How to store viburnum at home for the whole winter, fresh and dried

You can store viburnum in several ways - fresh and frozen, it is dried and various preparations are made from the berries: jams, preserves, marshmallows and more. Although each method has its own expiration dates, any of them is suitable for preserving viburnum for the winter. You can choose a method that will make the berry suitable for consumption for 2 years - that’s how long it can last at home after drying. However, the product may deteriorate if stored improperly.

How to collect viburnum and store it fresh?

For harvesting, you need to harvest the crop correctly and on time. It is better to harvest after the first frost, so the taste of the berries will become sweeter and lose excess bitterness. Using garden pruning shears, cut off a whole bunch and place it in a basket or bucket.

The berry can be stored fresh for a long time.

To prevent the product from deteriorating, it is worth organizing the following conditions:

The workpiece is well stored in a suspended state when the brushes are tied with natural thread.
Fresh storage should be done in a room with a low temperature. The room should be well ventilated.
To preserve vitamin C and avoid rotting or drying out of the berries, normal humidity should be maintained.

Ideal storage options are a veranda, cellar, cold hallway or attic. The only suitable place for storage in the apartment is the refrigerator. Berries can be stored here for about 1-2 months.

Freezing berries

If you freeze viburnum, the berries do not lose their benefits: all vitamins, micro- and macroelements are preserved in their original concentration. At the same time, the consistency also remains unchanged - the crop is frost-resistant, and the skin prevents damage to the pulp by sub-zero temperatures. There is one important rule for freezing - the berries must be separated from the stalks. There is no need to wash them; this is done after defrosting, before use.

How to prepare viburnum, ground with sugar?

The best option for storing viburnum is grinding it with sugar.

The product will take up little space, will not require constant revisions, will not require special conditions and will completely retain all vitamins.

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The cooking principle is simple:

Separate whole, unrotten berries from the bunch. Rinse the product in cold water and leave in a colander to drain excess moisture. Dry. If minimal freezing is done before chopping, the berries will release more juice.
Using a blender, grind the product, strain the mixture through a sieve or cheesecloth. This will separate the seeds and skin from the pulp and juice.
Mix the prepared mass with sugar. Sugar and viburnum are combined in a 2:1 ratio, i.e. the amount of sugar should be 2 times more than the berries.
Transfer the sweet mixture into sterilized jars. A regular plastic cap will do for sealing. You can also preserve the product.

Viburnum, ground with sugar, should be stored in a cool place. Over time, the juice may separate from the sweet pulp, but this is normal for this type of preparation.

other methods

There are several more original ideas on how best to preserve the benefits of this berry:

store berries in bottles of cold water in a cold cellar at a temperature of about 0°C;
grind with honey and put into jars;
prepare jam, compote with apples, jam, jelly, etc.;
make candied fruits.

How to squeeze juice from viburnum and prepare liqueur?

You can make liqueurs based on viburnum. The taste of the alcoholic drink will be bright and slightly tart.

There are several options for preparing liqueur, but for viburnum you should use the simplest one:

Make fruit juice from pre-washed and dried berries using a blender.
To get juice with pulp, you should filter the liquid through a sieve or cheesecloth.
Choose vodka or alcohol (depending on the percentage of alcohol for the liqueur).
Mix the components in a 1:1 ratio. Add sugar to the composition, put it in a dark and warm place for 12 days.
Make a small hole in the plastic lid, since the container must partially allow oxygen to pass through.
After 12 days, pour into another container, having first filtered the product through a fine sieve.

Features of collection

If you do not buy viburnum, but grow it on your own plot, it is important to understand the timing and nuances of harvesting, since the safety of the harvest may depend on this. Next, we will consider how and when to cut it correctly and what external signs indicate its ripeness. Viburnum is a unique plant of its kind; its beneficial properties have practically no analogues.

Viburnum is a unique plant of its kind; its beneficial properties have practically no analogues.

When to collect viburnum

It is difficult to accurately name the ripening dates, since they differ for different regions. In general, already at the end of August - beginning of September, the berries begin to turn red. In mid-latitudes, the collection period begins already at the beginning of October. The onset of small, stable frosts is the main criterion for starting collection. It is with the onset of cold weather that viburnum loses its bitterness and acquires a pleasant taste. Also by this time it is completely enriched with useful substances.

If it is not possible to harvest the crop in frosty conditions, or the autumn in your region turned out to be very warm, the berries can be collected ahead of schedule and placed in the freezer for a couple of days to ripen.

Important! The day of picking berries must be fine and dry, without fog or precipitation, otherwise the harvest will be lost

How to cut correctly

Both fully ripe and slightly unripe berries need to be cut from the bush in a bunch (along with the stalk) using garden shears or pruning shears. The branches will already be dry. At the same time, unripe berries in this form will be able to fully ripen, and ripe ones can be easily separated from the branch by slightly rubbing them in your hand.

