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Not every housewife has wet apples at least once in her life. Today, this type of preparing fruits or vegetables for the winter is not particularly popular. And completely in vain! Urine is an excellent alternative to conventional preservation. This process does not involve aggressive preservatives such as vinegar, for example, therefore soaked apples Everyone can eat it: adults, children, and those who are on a diet. The soaking brine consists of two main ingredients: salt and sugar. The remaining components may vary depending on the recipe and personal preferences of the housewife.
This article will tell you how to properly wet apples so that they last all winter. Here you can also find several interesting proven recipes with the addition of herbs and berries.
How to cook soaked apples
Soaked fruits are good because they retain almost all the vitamins and a pleasant apple aroma - until the end of winter you can eat fruits that will be just as healthy as fresh ones. The taste of pickled products is very unusual: it is something between canned food and fresh vegetables and fruits.
Lactic acid acts as a preservative in urine, which is formed due to the salt and sugar that make up the brine.Such blanks should be stored in a dark and cool place with a stable temperature - a basement is optimal for this purpose.
You need to soak apples correctly, as it has been done since ancient times:
- You need to choose fruits of late or winter varieties. Apples should be firm and crisp. If the fruits are too hard, it is recommended to keep them for about three weeks until they are fully ripened. Antonovka is optimal for urination; you can also take the fruits of Titovka, Pepin or Anise.
- Apples should be sweet, sour fruits will not be stored for long - they will need to be eaten within 3-4 weeks. Whereas sugary varieties can be safely stored in brine until the start of the next season (May-June).
- First of all, you should check all the apples for wormholes, dark spots and other damage - such fruits are not suitable for urination. One spoiled apple can lead to fermentation of all the others; such a dish can no longer be called tasty.
- To urinate you need to choose containers made of wood or glass, it was in such tubs and bottles that fruit was soaked a hundred years ago. But more modern cookware made of enameled steel or food-grade plastic is also suitable. 3
- In the first 4-5 days, the brine will be actively absorbed by the apples, so it needs to be constantly topped up. The top fruits should not be exposed, this will lead to spoilage of all the apples in the container.
- For soaking fruit need abs. To do this, cover the container with apples (pan, bucket or basin) with a flat lid or plate, the diameter of which should be less than the diameter of the dish. The plate is pressed on top with a weight: a weight, a stone, a jar of water or something else.
- Optimal the temperature for soaking apples is 15-22 degrees. At lower rates, fermentation of the brine may stop, which will lead to peroxidation of the fruit. If the room is too hot, butyric acid begins to be released instead of lactic acid, which leads to the appearance of bitterness in soaked apples.
- It is better to wash dishes for urination with soda, then rinse thoroughly with boiled water. This will reduce the likelihood of mold and mildew.
- The brine is prepared with the addition of a wide variety of ingredients, it can be flour, kvass, sugar, honey, basil, lemon balm, mint, mustard, lavender, cinnamon, thyme, apple, cherry, raspberry or blackcurrant leaves.
Recipe for soaked apples with honey and mint
A simple recipe that requires the most common ingredients: ripe apples, raspberry, cherry and currant leaves, mint or lemon balm. In this case, the brine is prepared in the following proportions:
- 10 liters of water;
- 300 g honey;
- 150 g salt;
- 100 g malt.
Photos of apples prepared according to this recipe can be seen below.
Place currant leaves in a thin layer in an enamel or glass container and place apples on top in two rows. Then the apples need to be covered with cherry and raspberry leaves, and again lay out two rows of fruit. The topmost layer should be an assortment of leaves; for a particularly piquant taste, it is recommended to add a couple of sprigs of mint here.
Now the apples are covered with a lid and pressed down with a weight. The brine is prepared by dissolving all components in warm boiled water. When the liquid has cooled, pour it over the apples until they are completely covered. There is no need to remove the weight before doing this!
Every day you need to check whether the fruits are covered with brine. If not, you will have to add fluid. Exposed fruit will quickly spoil, so it is better to immediately prepare a slightly larger amount of brine for soaking.
Place the container with fruit in a warm and dark place with a temperature of about 15-18 degrees. After a month, you can put the workpiece in the basement, and after a couple of weeks, you can try to see if the apples turned out tasty.
Recipe for soaked apples with cabbage
For this complex dish you will need the following ingredients:
- white cabbage – 4 kg;
- medium-sized apples – 3 kg;
- 3 carrots;
- 3 tablespoons of salt;
- 2 spoons of sugar.
To prepare such a preparation, you first need to wash and peel all the products. Grate carrots on a coarse grater. Chop the cabbage (smallly) and mix with carrots, salt, sugar. Mash this mass with your hands to release the juice.
Place apples in a bowl, alternating layers with a carrot-cabbage mixture. All gaps between the fruits must be filled so that there are no voids. When all the layers are laid, the apples are poured with juice from the cabbage. If this brine is not enough, prepare additional brine: a spoonful of salt and a spoonful of sugar per glass of warm water.
The fruits are covered with whole cabbage leaves on top, a plate and a weight are placed. The soaking takes place for 10-14 days at room temperature, then the workpiece is lowered into the cellar, and after a couple of weeks the apples are ready for consumption.
Recipe for pickled apples with spicy mustard
You can make the taste of apples even more piquant by adding mustard to the brine.
To prepare you will need apples and brine, which is prepared from:
- 10 liters of water;
- piles of salt;
- glasses of sugar;
- 3 spoons of mustard.
First of all, prepare the brine for soaking. To do this, pour all the ingredients into water, mix and bring the mixture to a boil. The brine must cool before pouring.
In a washed container, straw or currant (cherry, raspberry) leaves are placed on the bottom. Place apples on top and pour chilled brine over them.
They put it under pressure and keep it warm for several days, after which they transfer the soaked fruit to the basement.
Soaked apples with rowan berries
To prepare you will need:
- durum apples – 20 kg;
- bunches of rowan or berries – 3 kg;
- 0.5 kg of honey (can be replaced with sugar, but only as a last resort);
- salt – 50 g;
- water – 10 l.
Wash the apples and rowan berries thoroughly and place them in a saucepan, evenly distributing the fruits and berries. Dissolve sugar or honey and salt in boiled, slightly cooled water, stir the brine and allow it to cool completely to room temperature.
Pour brine over the fruits, spread a clean cloth or several layers of gauze on top, put a lid on and press down.
These simple recipes, and, most importantly, photos of delicious preparations, will certainly become an incentive, and every housewife will try to diversify her family’s winter diet with healthy and very tasty pickled fruits.
