Even those who are indifferent to alcohol, sometimes there is a need to use alcohol-containing products.
For example, in a dough, aromatic tincture of strawberries on vodka is not added at all in order to make the pastries “fun” or tonic.
A few drops of alcohol with a strawberry or other smell will improve the taste of the cream, eliminate the unpleasant odor in the kitchen.
Any tincture has several ways to use it on the farm.
Of course, you can buy a finished product, but there are reasons that stimulate interest in preparing tinctures from strawberries at home: curiosity and the desire to do something with your own hands, especially if strawberries grow in abundance in the country; the second reason is the distrust caused by a fairly common phenomenon - industrial production using synthetic additives.
Two serious arguments - an occasion to find out what constitutes a tincture in more detail.
Strawberry tincture at home - basic technological principles
To begin with, we emphasize that tincture, unlike infusion, is prepared with vodka or other alcoholic beverages with a high alcohol content. Vegetable oil can also be an extractant, but with its help, extracts are usually obtained from dried raw materials with a very low moisture content.
With the help of extractants, extracts are made from herbs, spices, medicinal plants and all kinds of fruits of trees, shrubs and berries. Depending on the strength of the alcohol or water-alcohol solution, these or those substances are extracted from raw materials.
To get a quality tincture from strawberries, with a maximum of useful substances contained in it, you will have to delve into some of the general biochemical aspects of this process.
For example, it is useful to know that essential oils from any raw material can be obtained only with alcohol, with a high alcohol content, and water will help to extract vitamins, enzymes, proteins, sugars, organic compounds, tannins from the same raw materials. But all of these components are transferred from the feedstock at a certain temperature. An increase in water temperature changes the structure of recoverable substances. In addition, water infusion is an extremely unstable compound, in terms of shelf life it is significantly inferior to its alcohol tinctures.
Now, in order to understand what is better - water or alcohol, or a combination of two extractants, we will dwell a little on the biochemical composition of strawberries:
Water - up to 90%. Its content varies depending on the variety, growing conditions, soil and climate. The remaining 10% are solids. Actually, this part contains minerals and all other useful substances, and extracts are obtained from this dry residue. As you can see, adding water to strawberries to get tincture does not make sense. Take this factor into account.
Glucose, fructose and sucrose are included in the same 10% of dry matter and make up most of them - from 6 to 8%. Yes, strawberries or strawberries are a low-calorie product, so if you want to make a sweet tincture for a dessert table, adding sugar will not be amiss.
Essential oil. One of the properties of the berry that attracts us so much is the strawberry flavor. But even in the most ripe fruits, this bewitching smell is present in completely scanty amounts. At the same time, the essential oil tends to quickly disappear into space, leaving only a pleasant memory about itself, which I would like to preserve and even strengthen a little. What can be done? Increase concentration by adding dry raw materials. This is the first. Secondly, let us recall the principle by which the most expensive and concentrated perfumes are made. Right! Alcohol strengthens and helps maintain flavor. The same principle works in the manufacture of vodka tinctures from strawberries.
- Vitamins, organic acids and other useful substances in the manufacture of tincture of strawberries at home can not be taken into account for the reason that they contain a rather small amount in the dry substance, except for potassium and vitamin C, but you can "trust the replenishment of these reserves for the body "fresh or frozen berry, desserts from it.
Making homemade tinctures is not an easy task, and losses in any type of processing of berries, fruits and vegetables are inevitable.
When preparing raw materials, it should be noted that size matters here. That is, ground berries are extracted much faster than whole berries. But the question of the subsequent filtration of crushed berries must be given great attention.
Depending on the future use, the right amount of sugar is added. Therefore, the tincture of strawberries in vodka for sugar content can be sweet, semi-sweet or bitter. Sweet strawberry tincture at home contains up to 30% sugar. Higher sugar content is typical for liquors.
Tinctures are also classified by alcohol content. The tincture strength is usually about 45%, less alcohol is found in liquors.
Having determined the range of sugar and alcohol content in homemade vodka tincture of strawberries, you can begin to prepare it.
At home, in the presence of high-quality raw materials and simple devices, any tincture can be prepared in several ways.
