5 Best Rice Vinegar Brands (Reviewing & Buying Guide Included)

What is the best rice vinegar brand? Selecting the right vinegar seem like an easy task, but it can make or break your meal.

Choose the wrong one and you get a bland dish, or worse, you cook one that’s either too salty or sweet.

On the other hand, use the right one and you can enjoy one of the most memorable dishes you can ever make and eat.

So why should you take the risk of getting it wrong when you can just simply read this article?

That’s right. You can find everything you need to know about choosing rice vinegar here along with some of the best brands in the market and their honest and detailed reviews!

So what are you waiting for? Let’s dive in!

The 5 Best Rice Vinegar Brands Summary

2023’S Reviews of the Best Rice Vinegar Brands

To know more about each rice vinegar brand, check out our more in-depth reviews below:

1. Marukan Genuine Brewed Rice Vinegar 

When it comes to authentic rice vinegar brand, Marukan is at the top of our list. Based on its ingredients list, it contains only two ingredients—rice and water. This means that it doesn’t contain any additives that you’ll find in other low-quality options.

Not only that, the company is known for slowly and naturally brewing vinegar using traditional methods.

But wait, there’s more. It’s also labeled as non-GMO, organic, kosher, and free of gluten and allergen which further proves that it’s as pure as it can get!

One user considers this as her essential pantry item for Asian cooking.

Things We Liked:

• Available in different sizes
• Balanced flavors
• Mild taste and delicate aroma
• Its acidity level makes it a suitable option for a wide range of dishes

What We Didn’t Like:

• Some people find it to be a bit sweet.
• Smaller sizes come in fragile glass bottles
• Bottle is prone to leakage

2. Kikkoman Rice Vinegar

Founded in 1917, Kikkoman is a Japanese food manufacturer that is well-known for their soy sauce but also manufactures an extensive array of condiments like this rice vinegar.

Their version of rice vinegar is considered to be milder and sweeter than its counterparts. Having a 4.2% acidity level, it’s a great option for adding a sweet and tangy taste to salads, sushis, and even pickling vegetables.

One user complimented the vinegar’s clean and delicious taste.

Things We Liked:

• Easy-to-handle PET bottle packaging
• Made by one of the most popular Asian brands in the market
• Widely available in the US

What We Didn’t Like:

• A bit expensive
• Leaking bottle

3. Marukan Seasoned Rice Vinegar

Here’s another product from Marukan, a company known for creating authentic rice vinegar. This product has been created using their traditional slow and natural brewing method known for delivering a mild taste, rich flavor, and delicate aroma.

But what makes this product different is it has been seasoned to give it a sweeter and tangier taste.

Despite being seasoned, it still has the same quality and ingredients as all other high-quality vinegar, but only with a little bit of sugar, so it gives you the best of both worlds.

A certain user commented on how well-balanced its flavors are.

Things We Liked:

·  Works well on sushi rice

·  Available in different sizes

·  Its sweet taste works well on a wide range of dishes

What We Didn’t Like:

·  On the pricier side

·  Top cap cracks easily

4. Best of Thailand Seasoned Rice Vinegar

If you want vinegar that will give your dishes a crisp, bright, and zesty taste to your meals, this seasoned version might just be what you’re looking for. It contains salt and sugar to make it a savory, salty, and tangy goodness.

Despite having all these seasonings, the rice vinegar is free of unwanted artificial preservatives like MSG and added fats.

One of the things users love about this vinegar is its crisp and clean flavor.

Things We Liked:

• Also available in larger quantities
• Manufactured using centuries-old brewing process
• Made with 5% acetic acid

What We Didn’t Like:

• Contains added sugars
• Plastic packaging isn’t durable

5. Eden Foods Organic Brown Rice Vinegar

Eden Foods is a natural foods company with lots of amazing principles. They are committed to manufacturing their products on healthy soil and using long-term organic processes by highly skilled handlers and growers to produce brown rice vinegar that’s pure and uncompromised.

This product has undergone a 1000-year-old method that has been tried and tested to create healthy and great-tasting vinegar.

Things We Liked:

• Sweet, smooth, and mellow flavor
• Sustainability certifications
• Amber glass protected

What We Didn’t Like:

• Cap breaks easily
• Bottle is prone to leaking

What You Need to Know When Buying Rice Vinegar

With the wide range of options out there, finding the suitable vinegar for your needs is a bit tricky. That’s why you must familiarize yourself with the different factors you need to consider when choosing the best rice vinegar. Here are some of them:

Type

You can find four types of rice vinegar in the market and each one has its distinct taste and characteristic. To determine which type of vinegar you need in your recipes, you should have a better understanding of each type.

With that said, here are some of the things you need to know about each type:

White Rice Vinegar

This is the most popular type of rice vinegar. When a recipe doesn’t indicate what type of rice vinegar it needs, it’s most likely white rice vinegar.

It’s also called sushi vinegar because it’s often used for making sushi rice.

It’s a clear to yellow or golden liquid that gives off a slightly milder flavor with fruity undertones, similar to that of cider vinegar.

Brown Rice Vinegar

This type features a light to dark brown shade and gives off a richer flavor than the white version because it’s made from unpolished brown rice.

It’s the go-to substitute for the white variant.

Black Rice Vinegar (Chinkiang Vinegar)

Made with black glutinous rice along with other grains, this type is the darkest of them all and it offers a smoky taste with hints of tamarind and molasses.

Because of its unique taste, it’s commonly used as a condiment, dipping sauce, or vinegar for Chinese stir-fries.

Red Rice Vinegar (Zhenjiang Vinegar)

Since it’s made from fermented yeast mixed with sorghum and barley, this has a reddish tint to it and delivers a sweet, tart, and salty flavor.

Its flavor works best for Chinese seafood dishes and as a dipping sauce. It’s also often used in marinades and braises.

Strength and Acidity

As compared to other types of vinegar, rice vinegar is considered to be less acidic. Despite this, it’s still important to pay attention to its level of strength and acidity. Ideally, you should choose milder and sweeter vinegar (around 4% acidity) if you just plan on making salad dressings or sushi rice.

On the other hand, go for a stronger and more acidic (7%) option if you plan to use it on pickling vegetables. For other recipes or purposes, choose between 5 to 7% level of acidity.

Ingredients

The quality of the rice vinegar will depend on the type of ingredients that it contains. With that said, it’s always best that you pay extra attention to the rice vinegar’s ingredients list.

Real authentic rice vinegar contains only a few ingredients—water, rice, and bacterial cultures. On the other hand, cheap versions contain a whole lot of artificial flavors and preservatives like MSG, salt, sugar, and alcohol. Others even have another type of vinegar on their list.

In addition to the type of ingredients, you also need to consider the dilution or the percentage of water the vinegar contains.

The rule of thumb is: the higher the vinegar content, the more acidic and flavorful it is.

Frequently Asked Questions

Learn more: Where Is Vinegar in the Grocery Store?

The Verdict

So which is the best rice vinegar brand? Based on the price, quality of ingredients, and the brewing process they use, we can say that Marukan is the winner of this roundup.

Aside from their purity labels and unique brewing technique, we chose this brand simply because they offer the widest range of rice vinegar—from seasoned to pure ones—so you can get whatever type of rice vinegar you’ll need from them.