Flavored vodkas appear to be having a bit of a “moment.” Walk through the liquor section of a grocery market, and you’ll find vodka flavors like strawberry, lemon, whipped cream, cupcake… even bacon! (have mercy…) Whether or not you wish to experiment with the bounty of new vodka flavors, one thing is for certain – people are becoming more and more creative with their cocktails.
When it comes to any recipe, alcohol-related or not, I usually prefer to start from scratch. In terms of cocktails, rather than buying a flavored vodka, I thought it would be more fun to infuse the vodka with flavor myself. My friend Ashley walked me through the basics, and together we experimented with a few flavors. The process couldn’t be more simple. Just place your natural flavoring– citrus peels, strawberries, herbs, vanilla bean, or whatever you like from the list below– in a jar. Add the vodka and secure the lid. Give the mixture a good shake a few times a day. In 4-5 days, you’ll have naturally flavored vodka, which you can use in a variety of cocktail recipes.
For this post, we tried orange peel, basil and vanilla bean. They turned out fabulous, but don’t let those flavors limit your creativity. If berries are your thing, add at least a cup (or more) of whole, well-washed berries to your vodka. Same goes for pretty much any other fruit. Pineapple, melon and mango should be cut into chunks. And if you like spice, try adding some whole chili peppers to the jar – your bloody mary will never be the same.
I wanted to share this infusion method with you this week, so you have time to make some lovely infused vodkas for Purim. If you strain the flavored vodka into a pretty bottle, as we have here, they make a fun added “bonus” gift in a grownup Mishloach Manot basket. Flavored vodka is also a lovely “host gift” for any Purim parties you might be attending. In the coming days, I will share some cocktail recipes using these flavored vodkas, which you can print out and give along with the vodka. Stay tuned!
Note: To make this recipe gluten free, use a certified GF vodka made from potatoes.
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How to Infuse Vodka with Flavor
Ingredients
- 3-4 cups vodka
- Funnel
- Mesh strainer
- Quart jar with lid
- 3-4 cup capacity glass bottle with lid or cork
Optional Infusion Ingredients:
- Choose one ingredient per 3-4 cups vodka:
- 2 oranges or lemons
- 1-2 large sprigs of basil or another favorite herb (rosemary, mint, etc.)
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1 cup clean berries
- 1 cup fruit cleaned and cut into chunks (pineapple, apple, melon, mango, etc.)
- 4-5 chili peppers
Instructions
- First, prepare the flavoring/infusion ingredient you will be using in your infused vodka. Make sure any ingredient you plan on using is carefully rinsed clean. Citrus peels and waxy fruit should be thoroughly scrubbed clean with a mild natural detergent before proceeding.
- If using oranges or lemons, use a peeler to peel the colorful part of the peel from the fruit, leaving the white part (the pith) behind. The pith can lead to bitterness, so you only want to use the thin outer layer of the citrus peel.
- If using a vanilla bean, slice the bean from top to bottom in one long slit, keeping it attached at the upper stem, so that the bean looks like a large V-shape.
- If using chili peppers, make a long thin slit into the skin of each pepper. Do not cut too deep or wide; the seeds need to remain in side the peppers. Just a simple slit will do it. Apples and other fruits with thin peels can be used, peeled or unpeeled, as long as they are clean with as little wax as possible on the exterior. Melons and other fruits with tough outer rinds should be sliced from their rinds prior to infusion.
- Take a clean quart jar with a wide mouth and place your infusion ingredient inside. Pour 3-4 cups of vodka over the top of the infusion ingredient. You will want to measure the capacity of the bottle you'll be using at the end of the infusion process for storing the vodka, so you know how much it will hold.
- For the process photographed here, the bottles I'll be using for storage hold about 3 cups each. That means I'll be infusing 3 cups of vodka in the jar. You can use the original bottle that the vodka came in, if you wish, for storage-- just set it aside during the infusion process. You can also use jars to store the vodka, if you wish, but bottles tend to be more user-friendly when making cocktails.
- Seal the jar with a lid. Place in a cool, dark area for 4-5 days to infuse. Here, we've done three separate infusions-- orange, vanilla, and basil.
- Once daily, shake the vodka to speed infusion process. After 3 days, you can begin to test the flavor of your infusion. This is really a "to taste" kind of thing-- if it tastes right and smells right, with the essence of the flavoring you have chosen, then you can move ahead to the straining process.
- Our vanilla infusion was ready in 3 days; the other infusions took a bit longer. You want the vodka to have the flavor of the ingredient you've chosen, but you don't want that flavor to overwhelm.
- Once the vodka is infused, you will want to strain it into a bottle for storing and/or gift giving. I used these lovely decorative Italian bottles (link in the post above). Use a funnel and a wire mesh strainer, or multiple layers of cheesecloth, to strain the liquor into the bottle. This straining process will rid the vodka of the infusion ingredients, as well as any larger particles that might have accumulated during infusion.
- If you've infused large or heavy ingredients, like chunks of fruit, you may want to fish them out before straining to avoid making a mess. And if you snack on a few of the fruit pieces, like infused pineapple, I won't tell anybody... just make sure you have a designated driver on hand. 😉
- Seal the bottles. If giving as gifts, you can use decorative tags and twine to label the type of vodka you've infused. Here we used lovely wooden tags with natural twine (links in the post above).
Voila! Lovely infused vodka for gifting or making your own homemade cocktails.
Try using a nylon steeping bag made for homebrewing, they work well.
Just a question, is it possible to re-use the fruits/veggies you use to infuse for the next batch?
I would not reuse – they lose a lot of their essence during the first infusion, you’ll have better results with fresh ingredients.
Can you please share on how to make whipped cream vodka. I saw a post saying to use Dream Whip, but how much and how much of the vanilla infused vodka? Thank you.
Hi Georgia, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. We have never experimented with making whipped cream vodka, so I’m unable to advise. I would personally not recommend adding a powdery substance, as I don’t think it would mix in well. Perhaps someone else here has tried?
I make and cook with Bacon Vodka. I just put the bacon drippings in a jar with some really high strength vodka I bought in Ft. Collins Colorado. They make some great alcohols in this town. I add a table spoon or two to whatever is in my Hot Pot and so many other dishes. The fat flavors and I do not strain it. Put anything you want in the Vodka and have fun with it.
Any thoughts on what vodka to use as the base? Do you find it really matters that much, when the goal is basically to have a flavoured alcohol to use for cocktails etc?
Going to give this a go next week. Chocolate first!
Hi Richard, Tori’s assistant Ashley here! Feel free to use your preferred vodka in this recipe.
Cook with it and be amazed.
I made some orange infused vodka and rum not that long ago. A few weeks after I filtered the fruit out, I went to serve it – and discovered that what had previously been a delicious orange drink had become very tart! The same thing happened to the citrus one I made (a variety of citrus fruits). Any ideas on why or how to make it better?
Hi Elle, Tori’s assistant Ashley here! I’m not quite sure why this would have happened, my only suggestion is to be sure that you are only using the peel and that you remove the peel from the vodka as soon as you achieve your desired flavor. Hope this helps!
If you have any pith (the white spongy part of a citrus peel) left on the outer layer of a citrus peel then that can make things bitter, whether it is flavoring vodka or anything else. They have special peelers and zesters which are designed to only remove the zest and this can help greatly.
Has anyone discovered how to make whipped cream vodka??? Thank you
You use whipped cream powder (Dream Whip is one)
How would I infuse vodka with chocolate whipped cream?
Can’t buy it in the uk 🙁