Vanilla is a wonderful spice versatile spice that is used, both in sweet desserts and in salty meals, as well as in beverages. It is also used in perfumery, in the manufacture of cosmetics and even in pharmacology because its applications are numerous.

If its cost has already slowed down your hedonistic explorations, our prices will ensure that only the limits of your imagination are a brake on its use.

How to recognize the quality of vanilla:

1. Before you buy a pod or several vanilla pods, smell it. Whatever its origin, it must give off a pleasant and appetizing scent. Reject the pods without odor or having an olive core smell. They are immature pods or spoiled by poor storage.

2. Reject vanilla that has a tart or vinegar smell: they have not been refined and will have fermented. Do not try to use them to make extract, it will be spoiled.

Discard vanilla that appears to be wetted or covered with a large amount of oil, it may havebeen coated with vegetable oil. A well-prepared vanilla shows the presence of vanilla essential oil on the surface (especially at the feet),but it is a very fragrant oil,so very distinct from vegetable oil. In addition, this essential oil becomes resinous on good quality vanilla. Also beware of vanilla from new exporting countries, they pull the essential oil out of the pod with a vacuum packaging process, but this process reduces the pod's ability to fight mold and other bacterial damage and does not replace refining.

4. Reject pods that have traces of white mold on the surface. You will not miss them when they have large white or yellow and sparkling plates, but you must be attentive to the white dots that may appear on the foot or head hook before it has become unrecoverable.

5. If they are packaged in a modified atmosphere like our packages (carbon dioxide (CO₂₎ and nitrogen (N₂₎- odorless, colorless, accepted by the organic certification), they can display a humidity of 35 or even 38% and offer great fragrances; but in bulk avoid them unless you are used to keeping vanilla of this quality or unless you have an immediate plan. Because of our extremely changing climate, vanilla conservation is the number one challenge for vanilla specialists in Quebec. Also, if you buy vanilla in bulk, do not take the chance to lose it and choose them a little drier but flexible enough to be wrapped around a finger without breaking.

6. Finally, it is better to use a dry vanilla rather than a vanilla that has moldy. The dry and brit breaking vanilla forgotten in the bottom of your wardrobe can still amaze you! Rehydrate it 4 to 6 hours and you will be surprised at the happiness it can still bring you.

When we are in the winter period, the vanilla you bring back from your favorite market may experience a little condensation due to temperature changes between the market and your kitchen. If it has a little moisture on the surface, let it dry for 24 hours in the open air before storing it in a glass jar of a size suitable for your vanilla boot. Keep an eye on it for a few days to make sure there is no mold development.

If you notice a white dot, remove the affected pod to avoid contaminating others. Rub the white dot and use it quickly. If you don't have time, spann it in half and dip it into your bottle of Rum (who won't complain!!) or put it in your jar of sugar. You will stop the fungal development and get a great vanilla sugar!

Similarly, when your pod has dried in sugar, grind the pod with the remaining sugar and here you are with a great vanilla sugar for pastry.

If none of these methods are at hand, simply dry the pod to stop fungal development. The quickest method is to turn on your stove for a few minutes, then turn off and let the free pod dry in the rest of the furnace heat. Your dry pod can be used without press later; either rehydrated or crushed into powder.

The shelf life of vanilla

Well preserved, vanilla is preserved and continues to refine and develop its aromas for years.

A quality refining period lasts eight months, sometimes even two years, as on the island of Réunion, but it has become exceedingly rare for producing countries to refine vanilla for so long, which is why Colibri Vanille continues refining on its premises until it is delivered to our points of sale or we send it to you by post in modified atmosphere bags, and in bubble envelopes to limit sudden changes in temperature.

How to use vanilla in a natural pod

Although this question seems to be agreat one forEuropeans, in Americait is more commontouse vanilla extract inthe kitchen. Also a few small explanations are necessary.

The most fragrant particles in vanilla are found inside the pod. The seed, commonly also known as vanilla caviar, is removed from the pod by splitting the pod in half with the help of a sharp knife blade and scraped to be deposited in the device that will carry the flavor and bind it to food.

The pod itself also carries a lot of aromatic molecules that were transmitted to it during ripening, so especially do not throw it away! You can immerse it in your arranged rum or table sugar, but you can also immerse it in your bottle of vanilla extract which will be improved or in a jar of neutral alcohol to make your homemade extract (the manufacture of the extract on find on another page of this website).

In your homemade preparations, it is heat, sugar or alcohol that diffuses the scent of vanilla. To extract the maximum flavor from the pod, you can also grind it entirely with a culinary grinder in oil, water, alcohol, milk, a sugar or honey syrup, in short anything that crosses your mind; then heat the device for at least 20 minutes before using it. Soaking your device for 12 hours can also be very fruitful, if you have time. Then filter for your sauces, pastries, smooties, etc., but you can also fully use this device containing the crushed pod in your cakes, muffins etc. Vanilla is fully edible even if in most recipes only caviar is used.