There are a great many varieties of plums. After all, the black sloe is the wild ancestor of the plum, and the degree of domestication and crossing has produced many varieties of different sizes, shapes and tastes.
Blackthorn plums make simply magical jam. After all, blackthorn has a more pronounced taste than its domestic relative.
The sweet and sour taste, with a subtle hint of tartness, distinguishes blackthorn wild plum jam from all other types of plum jam.
For 2 kg plums:
- 1 kg sugar,
- And optional vanilla.
Wash the blackthorn. Cut the fruit in half and remove the seeds.
Place the plums in a saucepan and sprinkle them with sugar. Shake the pan a couple of times to mix the sugar with the blackthorn and leave it overnight. The plums should release their juice and become saturated with sugar.
The next day, put the pan on the fire and bring the jam to a boil. Note 5 minutes, and once those five minutes have passed, remove the pan from the heat. Cover the jam with a lid and let it sit for an hour.
During this time, prepare the jars and lids. Sterilize them and dry them.
Put the jam back on the fire, stir it, and as soon as it boils, take a large spoon, put the jam in the jars and roll it up.
There is no need to pasteurize blackthorn jam. Immediately screw on the lids and cover with a blanket until completely cooled.
The shelf life of “five-minute” jam at room temperature is about a year.
Blackthorn jam in a slow cooker
Ingredients:
- 1 kg blackthorn
- 1 kg sugar.
Peel the blackthorn, place it in a slow cooker and add sugar. Stir the plums thoroughly and leave for half an hour so that the plums release their juice.
Now close the lid of the multicooker and let it cook in the “stew” mode for 40 minutes.
About 10 minutes after the start of cooking, it is advisable to stir the blackthorn again for more even stewing.
As soon as the multicooker timer tells you that the jam is ready, you can put it in jars, close it and put it in your storage bins.
Jam from unripe blackthorn with seeds
It happens that we come across unripe plums and it is impossible to remove the seeds from them. From such plums you can make jam with seeds, which is in no way inferior in taste to jam from ripe fruits.
Wash the fruits and pierce the blackthorn skin with a fork or toothpick in several places.
This is necessary to prevent the skin from bursting and sliding off the plum. Otherwise you'll end up with yellow flesh on the side and sad dark skins on top. If you forgot to prick the skin, don’t worry and make jam from the jam.
But since you haven’t forgotten, let’s continue.
For unripe blackthorn, you need to take a little more sugar.
For 1 kg of blackthorn - 1.5-2 kg of sugar.
Place the plums in a saucepan, add sugar and stir. There is no point in leaving blackthorn with sugar for a long time, because unripe fruits will not produce juice. But you can fix this by pouring a glass of water into the pan. This will not make the jam runny. After all, in fact, water will only compensate for the lack of juice.
There is an important point when cooking unripe sloe plums - this is the beginning of cooking. You need to heat it very slowly so that the plums do not burn. As soon as the blackthorn boils, wait 5 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat, cover it with a lid and leave to cool completely.
The jam is cooked in 3-4 stages, if you have the patience for it. Be sure to skim off any foam that forms during the boiling process.
Checking the readiness of the jam is done drop by drop.
If a drop does not flow, then the jam is ready. You can put it in jars and wait for winter.
How to make five-minute jam from plums, watch the video:
Today, dear readers, we will talk about a plant that is often undeservedly ignored, and sometimes simply rejected by many people. We'll talk about thorns today.
Apparently, such a negative attitude towards thorns is due to the fact that it was the crown of thorns that was placed on Jesus Christ, sentencing him to death. Some people believe that baptized people should never eat thorn berries.
All this, of course, is a deep misconception. The plant is not to blame for anything, and one can talk and talk about its benefits simply endlessly.
How beautiful are the thorny thickets? blackthorn in April and May, completely covered with delicate white flowers, around which bees swarm! After all, blackthorn is an excellent honey plant. And in the fall, even on the clearest sunny days, the thorn bushes seem to be shrouded in a bluish-blue fog due to the abundance of ripe berries.
Sloes grow in Europe and Asia, the Caucasus and Western Siberia. And the well-known one is nothing more than the fruit of crossing cherry plum and thorn!