Recipes for viburnum jam, jelly and marshmallows

Jam, jelly and marshmallows are prepared in accordance with a specific recipe, which involves preserving the vitamins of viburnum.

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Paste

How to cook:

Soak the prepared berries in hot water for 3 minutes, then rinse with cold water. Blanch.
Pour the fruits into a saucepan and cook until pureed.
Rub the puree through a sieve. Add sugar to the puree in a 1:1 ratio.
Continue cooking the sweet mass until it thickens.
Pour the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with paper. Cool, and then put in the refrigerator for another day.
Cut the frozen layer into rectangles or squares. Roll in powdered sugar.

Jam

How to make cold jam:

Pour honey into a jar with viburnum fruits in a 1:1 ratio. Water with sugar dissolved in it will also work.
Leave the container on the table and wait until the sticky substance turns red.
Add syrup to tea instead of sugar.

Viburnum marshmallow recipe:

Wash the berries in cold water.
Pour hot water over it and immediately start squeezing the fruits to get maximum juice.
Add 1.5 kg of sugar to 1 liter of juice. Mix.
Pour into jars, close the lids and put in the refrigerator.
Leave to harden for about a day.

Beneficial features

Viburnum contains many useful components and vitamins (A, E, C). Doctors prescribe decoctions of viburnum to strengthen the immune system after illness. Viburnum will also help get rid of swelling and kidney problems. If you consume viburnum, you can significantly increase the level of hemoglobin in the blood.

In cosmetology, viburnum is also used for toning masks for different skin types. The juice can be used against inflammatory pimples and acne, and helps smooth out wrinkles.

For colds and inflammatory processes, a decoction of viburnum flowers helps well. It increases appetite and sweating.

Let's look at the main ways to store viburnum

Fresh viburnum. After collecting viburnum, the question arises: how to store it? The easiest and laziest way is to leave it in the refrigerator. You can also leave it in the basement or on the balcony, anywhere it is cool. Stretch the string and arrange the viburnum branches along the entire length. If you decide to store it in the refrigerator, place it in a pan so it can breathe. With this storage, the berries will last up to 6 months, and at any time you can use them at your discretion.

If you want to extend the storage of berries, you need to wash them, dry them, place them on a tray in a thin row and put them in the freezer. After the berries have hardened, they can be transferred to a plastic bag and placed in the freezer. With this storage, the berries will last a whole year and will not lose their medicinal properties. One of the disadvantages of such storage is the space it takes up in the freezer.

Dried viburnum. In winter, viburnum can be dried. There is nothing complicated about this, you need to wash the berries, place them on a baking sheet and dry them in the oven or near the stove at a temperature of 45-55 degrees. After drying the berries, separate them from the bunches and place them in fabric bags. The bags must be stored in a dry and cool place. With this storage, the berries will last until the next harvest.

In this form, the berries can be used for infusions: pour 25-30 grams of berries with 500 ml of boiling water and put on fire for 15 minutes. Remove and cool the liquid, strain it, then take 100 g before meals. This infusion gives a calming effect and strengthens the body.

Viburnum with sugar. There are two options for storing viburnum in sugar: grated and whole. This viburnum is used in winter to treat colds. Some people use it as a dessert.

How to prepare this mixture: for 1 kg of fresh viburnum berries you will need 0.5-0.8 kg of sugar. The procedure is the same as in the previous versions, you need to wash and dry the berries. And then pour into glass jars, alternating sugar and viburnum. We do this so that at the end the sugar covers the entire surface of the viburnum. Store these jars in the refrigerator with the lids tightly secured. Similarly, you can grind viburnum with honey (1:1) and also seal it in jars; this mixture can be consumed no earlier than after 7 days.

Juice from viburnum. There are a lot of options for harvesting; this option will help you preserve as many useful components of the berries as possible. You can cook it with or without sugar. Viburnum is best used frozen.

Method 1. Pour 1 kilogram of berries into a saucepan and fill with water (approximately 250 ml). Bring everything to a boil. After the liquid has cooled, strain it. Pasteurize for 10 minutes. Store the resulting juice at a temperature of no more than +12 degrees.

Method 2. You need to grate 1 kilogram of berries, strain everything through cheesecloth and pour 250 ml of boiling water. Cook for 15 minutes. You can add sugar if desired.

Homemade tinctures. Such tinctures will be appreciated by lovers of strong alcoholic drinks. After all, you can make delicious and healthy alcoholic drinks, liqueurs, wines or tinctures from viburnum berries.
Pouring. Mix berry juice, water, sugar, vodka in the ratio (1:1:1:5). Place all the resulting liquid in a cold place. The liqueur should stand for at least 2 days, then it can be consumed.
Wine. Grind 1 kilogram of viburnum berries, pour 500 ml of water into the whole mixture, add sugar. Leave the resulting mixture to ferment. Keep in a cool place for 3 days, then add another 80 g of sugar. Repeat the procedure twice within three days. Secure the lids tightly. After the fermentation process has passed, the resulting wine can be bottled and sealed. This wine must be stored in a cool, warm place.

