How to Split a Vanilla Bean
Vanilla extract is both easier to find and easier to use than whole vanilla beans. As with many other foods, however, the fresh version has a richer, fuller flavor than the processed version. Using a fresh vanilla bean in a recipe gives the final product a more complex flavor while giving you the satisfaction of making a dish truly from scratch. Whether you wish to incorporate the thousands of tiny seeds into homemade vanilla ice cream or make your own vanilla sugar, splitting the vanilla bean is the first step in using fresh vanilla. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
-
-
1
Fill a small container with milk or water and place the bean inside if it is hard or stiff. Allow the bean to soak for 10 to 20 minutes or until it is soft. You can skip this step if the bean is already supple and pliable.
-
2
Lay the bean on a cutting board and insert the tip of the knife halfway through the bean. The tip should be piercing the bean through one side of the skin and into the center, but not all the way through the bean.
-
-
3
Hold the bean in place while drawing the knife lengthwise through the bean from one end to the other. Keep the tip of the knife in the center of the bean as you do this rather than inserting it all the way through the bean at any point.
-
4
Spread the bean open from the cut side to lay it flat on the cutting board. You can now scrape out the seeds from the bean by drawing the blade of the knife against the flat open surface of the bean, or use the bean in any other way you wish.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
If you have trouble cutting through only one side of the bean, cut all the way through both sides to slice the bean entirely in half. This is easier, but it leaves you with two halves to scrape rather than one split bean.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit vanilla beans image by joanna wnuk from Fotolia.com
