These days with so many different varieties of Vanilla beans available on the market, how can you ensure you get your monies worth and/or the best Vanilla beans ?

In this guide you will learn how to check the quality of Vanilla beans on offer and determine if they are suitable for you to purchase. What you purchase depends on your requirements and budget. I personally always go for top quality, unless of course the item is ridiculously overpriced.

Armed with the knowledge in this article you will be able to procure top notch Vanilla beans without paying over the odds. Let us be clear , high quality Vanilla beans will never be a bargain. However if you keep in mind some of the points made in this article you will not go wrong.

Many years ago a spice trader for Saffron, which is the most expensive spice in the world, said to me : “you will still remember the quality long after you have forgotten the price”. He was absolutely correct. Quality is something you should not compromise on.

The Quality Factors
When Vanilla beans are harvested they are graded according to several factors. The most important of these are : overall length of the bean, colour and lustre, aroma, flexibility, splits or tears and the absence of mildew, infections and insects. The Vanillin content of the Vanilla bean is also important. However it is not the over-riding factor. A good quality Vanilla bean, or Vanilla pod, will have a Vanillin content above 2%. Bourbon Vanilla Beans from India have a Vanillin content between 2.2 – 2.4% whereas those from Mexico typically average 1.7% Vanillin.

Length, Colour and Thickness
The first thing to note is the length of the Vanilla bean. A gourmet bean will be a minimum of 15cm in length and of uniform thickness. It is possible to find beans that go up to 22cm in length. Longer is not automatically better. Some vendors tout “super-long” beans as a premium quality. Will a 22cm Ugandan Vanilla bean taste better than a 17cm one ? Probably not. Visually it may be more appealing. I personally go for the middle ground and purchase pods with a length of 18cm. Try to avoid Vanilla pods that are thin and wiry where the ribbon is less than 5mm thick. A thicker ribbon usually denotes a better caviar yield. The Vanilla bean should be a dark chocolate brown to black in colour with a good lustre.

Dryness & Moisture Content
It is likely that when you purchase Vanilla beans they will already be pre-packaged, probably vacuum sealed. This makes judging the moisture content difficult. If you can try before you buy then that is better. Certain vendors allow you to return the item if it is not to your liking.

Dry Vanilla beans, or Vanilla pods will be wiry and inflexible. They will also not be pliable. They will resist being wrapped around you finger like a ribbon. A Vanilla bean with good moisture content will easily wrap around your finger and it will also unfurl and regain its general shape quite quickly. Dry beans are not oily to the touch. When you handle a quality bean you will feel and see an oily residue remain on your fingers along with a few granules of Vanilla caviar.

Aroma
I am sure that nobody purchases Vanilla beans to just look at them. However, a left-over portion of a bean can make an attractive visual garnish on a dish.

Vanilla is purchased for its beautiful scent and soft flowing fruity aroma. I am not going to go into the details about how the aroma should smell, but I will say that once you have passed a few Vanilla pods under your noise you will know the difference between the good, the bad and the non-descript. A quality bean will tickle your senses and simultaneously induce feelings of calmness and euphoria. When you find a good bean you will know ! The converse is also true.