Content
Red currant ketchup goes well with garnish and meat dishes. Has a sweet and sour taste. It is canned for the winter from fresh or frozen berries. The prepared sauce contains many useful substances, since the red berry does not lose its qualities during processing.
Useful properties of currant ketchup
Red currants are rich in ascorbic acid. Contains B vitamins, including pyridoxine, thiamine, folic and pantothenic acid. The composition includes pectin, antioxidants, carotene and trace elements:
- potassium;
- iron;
- magnesium;
- sodium;
- phosphorus;
- calcium.
Red currant regulates the hydrobalance in the body. Improves the absorption of proteins. Boosts immunity and helps the body fight viral diseases. It has a positive effect on bowel function. Eliminates constipation, waste and toxins. Normalizes metabolism.
Regular consumption of berries strengthens blood vessels and improves the structure of the skin and hair. Helps protect the visual apparatus. Slightly increases blood pressure. Removes cholesterol and increases hemoglobin levels. Stimulates regeneration processes. Helps fight depression.
Ingredients
Each housewife has her own recipe for red currant ketchup for the winter. The classic includes:
- red currant - 1 kg;
- ground chili - 0.25 tsp;
- ground black pepper - 0.5 tsp;
- cloves - 2 pcs.;
- ground ginger - 0.5 tsp;
- curry - 0.5 tsp;
- turmeric - 0.5 tsp;
- ground paprika - 0.5 tsp;
- peppercorns - 2 pcs.;
- salt - 1 tbsp. l .;
- sugar - 2 cups;
- bay leaf - 3 pcs.
To make red currant ketchup, you need to prepare a food processor, blender or sieve in advance. Take a deep saucepan, you will need it for cooking, a tablespoon and a teaspoon for stirring and adding incidents. Get out a clean towel. Sterilize jars and lids in advance.
Red currant ketchup recipe for the winter
After the preparatory measures, they begin to prepare red currant ketchup:
- The currants are sorted out and washed. If the berry is frozen, it must be allowed to thaw naturally at room temperature. Throw in a colander and let the water drain. You do not need to separate the branches from the berries. Directly in a colander, the currants are poured with boiling water, slightly blanching.
- The berries are rubbed through a sieve using a crush. The resulting cake is thrown away, and the juice with the pulp is used to make ketchup.
- The resulting juice is poured into a prepared saucepan. The above components are added to it according to the list. Mix everything thoroughly and add a little salt. The rest of the salt is added at the end of cooking, otherwise the ketchup can be oversalted.
- The resulting mass is put on high heat and brought to a boil. To prevent the dish from burning, it is constantly stirred. Cook for 6-8 minutes. Then remove the foam. Taste the ketchup. If it seems that there is not enough salt or pepper, then add more spices.
- A bay leaf is taken out of the sauce. Ketchup is poured into pre-prepared sterilized jars. The lids are placed on top of the jars, but do not tighten. Jars of sauce are placed in a pot of boiling water and sterilized for 15 minutes.
- Sterilized, the jar is tightly closed with a lid. Turn over and place on the lid. Wrap up with a warm cloth. Leave in this state for 8-12 hours.
Above is a method for making a classic red currant sauce. To slightly change its taste, you can add to it:
- Garlic and Basil. For one kilogram of berries, take three cloves of garlic and three branches of basil. The garlic is grated and the basil is finely chopped with a knife. The ingredients are added to the ketchup along with the rest of the ingredients.
- Orange zest. The orange peel is frozen and grated on a fine grater, adding at the beginning of cooking. For 1 kg of currants, take the zest of 4 oranges. You do not need to freeze the peel, but remove the zest from the orange with a grater until a white spongy skin appears.
- Mint. It adds spice to the dish. 12-15 mint leaves are taken for 1 kg of raw materials. Add to ketchup at the same time as other spices, at the beginning of cooking.
- Tomato paste. It is a preservative and helps keep the sauce intact for up to three weeks. Take 100 g of pasta on a glass of grated berries.
If the sauce is prepared for the winter, then natural preservatives are used. Sugar, vinegar and salt are added at the first stage of cooking, along with the rest of the ingredients. Freshly squeezed lemon juice is poured in at the end of cooking, after which the dish is cooked for another two minutes. For preservation purposes, tomato paste is added to the sauce, which is added to the end of the cooking process.
If ketchup does not need to be stored for a long time, then it is prepared without preservatives. In this case, its taste will be softer.
It is best to grind the berries with a sieve. But if a large volume of currants is being processed, then a blender is used to speed up the process.
What to serve currant ketchup with
Red currant sauce goes well with meat, duck, turkey or chicken dishes. It will favorably set off the taste of barbecue. It goes well with fried and boiled meat. It can be eaten with any side dish: rice, pasta, buckwheat, potatoes. An interesting taste is obtained when using this sauce with pancakes.
Ketchup is eaten with homemade lavash, bread, cheese and cold snacks. It has a sophisticated taste and goes well with any dish.
The sauce is added not only to ready-made food, but also used during cooking: when frying, stewing and during cooking.
Calorie content
Red currants are low in calories. There are 43 calories per 100 g. In addition to currants, ketchup contains sugar and spices. They add energy to the product by increasing the number of calories to 160 per 100 g.
Terms and conditions of storage
Long-term heat treatment increases the shelf life of the sauce, but reduces the amount of valuable components in it. If you plan to eat ketchup immediately after cooking, then it is not boiled, but simply mixed all the components and stored in the refrigerator. In this form, it can be stored for up to two weeks.
Red currant sauce for the winter is stored in a dry and cool room. If the ketchup is tightly closed with a lid and sterilized, then the shelf life is eighteen months. After opening the can, the shelf life of the product is reduced to a week.
Conclusion
Red currant ketchup is a great alternative to store-bought sauces. It is natural and does not contain artificial preservatives or dyes. Contains many nutrients. It can be cooked to your liking, spiced, or spiced. And in order not to get tired of its taste, you need to experiment and include various additives in its composition.
