What is the Best Rice Vinegar – Top 5 Best Rice Vinegars

The secret seasoning to your favorite salads, marinades, and sushi rice has got some real Value. Get to know what is the best rice vinegar. In this post I will try to answer the question, but not only. I would like to introduce you also types of rice vinegar and there are at least a few.

Also, I will say a few words about the health benefits that result from consuming rice vinegar and much more. So I invite you to read 🙂

The Roots of Rice Vinegar

As early as 5000 BC, rice vinegar has already seasoned the food of the Babylonians. However, written records show that around 1250 BC was the high time it was used in Israel.

It was only around the year 794 when its usage was notable when Samurai warriors in Japan, used rice vinegar as tonic because they believed it gave them immense power and strength.

True enough, recent studies and clinical observations have proven several health benefits of using rice vinegar. Due to this, a lot of rice vinegars came out to offer such medicinal value and food seasonings.

Rice vinegar is a type of vinegar made out of fermented rice. It can be traced back in the culture, tradition, and history of Chinese, Japanese and Koreans. Here you can learn more about the history of rice.

Types of Rice Vinegar

Rice vinegar is made by fermenting the rice sugar into alcohol first and then into acid. Making rice vinegar takes a lot of patience and work before you can have the perfect mild, distinct, and sweet flavor. The rice variety also matters when it comes to making rice vinegar like the following:

• White Rice Vinegar – Almost clear in color (sometimes pale yellow). This is the most common rice vinegar we often see at the groceries.
• Seasoned Rice Vinegar- This is the same white rice vinegar however added with salt and sugar to give extra flavor. Usually used in sushi rice, and as salad dressings.
• Brown Rice Vinegar – Made from unpolished brown rice, and claimed to be rich in nutrients as compared to other rice vinegars.
• Red Rice Vinegar – A combination of red yeast rice but also fermented and occasionally added with barley and sorghum. Mostly used in many Chinese dishes because of its sweet, salty, and sour flavor.
• Black Rice Vinegar- Made from black glutinous rice, often dark in color and with “smoky” flavor usually used in Chinese stir-fried dishes and dipping sauces.

Popular Health Benefits

Ages hence, vinegar has already been used in different medicinal uses and surgeries. Rice vinegars are believed to have lesser acidity compared to white distilled vinegars so it has been proven to be friendlier to our bodies. Because rice vinegars are all organic and have natural process, there are overwhelming health benefits too.

• Antiseptic properties- It can kill a large number of bacteria in any given medical conditions. The perfect rice for this is Brown rice.
• Reduce Blood Pressure – Rice vinegar is sodium-free perfect for those people suffering from high blood pressure. Low sodium intake reduces the risk of high blood pressure.
• Rich in Antioxidants – Rice is rich in phenolic compounds which protect the plant against UV light, so increasing food intake that are rich in this kind of compound, reduces the risk of getting cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, and heart diseases.
• Improves Digestion – The acid found in rice vinegars are tummy-friendly which aids in digestion. It helps you absorb more nutrients like potassium, calcium, and other vitamins.
• Eliminates fatigue – Rice vinegar is also rich in amino acids that effectively fight the lactic acid development in the blood that can cause fatigue, stiffness, and irritability. Having moderate amount of rice vinegar keeps you energetic and boosts the immune system.
• Liver-Friendly – Studies show that brown rice vinegar can fight potential liver tumors.

Don’t Confuse with Rice Wine

There are different types of rice vinegars today and are sometimes confused with rice wines. Although, rice wine and rice vinegar are both made from fermented rice, the process is quite different.

Rice wine undergoes fermentation of the glutinous rice wherein the yeast transforms the sugars into alcohol. If you go to the groceries, you might see rice wine vinegar which is actually known as the rice vinegar.

Uses of Rice Vinegars

Rice vinegar can be used in a variety of dishes. It is popularly used as a seasoning to most Asian cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese and Koreans.

But due to its health benefits, rice vinegars are now being integrated with different popular dishes worldwide and had been added to new cuisines as well.

These are the popular dishes that use rice vinegar:

• Pickles
• Sushi Rice
• Cocktails
• Marinades
• Stir fired dishes
• Dipping Sauces
• Salad Dressings

Apart from its kitchen uses, rice vinegar can be used as cleaning agents too! Yes, since it is made up of acids, it can do the following:

• Facial toner – combined with essential oils, you can use rice vinegars as toners for a fresh and young-looking skin
• Whitening agent – rice vinegar and lemon oils makes the perfect partner in cleaning dirty white clothes and bringing back its brightness and softness.

Top 5 Best Rice Vinegar

Looking for the best rice vinegar depends on how you will use it in the first place, if you would like to add it on your next cuisines or other purposes then here are the top 5 best rice vinegars:

1. Marukan Seasoned Rice Vinegar – Made from organic rice seasoned with sugar and salt
2. Marukan Unseasoned Rice Vinegar – Made from organic rice only diluted with water to 4% acidity
3. Nakano Natural Rice Vinegar – Gluten-free rice vinegar made with all natural and kosher ingredients
4. Mizkan Pure Unpolished Rice Vinegar – Made from Japanese unpolished brown rice and natural ingredients
5. Sempio Drinking Rice Vinegar – Korean made naturally aged black rice vinegar with natural pomegranate flavor

You can also play around the different types of rice vinegar and other ingredients to come up with a new dipping sauce, salad dressing, sweet and sour vinegar, and more. Be creative on your next cooking with rice vinegar!

Oh, one more thing. If you have some talent to do different culinary things, the video below should interest you. How to make rice vinegar in a homemade way. 🙂

Takeaways

Nature has its own way of surprising us with great health benefits from the simplest and littlest of things. No one has ever thought that rice vinegars can offer great health benefits but it does. In this post you have learned the origins of rice vinegar as well as its different types and uses and health benefits.

You have also learned the top 5 rice vinegar available today so you have all the power to choose, so choose to be healthy.

Ashley Woodward

I’m currently 31 and based out of sunny Sacramento, CA. I’m a mother of 2 beautiful kids, a certified nutritionist, and a fitness buff that’s spent years dialing in the perfect diet. My goal here is to help as many people as possible learn about the benefits of eating vegan, and want to share my passion with other people who also have a love for cooking and trying new recipes.