How to prepare and what to cook from barberry for the winter

Barberries are juicy scarlet and purple-red oblong berries. We know them for their unique spicy aroma and pleasant sweet and sour taste.

Barberry is a shrub plant that grows primarily in mountainous areas. It is widely used in cooking. Barberry berries have found a response in folk medicine, cosmetology, aromatherapy, and perfumery. That's how widespread the use of these berries is in areas of life. Of course, there is a completely logical explanation for such demand. The properties of barberry berries are very diverse and mostly positive.

Where is barberry used (application)

The berries of the “caramel tree” are most often used in medicine, as they have excellent antipyretic, analgesic, diaphoretic and hemostatic properties. Barberry leaves are recognized as an excellent choleretic agent. Also, doctors have long noticed its similarity to Goji berries. When ingested, it removes excess fat from the liver vessels, which is why barberry is an effective means for losing weight. Barberry relieves nausea and vomiting, so it is recommended to be consumed in small quantities by pregnant women. Read about the benefits and harms of barberry in the article - Barberry: beneficial properties and contraindications.

In addition to medicine, it was also used in cosmetology. Many skin care products contain extracts from the fruits and roots of barberry. The shrub has even been used in human everyday life. Because it is very thorny, many people use it as a hedge. Well, what to do with barberry fruits? Barberry berries are used as a coloring agent, for making crafts, and also in cooking.

Candied barberry

First you need to cook the syrup from 400 g of sugar and 200 ml of water. The berries collected from the branches are dipped in the solution one by one, then rolled in fine sugar.

The fruits are placed on a plate or baking sheet and dried in the oven.

The finished product is poured into a suitable container and covered with paper. Candied berries store well at room temperature.

What can be prepared from barberry

In the Caucasus, barberry seasoning is used in almost all dishes, because it gives food a delicate, slightly sour taste. You can make a sauce from barberry berries that is suitable for all meat dishes. To prepare it you will need:

• barberry;
• a couple of cloves of garlic;
• coriander;
• red pepper;
• a pinch of salt;
• and dill.

Step-by-step recipe for making the sauce:

1. The berries need to be boiled for about TWENTY minutes until they soften.
2. Then crush them with a spoon until smooth.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and blend thoroughly with a blender.

This sauce is especially suitable as a dressing for pilaf and as a side dish for shish kebab.

For those who are on a diet, there is a recipe for thick meat soup with barberry . To prepare it you will need:

• beef;
• vegetable oil;
• onion;
• potato;
• cilantro;
• tomatoes;
• and barberry.

Step-by-step recipe for making meat soup:

1. The beef should be filled with cold water and placed over medium heat.
2. Cut the potatoes into cubes, chop the onion, pour boiling water over the tomatoes, then peel them and cut into small slices.
3. In the meantime, you need to remove the foam from the meat, reduce the heat and loosely cover the pan with a lid.
4. Place the onion in a hot frying pan and fry it until golden brown.
5. When the meat is ready, remove it from the broth and cut it into small pieces.
6. Add potatoes to the broth and cook for TEN minutes.
7. Add onions, tomatoes and beef. When the broth boils, add cilantro and barberry. Let the soup brew for TEN minutes.

This dish will not only not bring you extra pounds, but on the contrary, it can help you lose weight.

Tea

To make tea, fresh or dried berries are poured with boiling water. You can immediately add sugar or honey to the kettle. Infuse the drink for about half an hour.

Consume it warm or cold, 100 g several times during the day.

The tannins contained in the original product have a beneficial effect on the digestive system. In addition, the barberry drink retains a lot of vitamin C.

Recipes for preparing barberry for the winter: preparation methods

Barberry jam can become your main assistant in fighting viruses and strengthening the immune system in winter. To enjoy the delicate taste of barberry jam in winter, you will need:

• ONE kilogram of barberry;
• ONE AND A HALF kilograms of sugar;
• THREE glasses of water.
• You need to rinse the berries well, then fill them with water and leave for TEN hours.

Step-by-step recipe for making barberry jam:

1. After the time has passed, the water must be drained and sugar syrup prepared with it. To do this, mix water with sugar and bring the mixture to a boil.
2. As soon as the water boils, begin to slowly stir the mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved.
3. Pour the cooled syrup over the berries and cook for FORTY minutes.

The recipe is very simple and does not require much of your time, but with the onset of cold weather your body will thank you.

Compote is a dessert drink that can replace store-bought drinks. There are many recipes for barberry compote, most often they involve only barberry berries, which is why the compote has a sour taste. For lovers of sweets, a recipe where barberries are combined with other berries is suitable. For example, a recipe for barberry compote with apples :

• apples need to be cored and cut into slices;
• barberry - rinse well and place in a second layer on top of the apples;
• pour sugar syrup over the apples and barberries and sterilize the compote for TWENTY-FIVE minutes;
• Then you need to roll the compote into jars and let it cool.

