Verjuice, Verjus or ‘Vert jus’ derives from the French ‘vert jus’ or ‘verjus’ and literally means, “green juice”. Vigorous vineyard growth demands heavy ‘green harvesting’ or thinning of the excess fruit of premium red and/or white grape varieties which takes place half-way through the growing process. Gently pressed, these half-ripe bunches of wine grapes yield a juice that is high in acid and low in sugar that is prevented from fermenting through rapid stabilization. These thinnings can often account for up to 50% of the total crop which is usually discarded to concentrate the flavours in the remaining bunches in favour of making wine.

It is an injustice to assume that verjuice is used only as a substitute for lemon juice and vinegar. It is so much more. It is, in fact, a premium, natural flavour enhancer that will add unimaginable depth of flavour and richness to your cooking; a zesty, elegant, delicate culinary condiment that can be used for a range of dishes as diverse as the inventive cooks imagination.

However, because verjuice shares the same acid base as wine, it will not distort the essence of wine, the way vinegar or lemon juice would and thus it is the perfect alternative to use in cooking when quality wines are being served with a meal.

Verjuice heightens the flavours of any fish, chicken, game, red meat, vegetable and fruit dish. It is ideal for deglazing pans for a deliciously rich, reduced, syrupy “jus” – which is then diluted with a little stock or water; it adds flavourful complexity to your vinaigrettes, dressings, syrups, sauces, gravies and reductions and a zesty balance to mayonnaise, marinades, pesto, pot-roasts, preserves and even pickling juices for fish ceviche, onions, veggies, etc.

Verjuice is also delicious as a healthy, non-alcoholic cordial, diluted with still or sparkling water, neat as an aperitif sloshed over crushed ice or, as a mixer for cocktails and sours (see Verjuice Cocktails).

Verjuice has an affinity with nut oils and combines particularly well with walnut and hazelnut oils and, of course, emulsifies superbly with ground nut and olive oils. Pumpkin Seed and Sesame oil combinations are also sublime but emulsification is not totally integrated with these oils – so shake together vigorously and pour over food immediately.

Verjuice must be refrigerated after opening and will keep for between 1 to 3 months depending on fridge temperature.

During the internationalisation of the culinary arts in the 1980s, verjuice made a dynamic comeback and is currently enjoying a growing world-wide revival. Among the new proponents are Australian restaurateurs and wine farmers who led a revival of this classic condiment.

In the forefront is Maggie Beer, an Australian restaurateur, chef, game bird and fruit and wine farmer who re-discovered Verjuice in ancient writings during the early 1980’s and launched her first commercial vintage in the mid-1990’s. Maggie is the author of several cookery books including “Cooking with Verjuice”.

Her commercial success with the product has led to other wine farmers making their own versions of Verjuice and Australia is undoubtedly the largest producer of Verjuice in the world today with South Africa a close second. However, it remains an ellusive product to obtain and is sold in very few specialist food and gourmet outlets throughout the world other than in South Africa, where it is widely sold in most high-end supermarkets and specialist food stores.

In 1999 historians, restaurateurs and chefs in Perigord joined forces to reinstate the tradition of making Verjuice – and are now doing so in small commercial quantities. However, a visit to Burgundy in 2001 revealed a total ignorance of the condiment by food stores and vinoteques alike – despite the mustard producers in Dijon, the main city in the region, using it in copious quantities in the famous Dijon mustard.

Verjuice was a popular Medieval/ Renaissance condiment but in reality, it was probably in ancient “Mesopotamia” (roughly in the area of modern-day Iraq), where grapes originated, that it was probably first made and used – the first wine having been produced there circa 4000 BC.

Romans brought grapes to the Mediterranean region and as gourmands, it is believed that verjuice was enjoyed widely throughout the wine-producing European countries. Made by virtually every grape-growing household with access to grapes, the art of producing and using verjuice for both culinary and medicinal purposes was lost during the Middle Ages when the Crusades introduced lemons to France and other Mediterranean wine producing countries.

In 1865, it was Burgundian, Jean Naigeon who replaced vinegar in Dijon mustard with verjuice, and so, it became the “secret” ingredient that gives this sophisticated condiment the smooth, mild acidity for which it is so famous.

Produced in France, Italy and Spain from unripe grapes, in England, verjuice was made from crab Apples and even plums. Indeed, it can be produced from almost any “green” fruit, but today, grapes are the obvious choice due to the convenience of modern-day processing equipment.

Inspirations….

