegar I use and it's 4.3% acidity. That's OK because I only use it for cooking or marinating certain things and for a few Asian refrigerator pickles. In fact, Pickles just tried a new refrigerated Japanese pickled eggplant recipe yesterday. Not bad!

We usually use White House brand of both regular white vinegar and cider vinegar. To me, other brands taste a bit medicinal in comparison, especially (gag!) Walmart's Great Value vinegar that was bought one time in a pinch and then quickly retired to the cleaning supplies closet!

GoDawgs wrote: ↑Sun Jul 21, 2024 2:09 pm We usually use White House brand of both regular white vinegar and cider vinegar. To me, other brands taste a bit medicinal in comparison....

White House Foods is an old Virginia company, in business since 1908! Their headquarters and production plants are in Winchester, and they still use Virginia apples, though Virginia doesn't grow enough any more to meet all their needs. Nice to know their products are still sold as far away as Georgia.