Soft, fully ripe berries produce juice that improves a person’s appetite, helps with irregular bowel movements, tones the body, quickly relieves high fever in case of illness and perfectly quenches thirst on a hot day. Barberry juice is prepared in three stages:

• first you need to soak the barberry fruits in cold water for TWELVE hours;
• then thoroughly rub the berries and squeeze out the juice;
• Finally, add sugar to taste.

The juice will also help eliminate even hangovers and intoxication.

With the arrival of frost, fresh berries are replaced by compotes and jam, barberry is no exception. But there are other options for preparing berries for the winter. Most often, people simply dry barberries in the oven:

1. The temperature in the oven should be 45-50 degrees.
2. The degree of readiness is determined by squeezing the berries in the palm of your hand.

The finished product does not stick to your hands or to each other. When dried, the berries can be stored for about TWO years.

But there is another way that housewives use to preserve all the healing properties of barberry:

1. Per liter of water you need to add 100 grams of salt and bring the mixture to a boil.
2. Then pour the resulting brine over the barberry and put it in the refrigerator.

In winter, it can be added to various dishes, thereby diversifying the menu with original recipes.

Seasoning

Wash the berries and cook until soft. Rub through a sieve and mix with sugar. For 1 kg of barberry take approximately 250 g of granulated sugar.

Add ginger, cloves and cinnamon to the berry puree. Boil the mixture until it becomes thick. Then roll into glass jars.

There is an easier way to prepare the seasoning. The berries are dried and then ground in a coffee grinder. Store spices in a dry and cool place.

Precaution

Barberry has an unusual leaf color, bright appearance, and is also endowed with healing properties, which distinguishes it from other shrubs. People have found uses for it everywhere. But we must remember that everything needs moderation. Excessive consumption of barberry can lead to low blood pressure and vomiting. You need to be especially careful when choosing berries, because in an unripe state they are very poisonous. The ripe fruit will be red in color and firm in shape. If you follow all the rules, you can strengthen your body, improve the condition of your skin and diversify your daily menu.

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Collection time and composition of barberry berries

Modern studies of the composition of barberry fruits have confirmed the value of natural raw materials as a medicinal and vitamin product.
One hundred grams of barberry berries, in addition to thirty calories, contain vitamins C and E, beta-carotene and anthocyanins, pectins, tannins and organic acids. But all these natural resources can only be beneficial when consuming ripe berries, since unripe fruits contain a toxic concentration of berberine alkaloid, which is toxic to the body. Not only has barberry become a spectacular decoration for garden plots and park areas, its fruits are a godsend for chefs. What can be made from barberry so that its beneficial qualities can be used in winter?

Spicy sauces, marmalades and jams are prepared from fresh berries; original liqueurs and tinctures, jams and seasonings for meat and cereal dishes are made from barberry.

It is not without reason that in the East there is an opinion that pilaf becomes so when purple barberry berries fall into it. The time to collect sour, spicy berries comes only in late autumn, when the content of vitamins, minerals and other substances beneficial to humans becomes maximum. At the same time, there is no point in postponing harvesting, because with the first serious frost the fruits soften and it becomes more difficult to preserve them.

How to prepare barberry leaves and roots

Not only the berries are harvested, but also the leaves and roots of barberry.
Barberry leaves are harvested during flowering - in May and June. The leaves are cut off along with the young shoots. Then they are washed from dirt and dust and dried under a canopy at a temperature not exceeding 50 degrees.

The roots of the plant are harvested twice a year: in April and October. It is important that the shrub is at rest when digging up the roots. Dig up no more than ⅓ of the entire root system so that the plant does not die. Roots are harvested from one bush no more than once every 10 years.

The collected roots are cleared of soil, cut into pieces 10-15 cm long and dried under a canopy at a temperature of 50 degrees. Store raw materials in a ventilated area in paper or fabric bags for 2 years.

Easy to include in your diet

It is known that barberry has a tart, slightly sweet taste and can be consumed raw, in the form of jam, or as a component of rice dishes and salads. It can also be in juice form or used to make tea.

Barberry supplements can be in the form of dried crushed berries, liquid extracts and ointments or gels made from the whole berry or berberine extract. However, due to limited human studies, there is no recommended dosage for barberry or berberine supplementation.

While barberry is generally considered safe for most people, there are some reports that large amounts or high doses of supplements may cause stomach upset and diarrhea (15, 16, 35).

To reap the possible health benefits of barberries, try using whole, fresh berries in your cooking.

If you are interested in taking barberry or berberine supplements, first consult with your healthcare provider and find a supplement that has been tested for quality by a third party.

