Content
- Blackthorn fruit: Vitamin-rich delicatessen for connoisseurs
- Harvest sloe after the first frost
- Process sloe properly
- Jam and wine from sloe
- The fruit of blackthorn - a proven natural medicine
- Tips & Tricks
Blackthorn fruit: Vitamin-rich delicatessen for connoisseurs
To fully develop their aroma, the blackthorn fruit needs the first night frosts. Only then can you prepare delicious tasting jams, jellies or liqueurs from the dark blue to black fruits. Why is that?
Harvest sloe after the first frost
By its spherical, black-blue coloring and the big stone the sloe, which is about one centimeter in size, reminds fruit of its nearest relative, the plum. As finds on Lake Constance prove the people of the Neolithic ready the tasty fruit as a vitamin donor in the winter months. The stone age man Ötzi also brought dried sloes with him when he crossed the Alps.
The greenish flesh of the ripe sloe tastes very sour and unpleasantly dry. The first night frosts make the cell walls of the sloe fruit more permeable and the strength of the drupes is converted to sugar. This softens the hard pulp and the sloes taste much milder.
Process sloe properly
After the first frost in late October or early November, you can harvest the fruits of blackthorn. If you want to pick the stone fruit before the first frost, you should freeze the sloe for a few days. However, the taste of the fruits is then not quite so intense.
Processing of sloes:
Jam and wine from sloe
Through cooking, sloes develop their intense, bitter-spicy aroma. The sour fruits can be combined with mild fruits such as apples or pears to make aromatic jams.
From the prepared fruits, you can make a traditional sloe wine, which used to be used to stretch and dye low-quality red wines. Put the stone fruit with plenty of sugar and grain and let this blend for at least two months. This drink, known as sloe fire, warms you from the inside during the cold season.
The fruit of blackthorn - a proven natural medicine
In naturopathy you use blackthorn blossoms and fruits to alleviate a variety of ailments. Sloes contain much tannin, strengthen a weak stomach and relieve gingivitis. Its high content of vitamin C makes it an immune-boosting remedy for stubborn colds.
Tips & Tricks
The fruits of the blackthorn release much dye. Due to the tannic acid content, you can dye wool and linen with the natural dye without previous stain bluish pink.