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by Todd + Diane
We fell in love with fig balsamic and since then and have always wanted to make it ourselves. Now with a HUGE collection of figs that we didn’t get to finish eating, it was time to make our much anticipated fig balsamic before the figs went bad. This fig balsamic recipes post was one of our first recipe posts back in 2008. It’s fun to see how our photography and garden has changed over the years!
Homemade Fig Balsamic Recipe
Summer doesn’t feel like it’s ending for us yet because there’s still an amazing amount of wonderful summer produce that’s reaching out to us every time we go to the farmers market. The summer fruit pangs hit us hard this year when it came to figs. The plethora of phenomenal figs has us buying more figs than we can eat, and they’re not cheap! Sometimes at $4-$6 for a basket of about 5-7 figs, it can get really pricey for fig lovers like us. Every where we turn around, there’s a different fig that we haven’t tried. So that means shelling out some major bucks for more, more and more figs. Now if only the farmers market accepted credit cards, then we’d be in serious fig and debt gluttony.
glorious figs
The fig balsamic was served on a Humboldt fog goat cheese plate and was meant to be drizzled on the cheese. Amazing! Another dish that we had was a heirloom tomato salad with a fig balsamic vinaigrette. In both these dishes, the fig balsamic was a delicious sweet, tart, tangy compliment to the cheese and the salad.
Warning!When using fresh figs, this amazing fig balsamic is not cheap to make.
Unless you have a fig tree that is yielding you with fig heaven, you’ll be shelling out half your paycheck for a batch for this stuff. With about $30 in fresh figs, we ended up with about less than 3/4 cup of fig balsamic. But all the gooey, sweet and tangy/tart concoction is worth every penny because it is so intensely flavored that just a little bit of the fig balsamic goes a long way. You can drizzle it on creamy cheeses (Humboldt Fog goat, Brie’s, Epoisses, St. Agur blue, etc.), on berries, or ice cream, use it as a glaze/marinade to add depth to meats (duck, lamb, pork) or mix it with a little olive oil for a fantastic vinaigrette to enhance your favorite salads. When stewed together, the sweet essence of the figs combines wonderfully with the tangy/tartness of the balsamic vinegar. The result is a dark, concentrated, sticky, gooey nectar of fig balsamic heaven. This reduction of fig and balsamic vinegar is something you have to try!
remove pulp
add balsamic vinegar, reduce
blend in food processor
strain to remove excess seeds
That’s it. Enjoy!
Fig Balsamic Recipe
Yield: 4 Servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes mins
Cook Time: 30 minutes mins
Total Time: 45 minutes mins
Makes about 1/2 cup.
4.77 from 21 votes
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Ingredients
- 1/2 cup ripe fig pulp (about 10 oz figs) Sweet Mission figs or Brown Turkey figs
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Equipment
Strainer
Food Processor or Blender, optional
Instructions
Scoop out fig pulp from skins.
In saucepan, add fig pulp, balsamic vinegar and vanilla. Simmer on low heat for about 20-25 minutes, or until it becomes thick. Stir occasionally (every 5-8 minutes).
Allow fig/balsamic reduction to cool. We like having the seeds in our balsamic as well as having it smooth. If you want it smooth, place mixture in blender or food processor. Blend thoroughly until mixture combines and becomes smooth. This step will also help release the seeds from any pulp that has not cooked down.
In separate bowl, strain out fig seeds. Depending on your strainer, you might need to strain it at a couple times to remove most of seeds if you want a super smooth sauce. The reduction is very concentrated. Use about 1 teaspoon at a time (or to taste) to your favorite marinades, sauces, dressing and drizzles.
Nutrition Information per Serving
Calories: 37kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 4mg, Potassium: 87mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 42IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 15mg, Iron: 1mg
Course: Appetizer, Sauce
Cuisine: American
Calories: 37
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57 comments on “Fig Balsamic Recipe”
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Melanie — August 7, 2022 @ 3:37 pm Reply
How do you store this? Refrigerator?
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Todd + Diane — August 16, 2022 @ 1:10 pm Reply
Hello Melani, yes it’s best stored in the fridge.
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Judith Rudhe — June 17, 2022 @ 9:44 am Reply
Try it drizzled on or dunked in PIZZA!! It is beyond amazing!!
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Cindy — June 14, 2022 @ 11:48 am Reply
Has anyone skipped removing the pulp from the skin? I am tempted to do that as I have not skinned figs for any other preparation or when eating fresh.
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Jose Novoa — August 1, 2020 @ 5:10 pm Reply
Discover this fig- infused balsamic vinegar, I happen to have a fig tree, thank you for the directions
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Janice Noyes — July 20, 2020 @ 10:54 am Reply
I have 3 beautiful brown Turkey fig trees & they are loaded this year! I always make wonderful preserves & giv them away as I don’t eat that stuff. I grill my gigs w/goat cheese & walnuts, I put figs in our garden salads—but— this is my new favorite way to use my figs & it prolongs the season with its shelf life! Thank you for this recipie.
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— July 22, 2020 @ 6:39 pm Reply
Hi Janice! So glad you enjoy the recipe! And you’re so lucky to have 3 amazing brown turkey fig trees. That’s amazing.
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Monica Faiella — September 20, 2015 @ 5:06 pm Reply
I have made this with fig preserves. I don’t put it through the food processor or strain the seeds out, simply because the seeds don’t bother me and I feel the consistency is fine after I cook it. I was looking to replicate a drizzle I had at a restaurant on a salad of greens, beets and goat cheese. I use just arugula for the greens. It is yummy.
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Nancy Bauer — January 18, 2015 @ 7:42 pm Reply
I tried using the black mission fig balsamic over a pork roast. I didn’t pre-marinate, and so the taste was good but not full enough. Do you have a recipe to use for a roast pork (using the fig balsamic)? Those two flavors blend nicely! Thank you!!!
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sarah — August 20, 2012 @ 7:25 pm Reply
I have a fig tree and am looking for a new receipe to can so the mounds of figs don’t go to waste, have you tried canning this receipe?
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White on Rice Couple — August 20, 2012 @ 7:54 pm Reply
We haven’t tried canning it yet, but the batches we’ve done have lasted quite a while in the fridge. None of them have spoiled before we could use it. I would imagine that canning them would work great too.
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Becky — July 21, 2011 @ 1:11 pm Reply
I made this and can’t wait to try it on all sorts of things. One question, is there a need to refrigerate?
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Yoko — July 9, 2011 @ 8:54 pm Reply
Just made this the other day since we had a ton of Costco figs left over – wow it’s good! Kind of tastes like prune extract/jam but with crunchy seeds. I could finish a whole round of brie with this..
