Slofoodgroup Gourmet Vanilla Beans, 4 Ounces Grade A Ugandan Vanilla Pods, Vanilla Beans For Cooking, Baking and Homemade Vanilla Extract

I just received this today. I could smell it it outside the package. I usually use 5 beans per cup, but I don't think I will need that much. I been making a lot of vanilla the last 2 years and I can already tell these are some of the best beans I have received. They are wide and probably 7" long. I told myself that I have ordered enough beans for the year.....

In nobodies world are these beans grade A, but they are satisfactory for my needs.About 6 months ago, I bought 10 beans, and in 2 8 ounce amber glass bottles I placed 5 beans in each. I made a vanilla extract, and it turned out so well that I just had to do it again!!This time, I had a different game plan. The vanilla goes pretty quickly, so to combat this, I'm going to extract a larger quantity. I did the calculations, and if I buy 35 beans, that should be enough to fill an entire 64 ounce growler.I grabbed my favorite growler, ordered some size 6 rubber stoppers (because the growler caps don't work that great), and my favorite vodka (svedka, anything cheap really.)I split the vanilla beans down the middle (long-wise) using a sharp knife and then cut it in half short-wise. This gives me 4 pieces per bean. Add everything to the growler (it took 1 1/8 bottles of vodka to fill to the 64 oz line), and then let it stew for 2-4 weeks before use.Give it a shake every day, and before you know it, you'll have your own (relatively cheap) homemade vanilla extract.I love this stuff because it gives you the specks in vanilla frosting that you just don't get out of the imitation stuff.

Wonderful fat, oily beans. Upon opening the resealable bag the deep vanilla scene fills the room. Can’t wait to purchase again.

If you know anything at all about growing vanilla, you know that even in the best of times, the hand labor -- and it should indeed all be hand labor -- that is involved in land preparation, planting, weeding, pruning, shadow control, disease prevention, pollination, and frequent harvesting is incredibly time-consuming for the growers. In addition, the steps involved in vanilla processing and curing (wilting, sweating, drying, and conditioning) add further to the growers’ difficulties. And starting early in this century and continuing for over a decade, growers have not been enjoying the best of times. Just a glance at the increase in prices over that time will give you some indication of how the weather and climate-related events have impacted the market.Although “vanillin” is the major component of vanilla flavor, a complex mixture of approximately 170 volatile chemical compounds contributes to the overall flavor and aroma of a high-quality bean. And keeping in mind that we really haven't seen high quality beans in quite a few years -- although we've definitely seen HIGH LEVEL prices -- I would say that these beans, a mix of 2nd and 3rd quality beans, are the best being offered on Amazon at the present moment and are a cut above the ones being sold for a slightly higher price by WTO Products, whose beans I also recently bought for comparison.

I prefer the sun dried vanilla beans because it has fresh fragrant of the beans. It has a unpleasant smell because they preserved with alcohol and yeast. It destroyed the natural smell of the beans. I won’t recommend for people who allergic to the yeast.

So, I normally order from someone else but decided to give these vanilla pods a try since they were more economical compared to others. They are listed as vanilla planifolia from Bourbon. They do seem to be planifolia, but they are actually from Uganda. The flavor/ smell is a bit different from Bourbon ones-- more of a smell similar to vanilla + chocolate. However, I chose to give them 5 stars regardless because the pods were excellent. They were moist (not the most moist I've ever bought, but suitably so), had fairly consistent width and length (approx. 3/8" wide by 6-7" long) and yielded 2T. seeds when all 10 were scraped. Excellent pods. Flavor was siluitable for my purposes but could be a problem for others, depending on why they are purchasing the pods. It would be better if the seller didn't label them "Bourbon" as they were not grown on the Bourbon Isle.

These are pretty good quality vanilla beans. They came vacuum sealed in plastic, and it was easy to tell how fresh they were. I cut off the tip of one of the beans and stuck it in my mouth to get familiar with the taste. It was a subtle vanilla flavor, smooth, and slightly sweet. I cut the beans up into smaller pieces with a small serrated knife to use in my herbal tea blends. For everyday use, these vanilla beans are perfectly tasty and fresh. I'm sure there are higher quality beans out there, but this is good for normal use. For very special recipes and occasions, perhaps you may want a more potent, expensive kind. But for me this is exactly what I was hoping for.

I always wanted to make vanilla extraxt, but the beans were always so expensive. My friend told me to look on Amazon for them and I did and WOW , Slofoodgroup had the pest price for the beans I have ever saw. I ordered 2 , 25 beans. when I got them I was so impressed. They were plump and they smelt amazing , that was in august of this year. I made my extract, it's been only 21/2 months and everytime I open the jar it smells amazing!!!! So I just came back and order 2 more of your 25 beans in a pkg, to make small jars of vanilla for Christmas presants with instructions not to use for 4- 6 months. thank-you Slofoodgroop and amazon for a wonderful product.....Maggie scotta

Huge vanilla beans, moist and pliable, absolutely packed with delicious aromatic seeds. The aroma is so fantastic you can smell it even before opening the sealed packet. The pods/seeds went beautifully in homemade banana pudding and brazil nut milk. Such good value, would definitely purchase again.

I used it for whisky.

Very good would buy again

sono un pasticciere per diletto , ma mi piace scegliere ottime materie prime per i mie dolci. come ben saprete le bacche di vaniglia non costano così poco. con questo prodotto, invece, sono riuscito a soddisfare le esigenze di qualità/prezzo. L'odore è intenso e il sapore è avvolgente. l'ho provato nelle chiffon cake, ma anche nei pan di spagna. Ottima resa. Consigliatissimo.

Review Edit January 2021 : so sad to say but I got a bad batch the last time I ordered it! The pods I was soaking in vodka started to mold up and the whole bottle is starting to smell fungus and taking it out and cleaning it was such a headache 🤕! So disappointed this happened! There’s no guarantee you will get a good batch or not until it’s opened and used!First time buying vanilla bean. I could smell this more than 10feet away that’s how aromatic it is. Amazing! I was a little upset I saw some white moulds on the beans but didn’t want to make it a big deal. Wiped it off and it’s extracting in a bottle of vodka 😉. Awesome deal and will buy again! Thanks Michelle great product 👏December 2020: Bought this item again and I made another vanilla extract bottle with it as a gift! Amazing quality and love the aroma. This package was perfect! No mould like last time. Purchased again and have no problem at all! Definitely recommend!