• Make this deliciously zesty syrup yourself by boiling together 1 cup Verjuice with 1 cup white sugar. Reduce by about a third and allow to cool.
• Poach pears, apples, nectarines or quinces in 1 cup verjuice, 1 cup sugar, a stick of cinnamon and a clove or star anise for an even deeper, fruitier flavoured syrup to pour over the stewed fruit.
• Swirl over vanilla ice-cream, waffles, pancakes, steamed puddings, tea cakes and even your breakfast muesli with yoghurt.
• Serve with scones and cream.
• Pour over a mound of firm mascarpone cheese and surround with dried apricots, peaches and pears to dunk into the delicious concoction of syrup and cheese.
• Serve in a small side dish with deep-fried camembert.
• Drizzle over halved poached peaches, pears or apples stuffed with blue-cheese mousse and sprinkle with toasted nuts.
• Slice a large, chilled camembert through the middle to create two layers. “Ice” the bottom layer with mascarpone and sprinkle with chopped, toasted walnuts or almonds and dried or preserved fruit. Pour over a little Verjuice syrup. Place top layer of camembert gently on top and repeat “icing”, topping it off with nuts, fruit and syrup as for bottom layer. Slice into “cake” wedges and serve with water biscuits and more preserved fruit, e.g., figs or Clementines.
• Mix with a little olive oil and brush onto roast chicken 5 minutes before the end of cooking to caramelise the skin and onto chicken portions – just before the end of grilling.
• Blend syrup with your favourite mustard. Baste onto pork fillets and chops during grilling. Add a little brown sugar to the mixture and you have a delicious glaze for the Christmas gammon.
• Blend syrup with Dijon (or other) mustard, top-up with olive oil, thin with verjuice and/or water, season with freshly ground black pepper (no salt unless you think it necessary). Delicious drizzled over salads, oven-roasted veggies, boiled potatoes, pumpkin and butternut chunks.

Verjuice is first and foremost a flavour enhancer, adding richness and flavourful complexity to all your cooking while its singular balance of gentle acidity and intrinsic sweetness places it in the league of premium, natural food enhancers.

Verjuice is also an elegant, delicate alternative to both vinegar (acetic acid) and lemon juice (citric acid) and can be used in larger quantities than either of these in cooking. It adds zest to your food, avoiding the sharpness of both vinegar and lemon juice and therefore, does not mask flavours, but rather, enhances them.

Verjuice heightens the flavours of any fish, chicken, game, red meat, vegetable and fruit dishes. It is ideal for deglazing, dressings, syrups, sauces, marinades, gravies and reductions. It has an affinity with nut oils, e.g., Walnut, Hazelnut and Peanut oil and emulsifies well with Olive Oil.

Combine verjuice with any meat, fish and vegetable stocks, wine-based sauces, balsamic, fruit and wine vinegars and adds a flavour lift to butter and cream sauces.

With the swing to more health conscious products, verjuice is a popular alternative to the more stringent acids that are traditionally used. Indeed, the magic of its natural versatility will revolutionise your cooking, making verjuice an indispensable ingredient in your kitchen.

Verjuice is suitable for children, the elderly, convalescents and pregnant women.

After opening, the bottle should be stored in the fridge and will last for 1 to 3 months depending on the temperature of your fridge.

One of the primary advantages of using verjuice in cooking from a culinary and gourmand’s perspective is undoubtedly the fact that Verjuice shares the same acid-base as wine and is, therefore, the natural alternative to lemon juice and vinegar when quality wines are served with a meal.

Verjuice cleanses the palette and opens the taste-buds (just like a glass of bubbly would do) and so, prepares the mouth for the delicious flavours of the food. Lemon juice and vinegar which contain citric and acetic acid, close up the taste buds, and consequently, inhibits the flavours you will experience in the wine that accompanies your meal.

Set aside your roast/fries/grills and any vegetables that you have cooked with the meat.

Remove excess fat from the pan, leaving approximately 1 teaspoonful. Over a medium heat, add 225 ml verjuice and using a wooden spoon, scrape up the brown bits, incorporating them into the Verjuice.

Bring to the boil and reduce until jus begins to coat the spoon. Add stock or water to thin if necessary and stir in a knob of butter for richness and shine.

Tip: Resist thickening the jus.

Ingredients:

1 x 100g packet Sun Dried Tomatoes

1 Sun Dried Chillies

2 mozzarella, the best you can afford, drained

100ml verjuice

100ml olive oil

2 large cooked beetroot

20 black olives, halved & stoned

4 handfuls of rocket, washed

1 tbsp sugar

salt & black pepper to taste

HOW TO COOK IT

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6.

