Photo by K’s Clicks

Dish of the Week: Shrubs
Where: The Gibson

As we enter the market season, it’s easy to let your eyes get bigger than your stomach. I always buy too many strawberries and peaches that don’t get eaten. While there are some ways to preserve them, such as jams and freezing, shrubs are a great way to put over the hill fruit to use. Shrubs are fruit vinegars combined with sugar. They make delicious drink mixers that can be used in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The idea of drinking vinegar may seem a bit odd, but on a hot day the piquant flavors can be quite refreshing in the same way a glass of lemonade is. It can also take the place of citrus in cocktails with great results.

The process for making a shrub is simple. Finely chop or macerate your fruit and pour vinegar over the top. Let it steep at room temperature for 24 hours. (Though some recipes call for seven days with occasional mixing.) Strain the resulting mixture and boil it with sugar.

When you want to make a drink with your shrub, you can dilute it at about 1:10 with water, soda water, and/or your booze of choice. The most interesting part is choosing the different variations and combinations for your shrub. Throw in some herbs or spices like basil, mint, ginger or lemongrass for a nuanced flavor. Swap out white sugar for brown sugar or muscovado. Vary your choice of vinegar – apple cider is one of the most natural complements, but balsamic, white balsamic, and white wine vinegars would also make great choices.

If you’re a bit leery at the idea of conducting a chemistry experiment in your kitchen, The Gibson serves up some excellent shrubs with flavors that change daily. Some of the past flavors include strawberry, pineapple, and red pepper. (I highly recommend asking them to do a mix of strawberry and red pepper shrubs.)