How to make oil and vinegar from viburnum?

Viburnum oil is prepared from the residues after squeezing out the juice, from the cake:

Pass the cake through a meat grinder.
Mix the main component with vegetable oil in a ratio of 1:4.
Leave for 1 month.
Strain, remove the pulp, and pour into bottles for further storage.

Viburnum vinegar can be prepared according to the following recipe:

Place ½ kg of fruit, 1 glass of sugar in a glass container, add 2 liters of water.
Place in a dark place for 60 days.
Stir daily for the first week.
When the water becomes clear, use vinegar to dress salads.

Drying viburnum in the oven or dryer at home

How to dry fruits in the oven:

Place the fruits on a baking sheet lined with paper.
Preheat the oven to a temperature of 50-60 °C.
Leave for about 1 hour.
When the fruits begin to wrinkle, remove the berries, cool them, then place them additionally in a glass container to allow the product to dry.

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Drying can be done in a simpler way:

Place the fruits on paper in 1 layer and cover with gauze.
Stir the mixture periodically.
Leave for about 2 weeks.

Drying basil for the winter

Harvesting basil using the drying method is quite simple, and there is no need to use special equipment. The advantage of this method is the maximum preservation of healing properties and taste, while the aroma of dry seasoning is slightly inferior in properties to freshly cut herbs.

In home drying conditions, it is often necessary to process raw materials as quickly as possible, so an oven or electric household appliances are preferred to natural drying.

Regardless of the chosen method, it is important to know about the basic rules of the process

Naturally

Drying naturally allows you to preserve the aroma of the plant and the maximum amount of nutrients. You can do this in two ways:

drying greens on a flat surface;
preliminary collection of plants into bunches and hanging.

The first option is more often used in cases where seasoning is made for culinary purposes. Its essence lies in the fact that pre-prepared greens are laid out on a flat surface and dried in the natural conditions of the room.

The second option is used to obtain medicinal raw materials or to obtain an ingredient for cosmetics. It involves forming bundles of twigs by tying them at the base for further hanging in the room. It is recommended to form them from 6-7 pieces. The ideal place for this drying method is the attic.

Excessive humidity will cause the grass to smell like moldy hay; too much light will cause the product to darken. If there is insufficient ventilation, the greens will begin to rot and deteriorate, and it will be impossible to obtain high-quality material. The process should be monitored periodically; to prevent rotting of the raw materials and uniform drying, it is necessary to periodically turn the raw materials over.

In the oven

Drying in the oven must be done carefully, as it can easily dry out the herb. The advantage of this method is its speed, but the usefulness of the final product, compared to natural drying, is less. The process looks like this:

The process looks like this:

the sheet is removed from the oven;
the stove is heated to 40 C;
Leaves are laid out in a thin layer on a baking sheet;
the greens are placed on a sheet in the oven, the door is left ajar;
basil is kept for 1 hour, the product is stirred periodically;
The oven is turned off, the greens are left in the oven with the door open overnight.

The readiness of dry basil and the degree of drying are checked by touch and visually. Properly prepared basil crumbles easily and can be ground.

In an electric dryer

It is recommended to process the leaves in an electric dryer, since, in the presence of twigs, it is often not possible to achieve uniform drying. After processing, the following manipulations are carried out:

the leaves are placed on a pallet;
form an even small layer;
provide a temperature of 40 C.

During the process, the degree of drying of greens in the electric dryer is monitored. Some people use a microwave to obtain dry seasoning, turning on the equipment at full power for several minutes. The average time to obtain the finished ingredient at 700 W mode will be 3 minutes.

Storing dried viburnum

After drying, you need to think about how to preserve the berries so that they do not dry out, bloom or spoil.

The following methods are suitable:

If the stalk is preserved, then form a bunch from the bunch and hang it in a cool place. Additionally, the bunch can be covered with a light cloth.
If the berries were dried separately, then each viburnum fruit will be preserved if you pour the berries into a textile bag.
The ideal place for storage is a glass jar, which is closed with a plastic lid.
An alternative solution is a plastic container.

Important aspects

Ripe viburnum is a tender berry. When collecting, you need to stock up on capacious containers so that the brushes do not wrinkle. Before processing them:

berries are sorted, removing rotten or spoiled by birds;
washed without removing from the bunches;
laid out in one row to dry on cloth or paper.

The fruits are easily separated from the branches; to do this, just shake the brush lightly. For freezing, viburnum is not washed, but is done immediately before use after defrosting.