Blackthorn, which belongs to the Rosaceae family, grows everywhere. Unfortunately, there are places where this plant is mercilessly destroyed by the population. And unknown to them, thorns have long been known as a therapeutic and dietary remedy for gastrointestinal diseases. Dishes prepared from thorns improve the functioning of the digestive system.
Everything in the blackthorn is valuable: roots, wood, bark, flowers, fruits, the upper pigmented layer of the bark, which is used to treat erysipelas.
Flowers are used as a laxative. They stimulate kidney activity and regulate metabolism. There are known cases when monks, during persecution, saved themselves by drinking tea from thorn flowers or leaves.
The berries of the plant have astringent and blood purifying properties. Moreover, ripe fruits are knitted, reducing the number of urges, while blackthorn flowers weaken. Blackthorn berries are used to make jam, jam and preserves, which are not inferior in taste and beneficial properties to cherry ones. Various seasonings are made from the berries, a tincture of red wine or vodka, etc.
Roots and wood are excellent diaphoretics. Young wood reduces blood pressure, and a decoction of the roots is used in gynecology. Blackthorn bark also has antipyretic and anti-inflammatory effects.
The leaves are used as a good diuretic and laxative. Young blackthorn leaves are harvested immediately after flowering, steamed like tea, and drunk instead of real tea to cause copious urine production and slight loosening of the intestines. This tea is especially useful for people who work at a desk for a long time.
Sloes are not only edible and an excellent honey plant, but also a durable dye that is actively used. Its bark gives a strong yellow and black color, and its berries are red.
To prepare medicinal raw materials, blackthorn flowers should be dried in the shade, and the dried ones should be stored in well-closed tins, stirring from time to time. You can also store fruits dried in the shade. From them you can prepare decoctions that in winter will enrich the body with vitamins B, A, C, K, sugar, malic and citric acid.
Try to prepare drinks that will undoubtedly bring great benefits to the body.
Sloe flower tea
Only dried flowers are used. They are brewed at the rate of 1 tbsp. a spoonful of dried flowers per 1 cup of boiling water or mixed into natural tea leaves to taste.
Sloe flowers contain essential oils, bitterness and tanning agents, so tea made from them has a specific aroma, stimulates the activity of the kidneys and gall bladder and is very effective in treating metabolic disorders and liver diseases.
Sloe leaf tea
Young leaves are collected as soon as the blackthorn flowers have faded. 1 tbsp. A spoonful of leaves is brewed with a glass of boiling water and drunk instead of real tea or mixed into tea leaves to give it a special aroma and unique taste.
“Such tea,” according to the famous herbalist M.A. Nosalya, “useful for people who have been leading an office lifestyle for a long time.”
Sloe jam
For 1 kg of sloe, take 1.3-1.5 kg of sugar and 3 glasses of water.
Sort, wash, let the water drain. Prepare syrup. Place the berries in the boiling syrup, bring to a boil and remove from heat. Carry out secondary cooking only after the berries have cooled completely. Place over low heat again and bring to a boil. Stir, skim off the foam and turn off the heat. After several hours, when the jam has cooled, carry out a third cooking, now allowing the jam to cook until tender. Don't forget to stir and skim off the foam.
If you want to seal the jars hermetically or roll them with tin lids, package the jam while it is hot. And if you close the jars with plastic lids, wait until it cools down.
Sloe jam or jam
Very ripe berries are taken, washed and placed in a large basin. The berries are poured with water so that it not only covers them, but so that there is 2-2.5 fingers more water than the berries. With constant stirring, the berries should cook well so that the pit is separated from the pulp well enough.
Then the cooked berries are gradually rubbed through a sieve, the seeds are washed with the water in which the berries were boiled, and the finished thorn puree is diluted with it. Put the now prepared puree back on the fire and bring to a boil. Add sugar to taste (usually 0.5 kg of sugar per 1 kg of berries) and cook the jam or marmalade until tender, stirring constantly so as not to burn. Depending on how thick you want to get it, you can add water, which is added along with sugar.
Sloe jam or jam turns out very tasty if you cook it with apples or sweet plums in a 1:1 ratio, that is, for 1 kg of sloe berries 1 kg of apples or plums.
