Pickled fern: 7 recipes

The common bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) is not the most decorative. It is usually bypassed by landscape designers, and planted only in the backyards. But the bracken can be eaten. And it's delicious! Pickled ferns are increasingly appearing on store shelves, but they are not cheap. Meanwhile, it can be easily prepared by yourself.

Much less than the bracken is known as the edible plant of the Common Ostrich (Matteuccia struthiopteris). It is much larger and is often grown as an ornamental crop. The taste of these ferns is markedly different.

Why pickled fern is useful

Uncooked ferns are poisonous. You just need to take this into account, and not be afraid or abandon the product. Olives, potatoes and most wild mushrooms are not eaten raw. If you think carefully, you can make a long list of familiar products for everyone, which simply would not occur to anyone to eat right from the garden. So it is with the fern.

And the plant has enough useful properties. And although rhizomes are used as medicinal raw materials, young shoots contain:

• glutamic and aspartic acids;
• tyrosine;
• leucine;
• carotene;
• riboflavin;
• tocopherol;
• a nicotinic acid;
• potassium;
• calcium;
• magnesium;
• manganese;
• copper;
• sulfur;
• phosphorus.

But the main value of rachis (young shoots) is the high content of proteins, easily assimilated by the body, and iodine.

Regular consumption of foods containing fern:

• has a beneficial effect on the nervous system;
• helps to fight iodine deficiency;
• tones up;
• stimulates metabolic processes;
• removes radionuclides.

Of course, fern salads are not a medicine in and of themselves. They are not recommended for pregnant women and preschool children, and people who have never eaten rachis before should start with small portions. By the way, this applies to any unfamiliar food.

And about the poisonous substances contained in the fern, after a 10-minute heat treatment, salting or pickling, they disintegrate.

How to pickle a fern

The most controversial is the period during which the young shoots of the fern should be processed after harvest. Gourmets call 3-4 hours, experts also notice that it is after such a time that the rachis begin to lose their beneficial substances and taste. After 10 hours, they will become coarse and lose nutritional value.

Fern picking

When collecting rakhis, it is important not to miss a moment. They are harvested when the leaves have already begun to separate, but have not yet blossomed, along with the shoots. At this time, the rachises look like hooks, have a dark green color, and break when bent. As soon as the shoots become flexible, the collection is stopped - they are no longer suitable for food, and the content of nutrients is reduced to a minimum.

More often they eat bracken, the taste and texture of which resembles mushrooms. The ostrich is very satisfying, somewhat sweet and similar to cauliflower.

Fern preparation for cooking

Whatever the hostess does from the fern - a dish of fresh shoots, pickled or pickled for the winter, the rachises need to be prepared. They are soaked for 2-3 hours in cold salted water, changing the liquid several times so that bitterness and some of the harmful substances come out. Then boil.

There is no need to turn the fern into unappetizing rags, just enough to bend it easily, but remain quite dense. Ideally, the consistency of the rachis should be the same as that of the pickled mushroom legs.

It is believed that it is enough to boil the shoots for 10 minutes. But this is an average figure, you need to constantly try the rachises. Their density depends on the conditions in which the fern grew, the weather in spring and many other factors. It may take 2 or 5 minutes to boil the shoots.

Rakhises are thrown into salted boiling water, waited until it boils again, drained, washed. Then they bring to the desired state in a new portion of the brine. They are thrown in a colander, and a fresh or a dish intended for winter storage is prepared.

How to cook pickled fern for the winter from fresh shoots

You can cook pickled fern according to different recipes. Classic is the simplest.

1. Rachises are soaked in salted water for 2-3 hours, boiled for 3 minutes, rinsed, and discarded in a colander.
2. They are laid out in sterile jars.
3. Pour in clean water to measure the required volume of liquid.
4. For 1 liter of water, take 1 tablespoon of salt, 3 - sugar, 50 ml of vinegar.
5. Boil the marinade, pour in the fern.
6. Roll up, turn over, wrap up.

How to marinate fern with sunflower oil for the winter

Fern is pickled for the winter and with sunflower oil - the method is not much more complicated than the previous one, but the taste is different. So you can choose a recipe that you like best.

1. Pre-soaked shoots are boiled in a large amount of salted water for 5 minutes. Washed and discarded in a colander.
2. Sterilize 500 gram jars.
3. A bay leaf and 4-5 peas of black pepper are placed at the bottom of each.
4. Rakhises are packed tightly.
5. Fill the jars with clean water to measure the approximate volume of the marinade.
6. Boil brine from 1 liter of water, 4 tbsp. l sugar, 1 with a slide of salt and 60 ml of vinegar (6%).
7. In a separate saucepan, bring a glass of refined vegetable oil to a boil.
   Important! Brine and calcined oil do not combine!
8. First, freshly boiled marinade is poured into the jars, hot oil is on top.
9. Banks are rolled up, overturned and insulated.

Fern marinated with garlic for the winter

Those who like spicy salads can roll up rachises with garlic for the winter. The cooking process itself is no different from the first recipe, the only difference is in the marinade. They take and boil per liter of water:

• salt - 2 tbsp. l .;
• sugar - 1 tbsp. l .;
• vinegar essence - 1 tsp;
• garlic;
• peas and black pepper, bay leaf, dill - to taste.

