Michael Dietsch, author of “Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times” (The Countryman Press, $24.95), enjoys shrubs as a tool for cooks and bartenders alike “to delight and surprise.”
Shrubs have an ancient history, which Dietsch researched and outlines in his book.
These days, the word “shrub” has come to refer to a vinegar-based syrup of seasonal fruits or vegetables, occasionally enhanced with herbs or spices. Shrubs are particularly popular in bar menus as a way to add acidity to a drink without resorting to the customary citrus flavors of lime and lemon.
“The thing that has amazed me since we published this book is how many people are discovering that vinegar is a great culinary ingredient to use in ways they haven’t imagined,” said Dietsch in an interview from his home in Brooklyn.
Shrubs have become so popular they’re available now as a bottled product. “My family and I were at the San Francisco airport browsing the airport shops and a store that featured artisanal Bay Area goods was selling shrubs. Shrubs in an airport. I never would have expected that.”
Dietsch’s introduction to shrubs came not in an airport but in New Orleans while attending Tales of the Cocktail, an annual industry cocktail festival. “It was a brutally hot and humid day. When I came in off the street to the cocktail reception, I was handled a drink that featured a shrub. I fell in love immediately. It was refreshing and invigorating and it made me feel like I was alive again.”
His addiction spread when he began experimenting with shrubs and his then-pregnant wife fell in love with this drink that allowed her to enjoy a sophisticated adult-tasting beverage while refraining from drinking alcohol. “We like to say shrubs nourished our two children in utero.”
Experiments with shrubs led to his book, and to developing dozens of recipes featuring differing vinegars, all kinds of produce and an assortment of sugars. Pineapple leftover from another project was turned into pineapple-coconut vinegar shrub. Pumpkin left over from making fall pumpkin pies? Another shrub was born.
Nate Shuman, lead bartender for the Georgian Terrace Hotel and “drinks evangelist” at the hotel’s subterranean Proof and Provision, has been tinkering with shrubs for almost six years. “Vinegar is an interesting way to introduce acid to a drink, and shrubs are a great way to incorporate flavors for longer than just a fruit or vegetable’s prime season,” he says.
He enjoys watching his customers try to put their finger on just what’s in their drink and keeps a rotating collection of shrubs behind the bar at all times.
Spring and summer with their bounty of fruits and vegetables are a great time to begin experimenting with shrubs. That half pint of strawberries you didn’t finish with the shortcake? In a few minutes, you can turn it into the base of a delicious shrub. The cucumber that didn’t make it into a salad? Shrub material right there. Blueberries? Blackberries? Raspberries? Tomatoes? Carrots? Any fruit or vegetable that can be juiced can be turned into a shrub.
And don’t restrict your shrubs to a glass. Shrubs make great bases for salad dressings, pan sauces for sauteed meats and even delicious toppings for ice cream.
As Dietsch notes, shrubs are a way to incorporate three or four elements of flavor into a drink or a dish from just one bottle. “It makes the life of a cook or a bartender much easier.”
Create a shrub and how it’s used is up to you.
Consider these shrub recipes as guidelines. Want your shrub a little more on the tart side? Add a bit more vinegar. Want more sweet to tame the acid? Then a little more sugar is in order. And know that your fruits and vegetables will vary in sweetness depending on variety and ripeness, so plan to taste and adjust as you go. How much to dilute your shrub is up to you. Start with 1 part shrub to 4 parts plain or soda water and work from there. All will work well with water, but some marry nicely with fruit juices or flavored sodas. If you want a cocktail, experiment with spirits that will enhance and complement the fruit or vegetable.
Blackberry-Lime or Strawberry-Balsamic Shrub
For Blackberry-Lime Shrub:
1 1/2 cups blackberries
1 cup raw cane sugar
Zest of 4 limes
1 cup apple cider vinegar
For Strawberry-Balsamic Shrub:
1 1/2 cups diced strawberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
In a medium bowl combine fruit and sugar. For blackberry shrub, add lime zest. Cover bowl and refrigerate at least 2 hours, up to one day.
Strain fruit and juices through a sieve into a small bowl. Press on fruit to extract all juice. Save the fruit to top yogurt or ice cream. Add vinegar to the sweetened fruit juice and stir. Pour mixture into a clean container and cover. Refrigerate one week before serving and shake container before each use. Makes: 1 cup Blackberry-Lime Shrub or 1 1/2 cups Strawberry-Balsamic Shrub.
— Adapted from “Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times” by Michael Dietsch (The Countryman Press, $24.95).
Blackberry-Lime Shrub: Per 1-tablespoon serving: 62 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 15 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, trace sodium.
Strawberry-Balsamic Shrub: Per 1-tablespoon serving: 21 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 5 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, trace sodium.
Carrot-Ginger Shrub
We offer two ways to make this shrub. One with a food processor and the other with a juicer.
