Lingonberry preparations for the winter without cooking

Lingonberries for the winter without cooking are one of the ways to prepare tasty and healthy berries. The first information about its cultivation dates back to 1745, when Empress Elizabeth Petrovna ordered the planting of the shrub to decorate the Tsar’s Garden. But real lingonberry plantations began to be established in the 60s of the last century. Since then, varieties have been created that are suitable for mechanized harvesting and produce a yield of up to 60 kg per hundred square meters, which is 20-30 times greater than the number of berries that can be harvested in natural conditions.

Interesting! A shrub, which is lingonberry, is not a petting diminutive name, but a biological term denoting low-growing, highly branched woody plants without a central stem.

Lingonberry preparations for the winter: how to preserve vitamins

Lingonberries have a specific taste and are rich in vitamins, microelements and biologically active substances.Due to the fact that the berry is sweet and sour, with a bitter taste, it is used in desserts, for making jams, fruit drinks, seasonings and served with meat, mushroom, and fish dishes.

Fresh lingonberries can be stored for a long time due to the large amount of benzoic acid contained in the berries. But they won’t even last in the refrigerator until the next harvest. In addition, not everyone can replenish lingonberry stocks every year - they grow in regions with a cool climate, in forests, tundra, alpine meadows and peat bogs. Many residents of the southern regions have only seen the berry in pictures.

It is better to prepare lingonberries for the winter without cooking for the following reasons:

  1. This crop is not included in the number of berries (sea buckthorn, red and black currants), which retain many useful substances during heat treatment.
  2. Cooking destroys approximately 80% of vitamin C.
  3. Nicotinic acid, which even in fresh berries contains little, remains 4-5 times less after prolonged heating.
  4. After boiling, the content of carotenoids, as well as B vitamins, decreases by 2-3 times.
  5. Harvesting lingonberries for the winter without cooking retains 95% of their vitamins.

How to prepare lingonberries for the winter without cooking

The first and main rule for long-term storage of lingonberries at home is to use only well-ripened, high-quality berries, collected in August-September. The biochemical composition and nutritional value remain high not only in wild species, but also in varietal plants that are cultivated in the garden or on industrial plantations. All the differences between cultivated fruits and fruits collected in the forest or swamp lie in different amounts of useful substances.

The varietal berry grown under artificial conditions remains medicinal.People who are planning to eat lingonberries prepared without cooking for the winter should not forget about this. For those with a sweet tooth, it is better to give preference not to wild berries, but to cultivated ones, but still do not forget about a sense of proportion.

Before making lingonberries for the winter without cooking, the fruits are sorted, unripe (they are unsuitable for food), spoiled, and soft ones are discarded. Then rinse with cold water.

Important! Lingonberries do not ripen during storage.

Banks must be sterilized. If you are going to use wooden containers to store lingonberries fresh for the winter, they are first soaked in cold water, then poured with boiling soda solution, and after 15 minutes rinsed several times.

Important! Aluminum containers cannot be used to store fruits. The berries contain acids that react with the material of the containers, and taken orally can harm the body.

Lingonberries prepared for the winter without cooking can spoil:

  • if low-quality raw materials are used;
  • due to non-compliance with the recipe;
  • if stored incorrectly;
  • if the containers (jars, barrels, pans) were poorly or incorrectly processed.

Lingonberries pureed with sugar without cooking

There are two very simple and similar ways to prepare lingonberries for the winter without cooking. The same ingredients, their proportions, but the result is different.

Take well-ripened, evenly colored berries, sort them and wash them thoroughly. Then put it in a sieve or colander and let the water drain. For 1 kg of fruit take 500-700 g of sugar.

Method 1

The berries are turned through a meat grinder, mixed with sugar, placed in sterile jars and covered with nylon (non-airtight) lids. Store in a cool place.

Method 2

The fruits are placed in an enamel bowl and pressed using a wooden or ceramic (not metal!) pestle. Then the crushed berries are thoroughly mixed with sugar, placed in sterilized jars, and closed with lids. Place in the refrigerator or other cool place.