Sloe compote
Sort out the sloe berries, rinse and fill the jars 2/3 full with them, pour sugar into each jar (at the rate of 1.5 cups of sugar per 1 three-liter jar) and pour boiling water to the top. Cover with lids and set to sterilize. Three-liter jars are sterilized for 20 minutes, two-liter jars for 15 minutes, and liter jars for 10 minutes. After which the jars are rolled up, turned over and covered with something warm. Leave it like this until it cools completely.
Natural sloe
Sloe berries are immersed in boiling water for several minutes. Then they quickly take it out with a slotted spoon and put it into prepared jars to the top, add the water in which the sloe was blanched, and immediately roll it up with tin lids. Set it to sterilize for 10-15 minutes and turn it over, leaving it until it cools completely.
In winter, you can make compote, jelly, and fruit juice from such thorns. Grind the berries and make a seasoning for meat or fish dishes from the resulting puree.
Thorn in its own juice
Fill the jars to the top with berries, cover with lids and place in a saucepan with water. As the water boils in the pan, the sloe in the jars will settle and release juice. As soon as space is freed up in the jar, immediately add berries. Do this until the jar is completely filled with juice. Allow the jars of sloe to sterilize, roll up the lids and turn over, leaving to cool.
If desired, you can add a small amount of sugar. But even without sugar, sloe in its own juice is an excellent raw material for making jelly and fruit drinks.
Spicy sauce for meat and fish dishes
Boil the sloe berries well, as indicated in the recipe for jam or jam, and rub through a sieve. Rinse the seeds with the water in which the berries were boiled, mix this water with the resulting sloe puree and put it back on the fire. Bring to a boil, add salt to taste, add suneli hops, saffron, dry cilantro, ground black and red pepper. At the very end, add crushed garlic. If desired, you can add sugar.
This seasoning can also be prepared with the addition of plums and apples.
» Plums
Humanity in the process of evolution has learned to benefit from almost everything. The thorn, known from biblical legends, was no exception, because it was from its thorny branches that the crown for Jesus Christ was woven. Despite the sad glory, this plant has medicinal properties, and its fruits are used in cooking. Let's take a closer look at this plant, what benefits and harm it can bring to the human body.
Thorn is a fairly tall shrub, growing up to 3.5-4.5 m in height.. Some species are presented in the form of low-growing trees up to 5 m high. The thorny branches are completely covered with sharp spines.
The plant blooms in April-May, depending on the region of growth. The sloe blossom is very beautiful– at first, white flowers abundantly cover the branches of the bush, and after a while the leaves open. During flowering, bees collect pollen and nectar, so the plant is classified as a honey plant.
Sloe leaves reach a length of 5 cm and have an elliptical shape with jagged edges.. The brownish-reddish wood of the shrub is used to make a variety of small-diameter carpentry and turning products and is valued for its strength and hardness.
It is found in steppe and forest-steppe zones, on the edges of forests and cutting areas, steep river banks and along roadsides, often forming impenetrable thickets. The roots of thorn bushes strengthen slopes well and prevent soil erosion, so they are planted along river banks and in ravines. In landscape design, shrubs are used as hedges.
The plant's habitat includes Western Europe, Asia Minor, Iran, Tatarstan, Ukraine, the European part of Russia, Crimea and the Caucasus, and in the mountains the shrub is found at an altitude of 1200-1600 m above sea level.
Sloe fruits are black and blue in color, round in shape and about 12 mm in diameter.. The outer part of each fruit is covered with a bluish waxy coating, and inside there is one wrinkled bone.
Calorie content and chemical composition
The chemical composition of sloe varies depending on the geographic region, but the base remains the same. The fruits contain:
- glucose, sucrose and fructose;
- pectin;
- tannins and aromatics;
- organic acids;
- vitamins A, C, E, B₁, B₂, PP;
- iron, potassium, calcium, sodium, phosphorus, magnesium, iodine, cobalt, zinc, manganese, chromium;
- essential oil.
The energy value of fresh sloe fruits is 49-54 kcal per 100 g.
The tart and sour wild plum berries ripen in July-August, but they are not picked at this time because they are practically inedible, due to their high tannin content.
Fruit harvesting usually begins after the first frost. During the freezing process, the chemical composition of sloe fruits changes - the amount of organic acids and tannins decreases, the berries lose their astringency and become tasty.
