Why We Should Not Use Vacuum-Packed Vanilla Beans
I have been asked by many of you to explain why vacuum-packed vanilla has a negative effect, and why we should not use it. Vacuum-packed is a good way of preserving certain foods; for example, dried coffee, which has no live organisms in it. So it’s a great form of preservation to prevent oxidation and drying. Another example would include pumpkin or sunflower seeds that are very prone to oxidation. After they have been roasted and salted, it’s wise to keep them in anaerobic conditions because it will prevent oxidation. When done properly, it really prevents contact with the outside air. Vanilla beans in any situation will still carry microorganism on them. It’s a natural product coming from the soil. The curing process is not like the roast coffee. It’s a very short time to kill the plant tissue, and some live microorganisms will be killed. However, a few minutes at 63–65 degrees is not enough to kill spores (which are a stable form of mold). Vacuum practices are done mainly to keep the moisture intact, which allows our supplier to sell us water for the price of beans (beans should contain 25% or less moisture content). While in a vacuum, the mold cannot grow because it requires oxygen to do so. However, the spores that were brought from the soil are still there. In addition, upon release to open air, vacuum inside the beans draws fungal spores and insect eggs that will spread the growth of mold and result in insect infestation.
There is another bad practice that people put young beans in a vacuum so that they never have the chance to develop their full flavor, which would make the beans stable with 25% moisture. Those beans are picked from the vines at a very young age. One issue is safety, and it should always be the most important one. In addition, fi the beans will stay under vacuum conditions for a very long time, it gives the opportunity for anaerobic microorganisms to grow. Although they grow slowly, there is enough literature to prove that they can convert vanillin to guaiacol and phenol. This will give the beans the ‘phenolic’ taste we don’t’ like, and once that happens there’s nothing we can change. In addition to issues of safety that I just discussed, we also want beans that will have a good flavor and aroma.
The presence of oxygen is vital to the formation of the prized vanilla flavor. Oxygen is required to the formation of many flavor components. It also averts the growth of anaerobic microorganisms, which lead to formation of phenolic type flavors. It is best to store cured beans in dry, cool and aerated environment. Beans continue to develop flavors as a result of slow oxidation. People use vacuum packs to avoid losses of water from the beans; it is all about keeping the weight. Vanilla beans always carry alive organism since it is an agriculture commodity. The beans need to be packed very tight in wax paper or plastic bags, preventing them from drying out.
There is widespread belief that in order for beans to be of a high quality they have to be wet, and dry beans lose all their flavor, which is absolutely incorrect. We are not using the beans as they are; we always extract them into a liquid of some sort, turning into an extract. The reason people think wet beans are better is mainly because when they’re wet, and there’s always water vapor carrying the flavor with them, we can smell it. This doesn’t happen with dried beans. It is true that during prolonged curing and drying some of the flavor is lost. However, not so much that it justifies maintaining this belief about the superiority of wet beans.
The takeaway here; don’t purchase vacuum-packed beans.
Daphna Havkin-Frenkel, Ph.D.; MBA
General Manager
Bakto Flavors, LLC.
