Just saw this article and had to comment here, esp. the part where it says “a real gourmet can detect it”. (I wonder what they mean by “real gourmet”.)
Imitation vanilla is actually a great substitute in baked goods, or at least that’s what the folks at America’s Test Kitchen say. No, I don’t like it and don’t purchase the stuff — I’ve tried to overcome my personal food snobbery issues over the years but imitation vanilla is still something I can’t quite wrap my brain around. BUT, I can’t argue with the fact that most people can’t detect the real stuff from the fake when eating brownies and such; some even prefer the fake stuff when pressed to make a choice! Cook’s Illustrated in the November/December 2003 issue did a taste test and I guess most of our tongues aren’t that sensitive as to distinguish the fake from the real stuff. Even the ATK/CI people can’t believe the results — they’ve done this taste test twice in the last ten years and the results have been the same. No time right now to go into all the details — Alan Davidson and Harold McGee both have a bunch to say about it (though they insist that there is a discernible difference).
Two important things I did want to highlight:
- Vanillin is the compound responsible for vanilla’s aroma and flavor.
- There’s a higher percentage of fake vanillin in imitation vanilla than there is real vanillin in real vanilla, hence the heightened flavor.
So if you’re looking to save a few dollars, you can use the fake stuff and none would be the wiser. What I would caution against is Mexican vanilla, which to this day is still controversial (coumarin content, etc.). And I only have a preference for the bean stuff when making vanilla ice cream (those black flecks add so much to aesthetics), but other than that I use Madagascar vanilla — Penzey’s (their double-strength stuff is awesome) and Neilsen-Massey’s are particularly good (NM has regular and organic). This year I’m trying Simply Organic’s version. But after that bottle, I may just go out and get some of the fake stuff and see how that goes.
More information from the Vanilla Company website.
It’s true that fake vanilla extracts have a stronger aroma and taste but it also tastes … uh … cheap. I don’t know, I’m just sure that ever since I discovered Neilsen-Massey’s I never looked back.
Penzey’s double-strength vanilla is incredible! If you do want to see a difference, you might want to try a taste test with vanilla ice cream. I think, out of the bottle, the difference is pretty obvious but not so much in things like brownies where other flavors join the mix. I grew up with a dad who made his own immitation vanilla by using the real stuff and bourbon I think. He saved a lot of money that way.
hi celia, isn’t NM’s stuff awesome? i LOVE that they have organic vanilla as well!
phisch, you’re talking my language! this is the kind of stuff that i live for! i just googled and found this: To make your own vanilla extract, place 1 whole vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise, into 3/4 cup (180 ml) of vodka. Cover tightly and let steep for 6 months before using. you can be sure i’ll be trying this! (although, with vodka and vanilla bean prices, it may not be that inexpensive anymore.)
I would like to share your interest in the two natural vs. synthetic vanilla taste-tests CI/ATK conducted and published that you mentioned in the above article. The bulk of the opposition against anything synthetic is simply cultural because on the molecular level (at which we smell everything) a naturally occurring molecule smells just exactly as a synthetic one. There’s a lot of horrible things that can be said about most synthetic foodstuff but I think that vanillin got saddled with an unusually negative bagage. Probably for the most part because right after the WWII, it was used to flavour deadly DDT to attract the insects that DDT was designed to exterminate. But apart from that though, vanillin had and still has its exalted uses. For example, it was first used in perfumery by Jacques Guerlain who added it to Jicky (favoured by Jacqueline, Bardot and Connery) to end up as Shalimar, his houses’ biggest selling fragrance. This is remarkable to me because we are talking of the same Jacques Guerlain who practiced perfumery as an extension of haute cuisine.
I believe that part of the reason that people are liking the stronger vanilla flavor that is apparent in artificially derived vanillin (which as I recall comes from wood cellulose–but I may be wrong on that) is because our taste buds are attuned to the stronger flavor of artificially derived vanilla. That is what is used most commercially available bakery products, industrial-made cookies, ice creams, pudding mixes, frozen desserts and the like.
We are now used to the stronger flavor.
Me–I like the more delicate flavor of the real stuff. And I can tell the difference every time. Does this make me a snob? Maybe. But I still can detect the difference and like the more delicate floral notes that I can detect in the natural versions.
And, frankly, nothing smells as good to me as a fresh vanilla bean. That smell is awesome, where as a pure vanillin product smells overly strong to me.
That said–I love both Penzey’s double strength vanilla and NM’s stuff.
And, that said–I agree with Apicio–on a molecular level, vanillin from vanilla beans and vanillin from other sources is still the same molecule. I think that the difference is that vanillin isn’t the only chemical component in vanilla beans and vanilla extracts, and what I like is the complexity that the other compounds bring to it. An extract that just has vanillin in it always smells too strong and rather cheap–like those horrid candles that some people love to burn that make my stomach go in circles.