Summary:

Whole barberry berries are versatile and can be added to jams, salads and used to make tea. Barberry supplements come in different forms and should be used with caution, especially in high doses.

Diet pilaf

Required ingredients:

• long grain rice - 50 g;
• onions - 1 piece;
• garlic - 1 piece;
• olive oil - 1 tsp;
• chicken fillet - 150 g;
• barberry - 15 g;
• tomato - 1 piece;
• salt - to taste;
• black pepper - to taste;
• curry - to taste;
• cilantro - 1 sprig;
• parsley - 1 sprig.

Cooking method:

1. First, pour rice into a pan, add olive oil and place on the stove. Heat for a few minutes until a nutty smell appears.

2. Chicken fillet is cut into small cubes and fried, stirring constantly. A golden crust should form. Then add chopped onions and carrots, a few pinches of curry, salt and pepper to taste to the chicken. Fry for 5-7 minutes.

3. Heat olive oil in another frying pan and add heated rice there. Add barberry previously soaked in cold water. The rice must be evaporated, after which the whole head of garlic is added.

4. Then water is poured into the chicken. Chopped tomatoes and herbs are also placed in it.

5. Stir and place the rice aside. Wait until all the moisture has evaporated. Add to chicken and remove from heat. The pilaf is ready.

Preparing juice and marshmallows

Barberry juice can also be stored for the winter. It is used mainly as a concentrate for adding to compotes, jelly, sauces, etc. Prepare the juice as follows:

1. The sorted and washed berries, adding a little water to them, are simmered over the fire.
2. The softened barberry is ground through a sieve.
3. The resulting juice and pulp are boiled (sugar can be added if desired) and rolled up.

A very tasty sweet and sour dessert - barberry pastila. Her recipe calls for the following ingredients:

• barberry juice – 300 g;
• sugar – 250 g.

The juice is mixed with sugar and boiled until thickened. The resulting mass is spread in a thin layer on parchment paper and dried in the oven. The frozen sweet and sour sheets are rolled, cut into pieces and rolled in powdered sugar.

Harvesting barberry is a fun and not very labor-intensive activity. Having spent very little time in the fall, during the cold season you will be able to pamper yourself and your loved ones with delicious desserts and maintain your health with the beneficial components of bright fruits.

What is the plant useful for?

The healing power of barberry is difficult to overestimate. It is known that it was used in Ancient Greece. The drug from it purified the blood. Tibetan monks considered it the elixir of youth.

Nowadays, all kinds of tinctures and decoctions of berries, leaves and roots are taken for treatment:

• colds (they are antipyretic and antimicrobial agents);
• successfully remove toxins from the body;
• promote blood clotting;
• cope with uterine bleeding;
• the presence of the alkaloid berberine allows it to have a choleretic effect in cholecystitis (it is effective even in the fight against a serious illness - hepatitis);
• help with inflammation of the genitourinary system (cystitis and pyelonephritis);
• for gastrointestinal diseases;
• as a blood pressure regulator;
• inhibits the growth of malignant tumors.

Use in cooking

Barberry seasoning has very diverse uses in cooking. It is added to first courses to add a pleasant sourness. The berries are also used to make jam, jellies, juices, syrups, sorbets, and liqueurs.

They add a pleasant taste to sauces for game, fried and stewed meat. They are a mandatory ingredient in many pilaf recipes. Listed below is barberry seasoning for which dishes it is suitable. Moreover, this is only a small part of what can be prepared with its addition.

Barberry seasoning: what dishes is it suitable for?

First meal:

• hunting soup with game;
• mashkhurda;
• red bean soup;
• borsch;
• fish solyanka.

Second courses:

• pilaf with beef;
• beef stewed in bread;
• Caucasian kebab;
• chicken thighs in cheese;
• rice porridge with vegetables and chicken.

Beverages:

• spicy tea;
• barberry juice;
• liquor;
• jelly;
• barberry kvass.

Other:

• jam;
• jelly;
• bakery;
• hasib;
• sweet pies.

Expert commentary

Daria Sakharovskaya

Founder and owner of the House of Spices and Herbs "World of Spices".

Ask a Question

“Barberry berries are rich in useful acids, pectin, vitamins, minerals, and carotene. Thanks to this composition, they acquire antimicrobial, choleretic and antiseptic effects. Experts definitely recommend using these fruits in the diet menu at the initial stage of cirrhosis, inflammation of the pancreas and many other diseases.”

How many grams

Below is the calorie content of barberry, the ratio of proteins/fat/carbohydrates in it.

How to choose

Look at the appearance of the berries. They should have a deep burgundy shade, without signs of rot and mold, or the activity of insect pests. However, attractiveness is not always a sign of a quality product.

To check it, you need to take a small amount of dried berries in your hands. If they do not crumble when rubbed in the palms, this indicates high quality.