From one adult damson bush, up to 12-15 kg of fruits are collected, which are characterized by good shelf life and transportability.
Beneficial properties of terene for the human body
If in many medicinal plants one part has healing power, then the thorn is unique in this regard - not only its berries, but also leaves, roots, flowers, branches and bark are used for medicinal purposes.
fruit fruit
Sloe berries are eaten fresh, and also dried or prepared from them into jams, preserves, and pasteurized juices. The fruits of this fruit have many beneficial properties.:
- normalize microflora and improve intestinal motility, relieve flatulence;
- remove harmful substances from the body and reduce slagging;
- relieve insomnia, increased irritability, nausea and shortness of breath;
- reduce and normalize patients’ weight. A specially developed diet includes sloe berries, which help burn fat deposits and normalize metabolic processes;
- strengthens the walls of blood vessels, lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels in the blood, reduce the risk of developing heart disease;
- improve kidney condition and liver for various pathologies;
- strengthen the immune system, mobilizes the body's defenses;
- are a prophylactic against the development of prostate adenoma, normalize the functioning of the prostate;
- strengthen gums;
- reduce menstrual pain.
Flowers and leaves
Sloe flowers are collected during their full bloom, dried in a dark, ventilated area and stored in tightly closed jars (glass or tin) out of reach of sunlight. They mainly use a decoction or tea from flowers, which have medicinal properties.:
- cleanse the blood and remove toxins from the body;
- get rid of skin purulent and erysipelas inflammations, help with furunculosis;
- cleanse the liver, normalize intestinal function;
- contribute restoration of metabolism;
- have a calming effect for insomnia and neuralgia;
- serve as a diuretic and a diaphoretic.
Healing tea is brewed from sloe flowers: 25 g of flowers are poured into 0.5 liters of boiling water and the container with the drink is wrapped for 10-15 minutes to infuse. Tea made from thorn flowers is drunk as usual without strict dosage, and is also used for external use as lotions.
Decoctions of thorn leaves have the same properties as flower decoctions.. To prepare them, the leaves are plucked in mid-summer, after the bush has finished flowering. They are dried and stored in the same way as flowers, and the prepared decoctions are drunk like regular tea.
Roots, shoots and bark
- The roots are dug up in the fall and dried for 2-3 weeks in the open air. and then dried in the oven. Dried roots can be stored in canvas or cotton bags for up to three years.
- Twigs and young shoots are collected in early summer, dried in the open air and stored for a year.
- The bark is removed from the bush in early spring until the plant blooms. Drying and storing the bark is carried out similarly to harvesting the roots.
Decoctions of roots, branches and shoots have antipyretic, anti-inflammatory and diaphoretic properties, so they are taken for colds and flu.
Decoctions from the bark are drunk instead of regular tea.– they help cleanse the blood and get rid of skin irritations. When diluted with boiled water, decoctions are used for douching for female inflammation.
Contraindications and possible harm to human health
Thorn fruits have no special contraindications for human health. Those who are concerned about stomach problems should reduce their consumption of berries.:
- gastritis;
- stomach ulcer in the acute stage;
- increased stomach acidity.
People with severe allergies will have to stop using teren., although such cases are quite rare.
Fruits cause particular harm to tooth enamel - After eating sloe, teeth turn bluish. This looks extremely unaesthetic, and the blue stains from the teeth are completely washed off only after a few days.
After preparing a decoction of thorn fruits, the berries must be removed. With prolonged contact of fruit seeds with water, toxic components are formed in the liquid that can cause poisoning.
Eating thorn berries not contraindicated for children and pregnant women, and the latter is even useful for toxicosis and attacks of nausea.
Fresh berries can cause stomach upset, sweet preserves and jams are an undesirable gain of excess body weight, but only if these products are consumed in excess.
Recipes with prunes
Sloe fruits are used to prepare sweet preparations for the winter (jam, marmalade, marmalade), as well as all kinds of sauces, seasonings, wine and vodka liqueurs and liqueurs.
Jam
The most popular is thorn fruit jam. You need to cook the sweet delicacy according to the same principle as with any other berries.:
- Sort and wash 1 kg of thorn fruit, let the water drain.