1. Tincture of strawberries at home from fresh and dried berries
Ingredients:
Alcohol, drinking 95% 1,5 l
Sugar 900 g
Dried strawberries, forest 300 g
Strawberry 2.5 kg
Cooking:
Ripe berries of garden strawberries, without damage, washed, allowed to dry from the water, removed sepals. Then it is crushed and the pulp is transferred to a filter (fine sieve, four-layer gauze napkin). A sieve is placed over an enameled pan or other non-oxidizing cookware.
After draining the juice, you can further rub the pulp through a sieve so that as little moisture as possible is left in it. Sugar is poured into the resulting juice and pasteurized, not boiling. Then cool the sweetened juice to 20ºϹ and pour half of the prepared alcohol into it. Stir. Pour the alcohol juice into a sealed container and put it in a dark place. Pour the pulp and dried years with the second half of the alcohol, close the container tightly and also insist in a dark place for at least ten days, and preferably two weeks.
Shake the container periodically, in the morning and in the evening, mixing the thick with alcohol. Strain. Combine the alcoholized juice and the resulting tincture of pulp and dried berries. Remove the aging bottle again in a dark room, tightly corking. After 10-14 days, if a precipitate appears, dip a plastic or rubber tube into the bottle, carefully place the tincture in the bottle and seal.
2. Bitter tincture of strawberries on vodka
Ingredients:
Vodka 40% 2.1 L
Dried strawberries 1.0 kg
Cooking:
Put the berries in a bottle, pour vodka. Cover tightly and insist for three weeks. Store tincture at room temperature without access to light. Shake regularly to speed up the extraction process. Pour the finished extract into bottles, after passing it through the filter.
3. Tincture of strawberries at home for confectionery
Ingredients:
Alcohol 0.5 L (95%)
Dry berry (wild strawberry, forest) 1.5 kg
Cooking:
Grind the dried berry (500 g) in a blender, put it in a jar wrapped in foil, pour alcohol with it so that the raw materials are completely covered with liquid. Close the lid tightly. Pour water into a large pot and heat the jar to 60Ϲ in a water bath. Do not remove the can until the water has completely cooled. Shake the contents of the jar daily. After a month, you can squeeze the raw material through cheesecloth.
Repeat the work done twice, adding a new portion of dried strawberries each time. You should not grind it all at the same time: in general, the berry will better retain its flavor, which will then turn into an extract.
4. Tincture of strawberries in vodka with vanilla
Ingredients:
Strawberry Syrup 450 ml
Vodka 1.0 L
Vanilla 10 g
Cooking:
Pour vodka into a jar with a capacity of 1.5 liters, add ready-made strawberry juice syrup, vanilla sticks to it and shake it well with a lid. Leave the jar closed in the kitchen cabinet. After a week, the finished sweet tincture can be poured into a damask or carafe and served at the dessert table.
5. Tincture of strawberries at home with banana liqueur "Sweet couple"
Ingredients:
Bananas 300 g
Strawberry, ripe 0.5 kg
Alcohol (70%) 1.0 L
Eggs (yolks) 3 pcs.
Cream (20%) 250 ml
Sugar 700 g
Vanilla 5 g
Cooking:
Prepare strawberries, chop and mix with half the sugar taken. Warm in an enamel bowl to dissolve the sugar. Cool and let stand. Transfer to a fine mesh sieve to strain the syrup. Combine it with alcohol (0.3 L), pour into a bottle, shake and put tincture for storage.
Now make banana liquor. Mash 350 g of sugar with the yolks. Bring the cream to a boil and pour the crushed yolks into them, quickly stirring the mass to form a thick mass, but without lumps. When it cools down, put in a blender and add slices of peeled bananas, vanillin. Interrupt and strain the liquor. Pour 0.7 liters of alcohol into it, mix. Pour into a jar and close tightly so that the fortress does not evaporate. Pasteurize in a water bath at a temperature of 60ºϹ, twice, for 15-20 minutes. Pour into prepared bottles when it cools. Store banana liquor in the refrigerator.
Serve in tall glasses. Pour 1/3 of the liquor. Pour an equal amount of strawberry tincture over the blade of the knife.
Strawberry tincture at home - useful tips and tricks
- Carefully select berries to make tinctures. They can be overripe or even crumpled, but without any signs of plant disease and mold.
Raw materials must be thoroughly washed. Hope that alcohol kills all germs and bacteria. Firstly, you can get a drink with an unpleasant taste from berries damaged by diseases, and secondly, remember that sometimes alcohol enhances the action of bacteria unfavorable to the human body.
