Making infused cooking oils and vinegars is ridiculously easy, they just take some time, since they do need to sit awhile in order to, well, infuse. Here are my instructions as well as some resources you can use to get every thing you need for this project!

First off, let me just say that there is no cut-and-dried way to do this. You can easily play around with different ingredients that sound good to you to make an infusion you and your family will like. The ingredients I'll list here are just a starting point that you can use for ideas. Don't feel like you have to follow it to the letter.
What is an infusion?
To begin, let's define what an infusion is:
- A drink or extract prepared by soaking the leaves of a plant in liquid.
- The process of preparing such a drink, remedy, or extract.
How to infuse oils and vinegars
Okay, so the first step is to choose a base:Infusion Bases
- Olive oil
- Sweet almond oil
- Sesame oil
- Grapeseed oil
- Sunflower oil
- Apple cider vinegar
- Balsamic vinegar
- Rice vinegar
- Red- or white-wine vinegar
Infusion ingredients
Infuse with...- Vegetables
- Fruit
- Citrus peels
- Herbs
- Spices
- Nuts or seeds
- Garlic
- Onions
Before you add everything to the bottles, it can be helpful to warm it first. This isn't absolutely necessary but it does speed up the process of all the flavors melding together. To do this, add everything to a small pan and warm it over low heat. Oils should only be heated slightly, but you can get away with boiling vinegar if you want to. Let the oil/vinegar cool a bit before adding it to the bottles. The combination possibilities are endless, but here are a few ideas to get you started!
- Olive oil + basil + garlic
- Sweet almond oil + cinnamon + nutmeg + vanilla beans
- Sesame oil + green onion + mustard greens
- Rice vinegar + garlic + nutmeg
- Grapeseed oil + peppers + cumin + chili powder
Labeling your infusions
If you're going to be making these infusions to give as holiday gifts, I would suggest getting them together now so they have a few weeks to sit. If you put it off, though, just include a little note with the gift that says "Will be ready on X/X/XXXX!" They need about 4-6 weeks to infuse, though the longer they sit, the more flavorful they will be!
Supplies for your infusion projects
A lot of the stuff you'll need for this little project will be available at most grocery stores. If you want to shop online, though, you'll probably save quite a bit of money and get great-quality ingredients if you shop through one of my favorite sources:
- Starwest Botanicals: A long-term favorite, one of my go-tos for herbs and spices. They also carry the base oils. I thought they would have nice bottles to use, too, but unfortunately I didn't find any that I loved for this particular project.
Sarah @ Natures Nurture
Wow, I never would've thought to do this! Love this idea, and makes for such a wonderful gift, especially for foodies! 🙂 Thanks for the idea and inspiration!
Randi@SowderingAbout
I love this idea. Ideally I would want to use it as gifts, but, well, I might just "forget" to mail everything so I can keep it for myself 🙂
Kylie Worthington
Haha! That may or may not have happened with some of my baked goods last year... 😉
The Bold Blend
Such a great idea! Great gift for a healthy new year!
Brittney Minor
This is awesome! I am going to try this!
RoryBore
Oh my gosh...I can do this!
I never thought it would be so easy. thanks for sharing
Thaleia
I just brought home some lemon thyme last night from my mom's to make an infused oil!
Kylie Worthington
That sounds so good!
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