- Remove the seeds from the berries.
- From 1.5 kg sugar and 2-3 glasses of water cook the syrup.
- After the sugar has completely dissolved, add sloe to the boiling syrup. boil and remove the pan from the heat.
- Cool the jam to room temperature and cook it again, bringing to a boil and boil for 2-3 minutes.
- The third time Boil the jam and cook over low heat until fully cooked. During cooking, stir occasionally and skim off foam.
- Ready jam hot pour into dry sterilized jars and roll up with tin lids. After cooling, remove the jars for storage.
Sloe juice
To obtain juice, use a juicer into which sloe fruits and sugar are loaded. (for 1 kg of berries take 100 g of sugar). The juice is poured into jars, then sterilized and sealed with tin lids. After the jars have cooled to room temperature, they are stored in a dark place.
Sloe kvass
To prepare a refreshing drink you will need 3-4 liters of water, 0.5 kg of sloe berries, 0.5-1 glass of any honey and 15-20 g of yeast:
- Grind the washed and pitted fruits to a puree. add water and boil for 40 minutes.
- Received strain the broth, add yeast and honey to it.
- Leave to ferment for 10-12 hours at room temperature.
- After that bottle and put it in the refrigerator.
Simple thorn liqueur
Preparing a classic sloe liqueur takes a lot of time - it will take 4-6 months to age the liqueur. Fans of strong thorn drinks use a faster recipe. For it you need to take 1 kg of sloe, 200-300 g of sugar and 1 liter of vodka. Instead of vodka, you can use ethyl alcohol, diluting it with water to a strength of 40-45%, as well as inexpensive cognac or purified moonshine:
- Sort the berries, remove rotten and spoiled ones, wash and remove seeds.
- Peeled pulp mix with sugar and put in a glass jar.
- Tie the jar with two layers of gauze and place it on sunny windowsill.
- After 2-3 days add vodka, mix the berries and place the jar in a dark place at room temperature (cupboard or pantry).
- Keep the liqueur for 14 days, and shake the jar with its contents daily for the first week.
- In two weeks strain the drink and bottle it. Seal tightly and store.
Sloe liqueur can be stored for up to 5 years, and the strength of the alcoholic drink is 30-32%.
Conclusion
A thorny thorn bush with inconspicuous berries turned out to be a useful plant upon closer examination. You can use it to prepare alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, sweet preparations for the winter, seasonings and sauces for various dishes.
The fruits of thorns and all kinds of decoctions prepared from different parts of the plant are beneficial for the human body. Their use is not limited to certain dosages - Healing infusions are drunk like regular tea.. The main condition for preserving the therapeutic effect of sloe is compliance with the timing of the collection and drying process of raw materials.
Thorn (thorn or prickly plum) is a tall shrub belonging to the rose family. The fruits of this plant have the same name and resemble in appearance the fruits of the common plum. The branches of the bush are strewn with needles. Since the bushes most often grow very close to each other, they form real thorny thickets. It may seem that the plant got its name because the fruits of the bush have a tart taste and aroma, but this is not true. Translated from Old Church Slavonic, thorn means “thorn,” which fully corresponds to a bush.
The plant prefers a temperate climate and grows in the forest-steppe zone. A curious fact is that thorns begin to bloom in early spring, when there are no leaves on the bush. The fruit is a drupe. The pulp of the fruit does not lag behind the seed and is green in color. The surface of the thorn plum skin is resinous with a bluish coating. The plant bears fruit late, closer to mid-autumn. In this case, plums can hang on the bush all winter. Blackthorn fruits are widely used in cooking and homemade preparations for the winter.
Sloe plum is rich in vitamins, minerals, beneficial microelements and acids of plant origin. The fruit also contains tannins, resins, fiber and pectin. Plum, both fresh and processed, has an astringent effect, so it is useful for stomach and intestinal upsets. Normalized consumption of the product helps increase appetite and improve metabolism in the body.
Sloe is contraindicated for use by people with high acidity. It is also very important to know that only the pulp of the entire fruit can be consumed. The peel of the plum is tart, bitter and sour at the same time, and it is also very difficult to digest in the stomach. Thorn seeds contain poison, so they should never be used in cooking. Preserving plums with pits is allowed, but such a product can be stored for no more than one year.
