Rice Vinegar: Japanese, Chinese Black, Sushi Vinegar and Substitutes
Rice vinegar is a vinegar that producers ferment from rice or rice wine. It tastes milder and a little sweeter than white wine or distilled vinegar and is the basis for sushi rice, Japanese salads and Chinese dips.
Fact sheet
- Also known as
- Komezu (米酢), Su (酢), Rice Vinegar, Sushi-Essig (すし酢), schwarzer Essig (黑醋, Zhenjiang-Essig), Kurozu (黒酢)
- Origin
- Japan und China
- Taste
- mild sauer, rund, leicht süß; schwarzer Essig malzig und rauchig
- Substitute
- 3 EL Apfelessig + 1 EL Wasser + Prise Zucker für 4 EL Reisessig; für schwarzen Essig 2 Teile Apfelessig + 1 Teil Balsamico
- Storage
- kühl und dunkel, geöffnet viele Monate haltbar
- Where to buy
- Asia-Regal im Supermarkt, Asialaden (schwarzer Essig), online
What does rice vinegar taste like?
Light Japanese rice vinegar hardly smells sharp and tastes round, slightly sweet and of rice. You can drizzle it straight over cucumbers without it biting. Chinese white rice vinegar is sharper, with a clearer acidity. Black vinegar from China tastes malty and slightly smoky and recalls balsamic from a distance, without its sweetness.
Production
For rice vinegar, producers turn the starch in rice into sugar with koji or another mold culture, ferment it to alcohol and then let acetic acid bacteria go to work. Japanese vinegars are often made from sake lees or polished rice. For black vinegar, breweries mash glutinous rice, often together with wheat bran or millet, and let the vinegar age for a long time. The dark color comes from this aging.
Types at a glance
| Type | Flavor | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese rice vinegar (komezu, 米酢) | mild, round, slightly sweet | sushi rice, sunomono, dressings, ponzu |
| Sushi vinegar (sushi-su, すし酢) | already seasoned with sugar and salt | sushi rice only, not for dressings without tasting |
| Japanese black vinegar (kurozu, 黒酢) | mild, malty | dressings, marinades, diluted as a drink |
| Chinese white rice vinegar | clear, strongly sour | pickles, stir-fries, sweet and sour sauces |
| Chinese black vinegar (Zhenjiang, 镇江香醋) | malty, smoky, little sweetness | dumpling dips, suan la tang, braises |
| Red rice vinegar | fruity, slightly sweet | noodle soups, dips, seafood |
Black vinegar from China usually contains gluten because of the wheat bran. Japanese rice vinegar rarely contains allergens, but still check the ingredient list; some types are blended with alcohol or grain.
Uses
Mixing your own sushi vinegar
For 300 g uncooked sushi rice, stir together 4 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 to 1½ tbsp sugar and 1 tsp salt until everything dissolves. Warming it slightly helps; you don't have to boil the mixture. Pour it over the hot, freshly cooked rice and fold it in with a spatula. The recipe for Sushi rice shows the steps. With it you roll Maki or arrange Chirashi sushi.
Salads, dips and soups
- Sunomono: For the Japanese cucumber salad you mix rice vinegar with a little sugar, salt and soy sauce.
- Ponzu: rice vinegar, citrus juice, soy sauce and dashi. More under Ponzu.
- Dumpling dip: Black vinegar with fine ginger strips goes with Xiao long bao and Jiaozi.
- Soup: The Suan la tang gets its sourness from black vinegar and its heat from white pepper.
Quick pickles
For pickled vegetables, heat 100 ml rice vinegar, 100 ml water, 2 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp salt until the sugar and salt dissolve. Pour the brine over thinly sliced cucumber, radish or carrots in a jar. After an hour in the refrigerator you can eat the vegetables; they keep there for about a week. The mild acidity of rice vinegar makes the vegetables taste fresh without a sour bite.
Add rice vinegar to warm dishes only at the end. Cooked for a long time, it loses its aroma and turns flat.
Substitutes for rice vinegar
- Apple cider vinegar: 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp water and a pinch of sugar replace 4 tbsp rice vinegar. The best substitute for sushi rice and dressings.
- White wine vinegar: in the same ratio, tastes a little sharper.
- For black vinegar: Mix 2 parts apple cider or rice vinegar with 1 part balsamic.
Distilled vinegar and vinegar essence are too sharp. Mirin doesn't replace rice vinegar; it is sweet and hardly sour. You find more substitution amounts under Substituting Asian ingredients.
Buying and storing
You find Japanese rice vinegar in the Asian aisle of larger supermarkets, often ready-made sushi vinegar too. Chinese black vinegar is available at an Asian grocery store and online. When buying, watch the label: “Rice vinegar” is unseasoned, “Seasoned” or “Sushi” means with sugar and salt.
Thanks to its acidity, vinegar keeps a long time. Store it closed, cool and dark. After opening it stays good in the cupboard for many months but slowly loses aroma. A slight cloudiness or a gelatinous film (vinegar mother) is harmless; you can strain it out.