2 pounds carrots
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup granulated sugar
In a food processor:
In the bowl of a food processor, combine roughly chopped carrots and ginger. Pulse until finely chopped. Add vinegar and puree. Pour mixture into a non-reactive container and cover. Store in a cool, dark place for 2 days. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain mixture into a non-reactive bowl. Whisk in sugar and stir until sugar dissolves. Pour shrub into a clean container and cover. Refrigerate and shake container before each use. Makes: 1 cup
With a juicer:
Juice carrots and ginger. Move juice to a non-reactive container and add vinegar. Cover and store in a cool, dark place for 2 days. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain mixture into a non-reactive bowl. Whisk in sugar and stir until sugar dissolves. Pour shrub into a clean container and cover. Refrigerate and shake container before each use. Makes: 1 1/2 cups
— Adapted from “Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times” by Michael Dietsch (The Countryman Press, $24.95).
Per 1-tablespoon serving: 50 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 12 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 12 milligrams sodium.
Plum, Peppercorn and Bay Leaf Shrub
1 1/2 pounds plums, pitted and crushed (about 5 large plums)
3/4 cup turbinado sugar
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 bay leaves
10 black peppercorns
5 allspice berries, lightly crushed
In a medium bowl combine plums and sugar. Cover bowl and refrigerate one day.
In a small bowl, combine vinegar, bay leaves, peppercorns and allspice berries. Cover and allow to steep 1 day.
Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain plum mixture into a non-reactive bowl. Press on fruit to extract all juice. Save the fruit, which will taste similar to a tart chutney, and serve with grilled chicken or pork. Strain vinegar mixture into bowl with plum juice and whisk together. Pour shrub into a clean container and cover. Refrigerate one week before use. Shake container before each use. Makes: 1 1/2 cups
— Adapted from “Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times” by Michael Dietsch (The Countryman Press, $24.95).
Per 1-tablespoon serving: 41 calories (percent of calories from fat, 3), trace protein, 10 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, trace sodium.
Cucumber Shrub
With its combination of vinegars, lower level of sugar and bit of salt, this shrub tilts over to the savory side. A bonus is that it’s ready to consume as soon as it’s made.
2 large cucumbers, ends removed, roughly chopped
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse cucumber until finely chopped. Add white wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar and puree. Add sugar and salt and process until sugar is dissolved. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain mixture into a clean container. Refrigerate and shake container before each use. Makes: 3 1/2 cups
— Adapted from “Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times” by Michael Dietsch (The Countryman Press, $24.95).
Per 1-tablespoon serving: 9 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 2 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 34 milligrams sodium.
Nate Shuman’s Purple Chupacabra
Shuman named this drink after a mythical animal of Mexican folklore and created it to feature mineral, peppery and tropical flavors. He says one of the keys to making this drink properly is to shake the mixture “crazy stupid hard to get a deep chill and break the ice into small chunks.”
1 1/2 ounces Tapatio Reposado Tequila
1 1/4 ounces Fennel-Blueberry Shrub (see recipe)
1 ounce Rothman & Winter Creme de Violette
3 dashes Scrappys Orange Bitters
Ice
Mint and pink peppercorns, for garnish
Chill a tall glass.
In a shaker, combine tequila, shrub, creme de violette and bitters. Add ice cubes and shake vigorously until drink is chilled and ice is in small chunks. Pour into chilled glass and garnish with mint and pink peppercorns. Serves: 1
— Adapted from a recipe by Nate Shuman of Proof and Provision, Atlanta.
Per serving: 258 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 26 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 3 milligrams sodium.
Fennel-Blueberry Shrub
1 1/2 cups blueberries (about 6 ounces)
1 cup 1/4-inch slices lime (about 2 medium limes)
2 1/2 cups Bragg’s apple cider vinegar
1 mounded tablespoon fennel seed
1 tablespoon pink peppercorns
2 cups water
2 cups raw sugar
In a large glass bowl, layer blueberries and limes. Add vinegar. Weigh down fruit with a saucer and a plastic bag filled with water so the fruit stays submerged. Cover and let sit in a cool dark place for one week. Strain liquid through a large mesh strainer into a large bowl or half gallon container and forcefully press fruit to extract all juice.
In a small skillet, toast fennel seed over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and put into a quart jar. Add peppercorns.
Heat water to just below boiling and pour over spices. Steep 20 minutes. Then strain and add sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Pour syrup into container with blueberry-lime vinegar and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate where it should keep for several months. Makes: 6 cups
— Adapted from a recipe by Nate Shuman of Proof and Provision, Atlanta.
Per 2-tablespoon serving: 42 calories (percent of calories from fat, 1), trace protein, 10 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, trace fat (no saturated fat), no cholesterol, 1 milligram sodium.