You can grow sloe yourself or purchase the fruits for preparing various dishes at the market. Only ripe plums without external damage are suitable for harvesting. Although the thorn fruit is characterized by a bluish bloom, it should not be confused with mold. The skin of the drupe should be rough and dry. Purchased or collected shrub fruits can be stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator for three days.
Sloe plums are very rarely used for preparing everyday dishes, but they are very popular in preparations for future use. At home, thorns can be pickled or soaked with spices. Tkemali sauce is also prepared from tart fruits. If we talk about sweet preparations, then this is jam or jam, which is preferably prepared only from seedless pulp.
Winter preparations using simple and tasty recipes with step-by-step photos are presented below. From the instructions you can also learn how to properly store thorn preserves at home.
Sloe fruits differ from plums in that they have a more sour, astringent taste; they are rich in vitamins and nutrients. To preserve their beneficial properties, you can make thorn compote for the winter. September is the best time to prepare a sufficient amount of sloe drink. It can be done with or without sterilization. If you strictly follow the recipe and preparation technology, this drink can be stored for up to two years at room temperature.
Beneficial properties of damsons and contraindications for its use
Thorn strengthens the immune system due to the vitamins B, P, C and E it contains. In addition, the berries of the bush are rich in organic acids, steroids, carbohydrates, mineral salts, carotene, tannins, glucose and fructose. This composition allows them to be used in the treatment of many diseases and as a prophylactic agent. These diseases include: digestive disorders, constipation, gastritis, vitamin deficiency, purulent infections of the skin, dysfunction of the cardiovascular system, liver and kidneys. The plant helps with nervous excitability, insomnia and general weakness of the body. Fresh damson juice helps cope with hepatitis A. Sloe fruits are also a blood purifier, anti-inflammatory, diaphoretic and disinfectant, remove toxic substances and waste from the body, reduce the feeling of nausea, which is important for pregnant women with toxicosis.
Damon berries can hang until frost and are sources of vitamins, both fresh and in the form of compotes, jelly, jam and infusions. It is important that after undergoing heat treatment, the thorn retains its medicinal value and benefits. Blackthorn compote for the winter is an excellent drink for the health of the whole family!
But, like any other product, thorns have contraindications for use. These are increased stomach acidity, a tendency to allergies, ulcers and gastritis in the acute stage, individual intolerance.
Features of preparing compote
Making thorn compote for the winter is quite easy. But for long-term storage it is important to follow some rules:
Recipes for thorn compote for the winter
An unusually tasty compote of thorn fruits for the winter is prepared by sterilization and several pouring methods.
Recipe without sterilization
To prepare thorn compote without sterilization you need:
After a day, it is necessary to check the tightness of the closure of the compote; if even a little liquid is released, then it is not recommended to leave such a jar for a long time. After another two days, you need to see if the drink has become cloudy; if it is clear, you can safely put it away for long-term storage.
The taste of thorn compote for the winter, which is prepared without sterilization, is practically no different from the taste of the drink made according to the classic recipe. A significant advantage is that it takes less time to prepare. Before use, if it seems too cloying, you can dilute it with water.
Traditional recipe for thorn compote for the winter with sterilization
Procurement process:
- Boil 2.5 liters of water, pour 0.5 kg of sugar into it and stir until completely dissolved.
- Place 1 kg of pure sloe in a colander and lower into boiling syrup, hold the berries for 5-7 minutes.
- Pour the blanched fruits into a prepared three-liter jar and fill it with syrup to the very top, then cover the jar with the prepared lid.
- Place a cloth on the bottom of the pan, place a jar on it, fill with water to the level of the “hangers”.
- Set the pan over low heat and sterilize the jar for 15 minutes after boiling.
- Then you need to remove the jar from the pan and seal it with a lid, place it upside down, wrap it up and leave it for a day. Then you can put the compote into storage.
According to this recipe, it is possible to prepare compote without fruits; to do this, blanch the berries in syrup for longer - 10-15 minutes. The rest of the cooking technology will be the same.
Recipe for thorn and apple compote for the winter
The process of preparing compote from two components:
Compote prepared according to this recipe is considered universal, since apples dilute the tartness of damsons and almost everyone likes the drink.
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