Dandelion Jam - General Description
In a small roadside dandelion combines so many useful properties, no wonder he was called the "home healer" - people say that he heals 100 diseases. It has been eaten since the days of our ancestors, preparing various wholesome and tasty dishes.
In China, dandelion is still considered a food product, it is specially grown on plantations as a vegetable for vitamin salads, various liqueurs and tinctures, medicines that can be prepared from succulent leaves and root parts, and, of course, dandelion jam, which All time has been the most popular. Because of its yellowish - golden color, pleasant aroma and a huge number of healing properties, enclosed in these little droplets of the sun, it is called dandelion honey.
Judge for yourself - this is not just a tasty product, but also a remedy for cholecystitis and hepatitis, a drug for liver, stomach and excellent prevention of bronchitis and asthma, while it has practically no contraindications. Many housewives, once having tried to make dandelion jam, include this recipe in their cookbook forever.
In order to make jam, it is necessary to put a minimum of effort, and most importantly - to collect barely opened juicy buds. Raw materials for jam - dandelion flowers - are collected in the spring, as soon as the flowering period of the plant begins, approximately in April-May. Since this flower is considered a roadside weed in our country, try to get away from the roads in order to use more eco-friendly and pure flowers.
Dandelion jam - preparation of dishes
This jam can be cooked in ordinary dishes that have the purpose of cooking food - an enamel saucepan, a basin or stainless steel products will do. Sometimes use copper utensils. Jam, cooked in an enamel pot, can be left to cool in a container, stainless steel and copper products must be immediately put in glass jars, which are carefully washed and doused with boiling water. Prepare the lids for the cans immediately so that you can close them upside down and wrap them upside down.
Dandelion jam - flower preparation
To make a jam that resembles amber in color, it is necessary to cook about 400 heads of a dandelion in May, separating them from the stems and leaves. View forest lawns, river banks and streams, away from plants and factories. Dandelions should be collected at noon, in the bright light of the sun, so that the heads of the flowers are as open as possible. Flowers pour cold water (half a liter) and boil for about two minutes. Pull the resulting decoction into a colander with gauze spread in it and allow to drain, then carefully squeeze.
Dandelion jam - recipe 1
Quick recipe. For quick jam, take 7 glasses of sugar and pour them pressed water. Bring to a boil on fire, lay out dandelions and boil for 7 minutes. Pour into small cans, close the lid, wrap. After cooling, the jam is ready, you need to store it in the refrigerator.
Dandelion jam - recipe 2
Dandelion jam with lemon. This is a more complicated process. To begin with, dandelions are soaked in water for 24 hours. After pressing, boil in half a liter of water for 15 minutes. You can take one big or two small lemons, which are cut along with the zest, boiled and left to infuse for a day. After that, filter to remove the lemon pieces and flowers, add 1-1.5 kg of sugar to the remaining syrup. Cook jam should be in two - three doses, cooling it every time. The result should be a texture similar to honey in color and viscosity.
Dandelion jam - recipe 3
Dandelion jam with oranges. In order to boil jam from 250 grams of dandelion flowers, we need 2 oranges, 1 lemon and 750 grams of sugar for each liter of syrup. Washed oranges, along with the peel, are cut into four pieces and thinly cut across each of them. The dandelion flowers, washed and dried on paper towels, are placed in the cooking container along with the oranges and pour 1, 5 liters of water. Cook an hour. Strain the mixture and add sugar and lemon juice, boil for another 20 minutes. Before being poured into cans, they are allowed to cool completely.
Dandelion jam - recipe 4 (without boiling)
This composition does not require boiling. Flowers pass through a meat grinder together with the stems and add 2 tablespoons of honey to 0.5 liters of the mixture. Close the lid and insist for 12 hours, stirring several times. Accepted as a tonic with green tea. This folk remedy is called dandelion ginseng, it raises the tone of the body and activates its internal forces.
Dandelion jam - tips from experienced chefs
- It is very important to save the greatest amount of dandelion nutrients when making jam, so you should not squeeze immediately after gauging through cheesecloth, leave it to cool and infuse for a day to maximize the syrup. After pressing, boil the jam again.
- If you do not have a lemon on hand, you can use citric acid instead. To enhance the taste of the jam, you can add a few cherry leaves when cooking along with the flowers.
- To taste, dandelion jam resembles honey. Its use as a medicinal and regenerating agent is best done on an empty stomach in the morning, taking a salty spoon of jam dissolved in water.
In order to enhance the therapeutic effect of jam, you can dissolve it when eaten in green tea or milk thistle solution. Dandelion and milk thistle combine their healing properties very well and enhance the anti-inflammatory, choleretic and tonic properties of plants.
In winter, the unusual taste of dandelion honey will remind you of the tenderness of the first sun and the peaceful work of humming bees. Stock up on it and enjoy its pleasant aroma.
