Balsamic Reduction

This is one of those 'cheffy' things that works well at home – it's fairly easy to make, even though the kitchen will stink of vinegar - or you can even buy it pre-made in big supermarkets. Not only does it taste good but it looks good too. Home made will definitely taste a lot better as the commercial preparation is really a sugar syrup of the vinegar, yours will be a concentrate.

Don't hurry the final simmering of the reduction; the point is to evaporate off most of the acetic acid in the vinegar and to reduce down the natural sugars in the vinegar to form a plate/food coating consistency at room temperature. The boiling point of acetic acid is 118 degrees centigrade, so it will evaporate best when the balsamic sugar syrup has reached a good sugar density (as then the temperature will rise above that of boiling water).
It's best to stay in the kitchen during the whole reduction process of about 45 minutes to avoid burning the reduction, or worse it catching fire!
Many chefs add a lot of sugar to the vinegar to increase the yield; don't it will just taste much less good.

Ingredients (Yields 100-150ml)

1 l balsamic vinegar (normal quality, nothing aged or fancy)
1 wide, heavy bottomed pan (even a frying pan, I use an old non stick wok)

Method

Boil the vinegar in the pan over a high heat until ½ of it has been evaporated.

Turn down the heat to medium and boil a further ½ away.

Turn down the heat to low and let it simmer away. After a bit, it will start to get very vinegary at this stage, an indication that bit is not far from being done. It is not possible to give precise timings as it all depends on how much grape must (i.e. sugar) has been added to the vinegar when it was made.

It is ready when it looks syrupy. Lift a little onto a plate that you have kept in the freezer and if it goes thick and syrupy and stays in a trail it is done. In order to see a picture of what the reduction should look like, click on this link: feta, watermelon, basil and mint salad

Cool until tepid and then pour into a squeezy bottle (plastic bottle with a small nozzle), or failing that a ketchup bottle with a nozzle. Keep at room temperatures; keeps indefinitely.

(Note: if when tepid it turns out to be too liquid, then continue cooking, if too solid then add a little water. The bottle and its contents can be warmed briefly in the microwave if the reduction is slightly too stiff).