Which vinegar should you use for what?

A cupboard full of vinegar can look like a hobby. In practice each one does a slightly different job, and having the right one makes a dressing taste finished instead of sharp. Think of vinegars as acid with a personality: same sour backbone, different accent.

Red wine vinegar: the everyday workhorse

Bold, fruity and assertive. This is the vinegar for:

• Dressings for sturdy leaves, tomatoes, beans and grain salads.
• A few drops in a tomato sauce or a vegetable stew that tastes heavy.
• Marinating roasted peppers, grilled courgettes or aubergine.
• Sweet-sour dishes such as caponata and onions in agrodolce.

Its colour is a downside only when you are making something pale, where it can turn things pinkish.

White wine vinegar: clean and quiet

Lighter and cleaner than red, and colourless. Use it where you want acidity without much flavour of its own:

• Dressings for delicate leaves, cucumbers and fennel.
• Quick pickles where you want the vegetable to taste of itself. The quick pickles page has more.
• Sauces finished with butter, and anything white or pale green.
• A splash in the water for poached eggs, if that is your habit.

Cider vinegar: round and fruity

Made from apples, it is mellower and slightly sweeter than wine vinegars, with an orchard smell. Good for:

• Slaws, especially with cabbage and carrots.
• Dressings for salads with apples, pears, walnuts or blue cheese.
• Pickled red onions.
• Lentil and bean salads that want a softer tang.

Sherry vinegar: the secret weapon

Nutty, deep and mellow, with a hint of something almost woody. It is pricier, but a little goes a long way:

• Splashed over roasted vegetables, especially squash, carrots, beetroot and mushrooms, just as they come out of the oven.
• Dressings for warm salads or salads with toasted nuts.
• Gazpacho and other cold tomato soups.
• Lentil soup, a few drops at the end.

Balsamic: sweet, then sour

The cheap and the costly bottles are very different products; cheap versus expensive balsamic explains what you are paying for. In everyday cooking we use balsamic as a finishing condiment rather than as the main acid:

• A few drops on strawberries, figs or ripe tomatoes.
• Over Parmesan chunks at aperitivo.
• Drizzled over grilled radicchio or roasted onions.
• Reduced in a pan into a sticky glaze for vegetables.

In a basic vinaigrette, a mix of red wine vinegar with a little balsamic gives sweetness without turning the dressing muddy.

Swapping when you don't have the right one

• Red and white wine vinegar swap freely; watch the colour.
• Cider vinegar stands in for either wine vinegar in most dressings.
• Sherry vinegar can be replaced by red wine vinegar with a tiny drop of balsamic.
• Lemon juice can replace vinegar in most salads, with a fresher, more floral result.
• Rice vinegar is milder and gentler; use a little more.

Whatever you use, add acid gradually and taste on a leaf, not the spoon. A dressing that tastes too sharp from the spoon is often just right on salad.

Storing

Vinegar keeps a very long time in a cool, dark cupboard with the lid closed. If a bottle turns cloudy or grows a jelly-like blob, check the label and the producer's advice; when in doubt, start a fresh bottle.