2. Cut each mozzarella into about 8 wedges or chunks, toss these with the olive oil, half of the verjuice, chilli and a little salt, mix well and leave to marinate at room temperature for at least half an hour.

3. Cut each beetroot into 6 wedges, put these into a small tray with the remaining verjuice and olive oil, the sugar and salt and pepper and place in the oven for 25 minutes until they are caramalised and darkening around the edges.

4. This done, remove the beetroot from the oven and let it cool in its own juices.

5. Meanwhile, chop the sun dried tomatoes roughly and mix with the mozzarella. Add the olives and the rocket and season well (you won’t need much salt, but plenty of black pepper is great).

6. Spoon the beetroot and its juices across a large serving dish then scatter with the mozzarella and sun dried tomato mixture, making sure you add all the juices that have collected in the bottom of the bowl.

Ingredients:

70g currants

80ml (1/3 cup) verjuice

125ml (½ cup) olive oil

3 garlic cloves, crushed

¼ teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika

¼ cup torn basil leaves

8 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise 4mm thick

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

2 spring onions, thinly sliced

Method:

1. Combine currants and verjuice, cover and leave 2 hours or overnight.

2. Combine olive oil, paprika and garlic. Season and then reserve half.

3. Preheat grill to high.

4. Lay zucchini in single layer batches, brush with the olive oil mixture and grill for 2 minutes on each side or until golden. Transfer to serving platter.

5. Combine reserved olive oil mixture, white wine vinegar, currants and verjuice to form a dressing.

6. Scatter basil and spring onions over zucchini then dress with verjuice and currant mixture. Serve immediately.

Recipe: For 2 persons

Ingredients:

For the marinade:

2 cloves of garlic, peeled & finely cut up

2 stalks of lemongrass, peeled & thinly sliced

2,5 cm of fresh ginger, peeled & finely cut up

1 teaspoon of sea salt

3 tablespoons of fresh coriander leaves ( cilantro ), finely cut up

3 tablespoons of fresh mint leaves, finely cut up

40 ml of fruity olive oil

For the meat:

8 lamb cutlets, I removed the bones & fat & cut the meat loose from the bone

1 large plastic Ziplock bag

For the vegetables:

3 sweet bell peppers: I used 2 medium red & 1 yellow, cleaned, pits & white bits removed

2 large sweet onions, peeled & cut into wedges

3 fat cloves of garlic, peeled & finely cut up

100 ml of Verjuice

a few grinds of black pepper

a pinch of sea salt

Potatoes for 2 persons, peeled & cut up into 2, placed into cold water

Method:

1. First, make the marinade for the meat. Take a pestle & mortar. If you do not have that, take a foodprocessor.
2. Add the chopped up garlic, the cut up lemongrass, the cut up ginger & sea salt in the pestle & mortar. Using the pestle, grind into a rough paste.
3. Add the chopped up coriander & mint leaves. Grind again well. Stir in the olive oil, bit by bit until you have a looser paste. I used 40 ml because I had too. Maybe, you do not have to use all the oil, just wait & see if you need to put in extra.
4. Clean your lamb cutlets, if necessary & place into the Ziplock bag. Pour the marinade into the bag. Divide the marinade well over the cutlets!!. Close the plastic bag & massage the meat on the outside with your hands. Place the closed bag into a bowl in case of leakage. Put into the fridge for about 1,5 hours. You can marinate the meat up to 2 or 3 hours.
5. When you are ready to make dinner, 40 minutes before eating, take the bag with the meat in it out of the fridge.
6. Preheat the oven to 200 ° C. for 10 minutes. Take a large bowl & place all the vegetables in it. Mix well with a spoon. Now, add the 100 ml of Verjuice. Mix well. Pour those vegetables into a baking dish, evenly divided. Add a pich of sea salt & a few grinds of black pepper. Mix well. Place into the hot oven for 20 to 30 minutes. After 15 minutes, stir the vegetables round with a spoon to prevent burning on the top. The vegetables will be cooked trough after 20 to 30 minutes. So, check that out.
7. In the meantime, I cook the potatoes. They take about 15 to 20 minutes.
8. After 15 minutes, until the potatoes & vegetables are nearly ready, I preheat a large heat & place my large grill- pan on it. When hot, add the marinated lamb pieces. Put some marinade on top of the meat. Cook for about 2 minutes per side until ” rosé ” on the inside. Check that out by cutting 1 trough. The meat has to be rosé otherwise it will be tough & hard! You want moist & delicate meat! Put the meat off the grill & put it into a warm plate & cover to keep warm. Turn the heat off. Let it stand for about 5 minutes.
9. Now, plate up!!