I’ve been meaning to make my own apple scrap vinegar for ages. I had a go last year, but it didn’t go according to plan and I ended up chucking it in the compost. With the abundance of apples at this time of year, September is the perfect time to make apple crumble and, so that nothing goes to waste, why not try making apple scrap vinegar with the peel and cores?

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Apple scrap vinegar has multiple uses. It can be used in household cleaning and as a conditioning rinse after using bar shampoo to prevent a waxy build-up. It can also be used in cooking; a dash can add a tangy flavour to soup, it can replace lemon juice in recipes if necessary and it can also be used in salad dressings.

There are recipes for apple scrap vinegar on Treading My Own Path, Homegrown & Foraged and The Zero Waste Chef websites. I won’t repeat the recipe again here, but I will mention a few tips:

• I forgot to stir mine for a few days and it went mouldy on top. The first time I tried to make apple scrap vinegar and this happened, I thought it had gone wrong and I chucked it out. This time I just took the mouldy bits off the top, gave it a good stir and it was fine.
• Putting a small jar in the top of the main jar will help to keep the apple scraps below the surface and stop them going mouldy in the first place.
• If you make it in a clip-top jar or put a lid on, you’ll need to open it a couple of times a day to let the gas out. It’s better to leave the lid off and secure some fabric over the lid with an elastic band. This prevents fruit flies getting in but allows the gas out.

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There are lots more tips on the links above and they happen to be three of my favourite blogs, so make sure you have a good read. If you have a go at making apple scrap vinegar, let me know how it goes in the comments, and tell me your favourite uses.