How are these methods different? The fact is that the lingonberries, twisted in a meat grinder, came into contact with metal. It can be prepared very quickly, unlike the one that has to be crushed with a pestle. After standing for a month, the mass will become like jelly. But manually crushed berries retain more vitamins.

Important! Vitamin C is destroyed the most when twisted in a meat grinder.

Lingonberries sprinkled with sugar for the winter without cooking

Children especially love these sweet balls. Berries can be prepared in two ways - with granulated sugar or powder. The fruits are carefully sorted, discarding any unripe, spoiled or damaged ones, then washed, drained and dried on a kitchen towel.

For 1 kg of lingonberries take 1 kg of granulated sugar or powder, 2 egg whites.

The whites are mixed with berries and rolled in powdered sugar or sand. The tray is covered with parchment paper, the candied fruits are poured in and allowed to dry. Store in glass containers or cardboard boxes.

Lingonberries with honey for the winter without cooking

Lingonberries prepared without cooking with honey can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer. First, the berries are sorted, then crushed in a meat grinder, blender, or using a wooden or ceramic pestle.

Important! It is better to use a pestle - this way the fruits will not come into contact with metal and will retain more vitamin C.
  1. To store in the refrigerator, mix 3 parts of berries with 1 part of honey.Place in sterile jars and cover with nylon lids.
  2. To preserve the fruits in the freezer, lingonberries and honey (5:1) are mixed, packaged in plastic bags and placed in a freezer. Portions should be made in such a volume that you can eat the product within 24 hours.

Lingonberries with oranges without cooking

The recipe without cooking lingonberries with orange can be called classic. These fruits go well together. To prepare the delicacy, take 1 kg of lingonberries, oranges and sugar.

The berries are sorted and washed. The oranges are rinsed. Cut into slices and remove the seeds. There is no need to remove the peel.

The fruits are turned through a meat grinder and combined with sugar. Leave for 2-3 hours in a warm place, stirring from time to time. Then the mass is laid out in sterile jars and put in the refrigerator.

Comment! The recipe for lingonberries with lemon is usually not prepared without cooking. It is better to cook fresh fruits with sugar or honey separately. Lemon or zest is added to lingonberry jam for flavor during the cooking process.

Lingonberries for the winter without cooking with water

You can keep lingonberries fresh for the winter by filling them with water. First, the ripe berries are carefully sorted, discarding all greenish, soft and even slightly damaged ones. Then they wash it, put it in an enamel, glass or wooden container, fill it with clean water and leave for 3 days. After this time, the liquid is drained.

The fruits are placed in glass, or preferably wooden, containers, filled with fresh water and sealed. In a cool room, the berries will remain fresh all winter thanks to the presence of benzoic acid.

Lingonberries will keep well if you just fill them with cold, clean water. But you can add to the containers:

  • liquorice root;
  • mint;
  • spoiled milk;
  • Antonov apples;
  • bread crusts;
  • chicory.
Comment! After the berries are eaten, the water can be used as a mild laxative.

Blueberries and lingonberries with sugar without cooking

To prepare raw jam, take 500 g of lingonberries, blueberries and sugar. The berries are turned through a meat grinder and combined with sugar. Leave for 2-3 hours, covered with clean gauze. The mass is stirred from time to time. Raw jam is placed in sterile jars, covered with nylon lids and stored in the refrigerator.

Rules for storing lingonberries harvested without cooking

Of course, it’s best to simply freeze lingonberries. But if there are a lot of berries, all of them will not fit into the chamber. There are many other foods that can only be kept fresh if frozen.

Berry preparations with sugar or honey are stored in the refrigerator, cellar or cool basement. At room temperature they will spoil.

Conclusion

Lingonberries for the winter without cooking are a tasty and healthy preparation that can be consumed not only as a delicacy, but also as medicine. The main thing is to use high-quality, fresh, fully ripened berries and store the jars in the refrigerator or room with a low, but not negative temperature.

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