Everyone should calculate the amount of garlic for themselves. If we marinate a fern for the first time, you can focus on recipes with eggplant.

What can be made from pickled fern

Usually fern marinated with garlic or oil is considered a ready-made snack. You can optionally add onions, fresh or sautéed carrots, or garnish with herbs and eat right away.

The first, classic recipe, is considered a semi-finished product. Rachises can be soaked in water, or simply drained off the marinade and used to prepare hot dishes, salads, soups.

How to store pickled ferns

In a private house there is always a cellar or basement - there they store jars of pickled fern along with other blanks.Residents of city apartments can put a small amount of containers in the refrigerator. If you have prepared a lot of rakhis, and there are no utility rooms, then the jars are placed in a cool place, deprived of access to light.

How to pickle a salted fern

Everything is very simple. First, the salted fern is washed, then soaked in plenty of clean cold water for at least 6 hours. The fluid is constantly changing.

For the salad take:

• salted fern - 500 g;
• carrots - 200 g;
• onions - 100 g;
• sesame oil - 20 g.

Products for the marinade:

• water - 125 ml;
• sugar - 1 tbsp. l;
• vinegar (9%) - 1 tbsp. l.

They start preparing the dish:

1. Rachises are boiled for 5 minutes.
2. Cut into pieces of the desired size.
3. Peel and rub the carrots on a coarse grater.
4. The onion is freed from the covering scales and cut into half rings.
5. Dried in sesame oil.
6. Throw in a sieve or colander to drain the fat.
7. The ingredients are mixed, poured over with hot marinade.
8. Allow to cool, put in the refrigerator for 6 hours.

Salad ready. If necessary, it can be salted.

Pickled fern salads

There are many recipes that include pickled fern. In principle, you can simply replace mushrooms with rachis.

Bracken fern with bow

Pickled rachis are soaked first. How much, each hostess must determine independently. Some people like savory dishes, and they will be limited to 10-20 minutes. Those who are on a diet can soak the shoots for a day or more.

Ingredients:

• bracken fern - 500 g;
• onion - 2 large heads;
• sour cream - 120 g;
• flour - 1 tbsp. l .;
• butter (butter or vegetable) - 1 tbsp. l.

Preparation:

1. Onions are cut into half rings, rakhises are cut into pieces of any size.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan.
3. First, the onions are fried, then the fern is added.
4. Cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes.
5. Sour cream mixed with flour is poured into the contents of a frying pan.
6. Put in an oven preheated to 200 ° for 20-30 minutes.

Pickled fern salad with meat

If this food is served hot, it acts as a second course, cold - as a salad. It is important to soak the pickled rachises to such an extent that they become completely bland. For this, the water is often changed.

The number of ingredients will not be indicated - it is arbitrary, and depends only on the taste of the hostess, her household or guests. Someone loves a lot of meat, someone loves crispy rachis more, and other ingredients are needed solely for flavor.

1. Cut the beef into thin slices, marinate in a mixture of black pepper, vegetable oil and soy sauce.
   Important! Do not salt!
2. Cut the rachises into 4-5 cm pieces.
3. In a frying pan preheated with vegetable oil, simmer the onion, chopped in half rings. Place with a slotted spoon in a separate bowl.
4. Turn on high heat and fry the beef for 5-10 minutes.
   Comment! If you cut the meat thickly, this time is not enough!
5. Add fern, reduce heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Rachises should remain lightly crispy!
6. Add onion and soy sauce.
7. Stir, turn off the heat.

After 5 minutes, you can serve it as a hot appetizer, or completely chill and use as a salad.

Fern marinated with soy sauce and garlic

This salad will turn out spicy, and can be used as an appetizer to spirits. It is not recommended to eat for people suffering from diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Ingredients:

• fresh, salted or pickled rachises - 500 g;
• refined oil - 100 ml;
• ground coriander (cilantro seeds) - 1/2 tsp;
• ground red pepper - 1/4 tsp;
• soy sauce - 70 ml;
• garlic - 1 head (or to taste).

Preparation:

1. Soak rachis and boil for two minutes. Throw in a colander.
2. Combine all ingredients in a clean bowl. Squeeze the garlic with a press.
3. Mix well. Insist for several hours.

Fern Srtausnik with stew

Most of the recipes are for bracken fern. The ostrich remained undeservedly deprived of attention. Meanwhile, it tastes good too. You just need to take into account that the dishes from the ostrich are very satisfying.

1. Soak the fern and boil for 5-8 minutes. If the rachises are very young, you can limit yourself to 3-4 minutes.
2. Rinse with cold water and drain off.
3. Peel onions and carrots, chop randomly, fry until soft.
4. Let the fern down separately. An ostrich can be considered ready when its volume is halved and the color turns grayish-green.
5. Combine the fern with vegetables, add the stew (remove the fat first).
6. Add a tablespoon of tomato paste, stir, heat well in a pan.

Conclusion

Pickled fern is a tasty and healthy product. You just need to know how to cook it. There are many recipes that each housewife can modify arbitrarily, adjusting to her own tastes. Enjoy your meal!

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