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Apples are very useful when eaten fresh. But in winter, not every variety lasts even until the New Year. And those beautiful fruits that lie on store shelves until next summer are usually treated with chemicals for long-term storage. Housewives try to make preserves, jams, juices, and compotes from their favorite varieties of apples. But only soaked fruits can replace fresh fruits.
Therefore, apples have long been soaked, preserving their beneficial substances and surprising guests with the amazing taste of their favorite fruits.
There are many recipes for soaking apples, and all of them are attractive for their ease of preparation, as well as the composition of healthy ingredients.
What not to add when soaking apples! These can be herbs (lavender, basil, thyme), spices and herbs (even exotic ones), leaves of fruit trees and shrubs (cherry, currant, apple trees), mustard, honey, alum, flour, cabbage. The list could go on for a very long time, but I would like to dwell on the advantages of pickled apples.
- Fruits can make up for the deficiency of many vitamins in winter. At the same time, their taste becomes more piquant. They resemble the taste of apple champagne.
- You can eat the fruits after urinating as an independent dish or dessert, or you can combine them with various vegetables, fruits, or add them to salads and snacks. They go well with baked meats and meatless dishes.
- Soaked fruits are stored until next summer. Of course, subject to proper soaking.
Barrels or tubs have always been considered the most suitable containers, but glass containers replace them very well. Therefore, modern housewives can prepare soaked apples in a city apartment.
Selecting fruits for soaking
Late varieties of apples, preferably green or white, are suitable for cooking. Summer (early) varieties or species with a rich orange color are not suitable for urination. The most suitable varieties are:
- Zelenka;
- Simirenko;
- Titovka;
- Antonovka.
The fruits of other green varieties are also excellent for soaking.
When choosing fruits, we pay attention to their integrity and elasticity. Immediately set aside damaged, rotten or soft apples. Apples that are too dense will not work either. It is better to choose a variety with medium fruit density.
Second point. Freshly picked apples of varieties with a high starch content should not be soaked. They need to be set aside for 2-3 days after picking to allow the starchy compounds in the fruit to turn into sugar.
Before we start soaking, let's sort the fruits. Select fruits of approximately the same size and wash them thoroughly. This must be done to wash away traces of chemical treatments on the fruit.
Preparing containers for apples
The best container is a barrel. In it, the process of urination occurs according to all the rules. And the wood from which the tub is made protects food from rotting and gives it a piquant taste thanks to the aromatic resins in the wood.
If you are lucky and have a tub, you will first need to soak it with water.This is necessary to preserve the wood when soaking or fermenting foods. Then the container is scalded with boiling water and washed with a solution of caustic soda. After treatment, the solution is thoroughly washed off and the barrel is rinsed again with boiling water. Now you can dry it. In sunny weather, the containers are exposed to bright rays and fresh wind.
In the absence of wooden utensils, feel free to use glass ones. Juicing apples in bottles gives the same tasty results.
Recipes for soaking fruit require that you cover them with straw or leaves. This is done in order to preserve the fruits and give them a beautiful shade. In addition, during the soaking process, the apples will absorb the aroma of the leaves and become even tastier.
There is no particular difference in what material you use to transfer the soaked apples. The only requirement for straw is that it must be clean and free from fungal infections. For 50 kg of apples you need to take 1 kg of straw, which is scalded with boiling water several times before laying. Leaves of fruit or berry crops are soaked in cold water for several hours. Any simple recipe begins with these preparatory steps.
At first, the fruits actively draw in liquid, so you will have to add it.
Let's start soaking the apples
Consider a simple recipe for soaking apples with mustard.
Let's prepare the fruits - sort them out and wash them thoroughly.
Now you need a fill or wort.
For a recipe with mustard for 10 liters of water, take:
- 2 tablespoons each of table salt and dry mustard;
- from 150 to 300 g of granulated sugar, which can be replaced with honey.
If we take honey, we will double its quantity. You can make mustard powder yourself from mustard grains (seeds) by grinding them in a spice grinder.
Boil water with sugar and cool.
In hotter water it loses its beneficial properties.
Then add salt, mustard and mix thoroughly.
Step-by-step preparation:
- We cover the bottom of the tub with straw. If we do the soaking in a glass jar, then add currant or cherry leaves.
- Place a layer of fruit on top.
- Again leaves and again fruits.
- We repeat this until the container is completely filled.
- The top layer should be leaves or straw.
- Fill the apples with brine, cover with a clean cloth or gauze, and apply pressure.
- If we soak fruit in a barrel, then grease its edges with vegetable oil.
Soaked apples with mustard must also be stored properly so that they are well salted and preserved until spring. You can start tasting delicious soaked apples with mustard in just a month. This recipe has its advantages over other soaking options. When mustard powder is added to the filling, little foam is formed and mold does not appear. The apples acquire a strong flavor and remain firm rather than loose until the end of storage.
Recommendations for housewives
Some tips that will help bring the process of soaking apples to the desired result:
- Store soaked apples with mustard only in a cool room. But first, to activate the fermentation process, keep them for a week at room temperature.
- Do not forget to add boiled cooled water if the water level in the container drops. This must be done so that the top apples do not spoil.
- Wash the wooden circle or plate under pressure weekly and skim off any foam that has formed.
- Change the fabric if you notice areas of mold on it.And in this case, be sure to treat the top of the tub with a solution of baking soda.
- It is important to remember that adding other spices or herbs will change the taste of the soaked apples.
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