I really try my hardest not to have 50 different bottles of sauces and condiments in my fridge and pantry, so I stock up on the basics and try to make my own sauces whenever possible. A simple balsamic glaze or balsamic reduction is one of those sauces that is SUPER easy to make at home. Yes, you can buy it premade in the store, but it only takes a few ingredients and maybe 15 minutes to make at home. So it makes sense to just whip some up as needed instead of having that extra bottle hanging around!
What is a Balsamic Glaze?
A balsamic glaze, sometimes called a balsamic reduction, is balsamic vinegar that has been simmered until a majority of the water content has evaporated away, leaving a thick, syrupy glaze. It’s slightly sweet, tangy, and tastes great drizzled over all sorts of things like roasted vegetables, meat, pasta, pizza, and more.
For this balsamic glaze recipe, I added a little brown sugar to balance the acidity and help it thicken faster, but you can skip the sugar if you prefer a balsamic glaze with more of an acidic punch. You can also add a pinch of salt to your glaze, if you prefer. Depending on how I’m using it, I find that sometimes salt can help make it pop just a bit more. If you want your balsamic glaze to be extra rich, you can melt a tablespoon of butter into the glaze after simmering.
What Kind of Balsamic Vinegar to Use
Since the flavors of the balsamic vinegar are going to be intensified, I would not suggest going with the absolute cheapest vinegar available. A good place to start is to make sure the label says “balsamic vinegar of Modena”. Here’s a great article from the Huffington Post about choosing balsamic vinegar, if you want to dive deeper. Lately, I’ve been loving Colavita brand balsamic vinegar because it seems to have a good flavor and is priced low enough for every dayuse.
How Much Glaze Does it Make?
This recipe makes about a ½ cup of glaze. You can make a half batch if you just need a little bit of glaze for a couple of servings. The method will be the same, but the simmer time may be slightly shorter. You can keep the leftover glaze in a closed container in the refrigerator for about two weeks.
How to Use Balsamic Glaze
Balsamic glaze is great drizzled over roasted vegetables, like Roasted Brussels Sprouts, or roasted meat like Herb Roasted Pork Tenderloin. It’s also great over fresh produce like salads, sliced tomatoes, or Bruschetta. This week, I used it on some Caprese pizzas (pictured below).
Homemade Balsamic Glaze
Servings 4 2 Tbsp eachIngredients
- 1 cup balsamic vinegar ($2.16)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar ($0.16)
Instructions
- Add the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar to a small saucepot. Stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Bring the mixture up to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then continue to simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it has reduced in volume by about half. This should take around ten minutes, but the total time can vary depending on your cookware and burner. You'll know it's done when the simmering bubbles linger on the surface of the vinegar instead of immediately popping.
- Remove the glaze from the heat and allow it to cool. It will thicken considerably more as it cools. If it isn't to your desired thickness, you can simmer the glaze again to further reduce.
- Once cool, drizzle the glaze over your favorite foods and enjoy! Refrigerate leftovers until ready to use.
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Balsamic Glaze – Step by Step Photos
Add ¼ cup brown sugar and 1 cup balsamic vinegar to a small saucepot.
Stir the vinegar to dissolve the brown sugar. Heat the mixture over medium, allowing it to come up to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the mixture has reduced by half. You’ll notice that as the vinegar gets thicker the bubbles from simmering take a little longer to pop on the surface.
When the volume has reduced by half, remove the balsamic reduction from the heat. It will continue to thicken quite a bit as it gets closer to room temperature. If it doesn’t get as thick as you’d like, you can just simmer the glaze again.
Drizzle the balsamic glaze over your favorite vegetables, pastas, salads, meat, and more!
Can I use honey instead of the brown sugar ?
That should be fine, just note that you might be able to taste that honey flavor might come through and effect the taste slightly.
How long can I store it? Thank you!
You can keep the leftover glaze in a closed container in the refrigerator for about two weeks!
Hi Beth,
I got off from work tonight and had a plan in place for dinner. A few days ago, I’d made a nice omelette with jalapeno and cheddar sausage links and wanted to make it again. As soon as I got home, I switched gears bc I realized I hadnt yet made the couscous I bought a week ago. So I pivoted to jalapeno and cheddar sausage links over couscous. It needed something more though and I thought about a sauce of some sort. At 48, Ive made many meals and am more than capable in the kitchen. But making sauces is something Ive rarely tried. The sauces I have made in the past were a mixed bag. So I decided to google How to Make a Balsamic Glaze bc I love the idea of that sauce over porn and couscous absorbing the sauce. Your recipe was one of the first results and I figured what the heck, so I came here and saw how easy it was to make and felt pretty confident I could make the glaze with your recipe.
And I did.
Sort of.
I only have white balsamic vinegar and granulated white sugar, so I went with those, using the same amounts you listed.
I have to say that the sauce really made the meal great. I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it, even though my sauce differed from your recipe.
Thanks for posting this preparation method. You helped transform a nice meal into a great one.
Thanks, one of my HelloFresh meals contained balsamic glaze & I didn’t know it was so easy to make. Thanks to your recipe, I will be drizzling the glaze on brussell sprouts and carrots tonight.
Despite my inability to successfully make caramel, I accidentally made a balsamic caramel today. I used this recipe and then got busy prepping dinner and it way over reduced. Honestly so good tho. I had it with fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. My toddler also loved it from the spoon.
Exactly what I was wanting. Tried to find the same recipe as a local restaurant and this is spot on. Thank you.
Would using a sugar substitute, like monk fruit sweetener, perform the same way. Thickening the same way?
Unsure, as I haven’t made it with monk fruit sweetener. XOXO -Monti
Balsamic glaze is perfect.
Love Balsamic vinegar.going to make the glaze recipe for my chicken tonight. Thank you.
Try balsamic vinegar with maple syrup for roasted brussel sprouts.
Ratio is bout 4 Tbsp balsamic to 3 Tbsp maple syrup for 2 pounds of sprouts.
Incredile.
I made this today with vanilla flavored maple syrup, reduced syrup as instructions stated, and used on my fruit salad. OMG This was soooo yummy!!! Thanks for this!!
I’m REALLY looking forward to trying this … I’ve done reductions before and they’ve been OK but have never known to add brown sugar (and I probably was using too inexpensive of a balsamic!) … so this is good to know.