Freezing is one of the easiest ways to stock up on fast-moving vegetables, berries and fruits. Thanks to it, almost the whole complex of vitamins and minerals is preserved in the fruits, and you have the opportunity in the middle of winter to treat your loved ones with delicious dishes and drinks. Today's article will tell you how to make stewed fruit from frozen berries.
General recommendations
For brewing such drinks you need to use only enameled dishes. Aluminum pans are categorically unsuitable for these purposes, since the material from which they are made reacts with the acid in the fruit. As a result, instead of a healthy compote, you risk getting a tasteless liquid that can harm your health.
Having dealt with the dishes, you need to say a few words about the main components of the drink. Water should be filtered or at least boiled and settled. As a sweetener, sugar, honey or fructose are most often used. And to enhance the taste and aroma, citrus zest, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, mint, cinnamon or vanillin are added to the general pan.
As for plant materials, it is loaded into a boiling liquid, without waiting until it thaws. How much to cook compote from frozen berries depends on the variety of fruits used. And the tastiest drinks are those made on the basis of cherries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, sea buckthorn, gooseberries and currants. Moreover, these berries can be used both individually and in combination with each other.
With cherry
This fortified drink is remembered for its rich shade and pleasant sweet and sour taste. It is prepared from just three ingredients and does not contain additional flavorings. Before you cook compote from frozen berries, make sure that you have everything you need at your fingertips. In this case, you will need:
- 3 liters of standing water.
- 550 g of frozen cherries.
- 250 g of sugar.
Before making a compote of frozen berries, they do not need to be kept at room temperature so that they thaw. The cherries are simply put in a pan, covered with sugar and poured with water, and then sent to the stove and cooked for five minutes from the moment of boiling. The resulting drink is infused under a lid and served in beautiful glasses.
With currants, blackberries and cranberries
This multi-component drink has a rich taste and rich aroma. It turns out to be moderately sweet and will surely appeal not only to adults, but to every child. Compote of frozen berries consists of several ingredients, including:
- 120 g of sugar.
- 100 g of black currant.
- 70 g of blackberries.
- 50 g raspberries.
- 50 g cranberries.
- 3 liters of standing water.
You need to start the process with the preparation of the syrup. To obtain it, water is combined with sugar and brought to a boil. Five minutes after the appearance of the first bubbles, the frozen berries are slowly loaded into the simmering liquid and boiled together a little less than a quarter of an hour. The finished drink is not long insisted under the lid and only then poured into glasses.
With gooseberries and lemon
Those who like not only tasty, but also healthy drinks should pay attention to the recipe discussed below. Compote of frozen gooseberries, supplemented with lemon slices, is distinguished by a slight acidity and a pronounced citrus aroma. To weld it at home, you will need:
- 250 g regular sugar.
- 500 g of gooseberries.
- 1.8 liters of standing water.
- 5 mint leaves.
- ½ lemon.
Frozen gooseberries are laid out in a saucepan, covered with sugar and poured with water, and then sent to the fire and brought to a boil. Immediately after the appearance of the first bubbles, the future drink is supplemented with lemon slices and mint leaves. All this is boiled for ten minutes, insisted under a lid and filtered.
With raspberries
Fans of warming drinks should not ignore the recipe below. A compote pan of frozen raspberries, supplemented with dried mint, will not be full for long. Therefore, tune in advance that your family will ask for supplements. To brew this bright fortified drink you will need:
- 2.5 liters of standing water.
- 500 g raspberries.
- 100 g dried mint.
- 200 g of sugar.
First you need to do mint. It is poured with a liter of hot water and insisted within half an hour. After the specified time, the resulting liquid is filtered, sweetened and supplemented with slightly thawed berries. All this is diluted with the remaining water and boiled for seven minutes from the moment of boiling. The finished drink is infused under the lid and after an hour they begin tasting.
With currants and cloves
Tart, slightly sour berries will be an excellent basis for making compote. To brew a flavored drink, you will need:
- 2.5 liters of standing water.
- 1 cup of currant.
- ½ cup regular sugar.
- 4 cloves.
This is one of the simplest options for compote of frozen berries. In the pan, all the required components are connected at once, they are filled with water and sent to the stove. Two minutes after the moment of boiling, the fire is turned off under the container and the dishes are covered with a lid.
With mountain ash and lingonberries
This combination of berries has a pleasant, slightly tart taste and will surely appeal to those who do not like sugary drinks. To cook such a compote, you will need:
- 2 liters of standing water.
- 5 tbsp. l regular sugar.
- 1 cup aronia and lingonberries.
Before you make a compote of frozen berries, you need to make a syrup. To do this, sugar is poured into a pan with water and heated until all crystals are completely dissolved. At the next stage, rowan and lingonberry are loaded into the sweet liquid. All this is brought back to a boil and boiled for four minutes. After that, the pan is removed from the heat, and its contents are insisted under the lid until it cools completely.
With cherries and red currants
This fortified berry drink has a rich taste and pronounced aroma. To treat them to your household, you will need:
- 2 liters of standing water.
- 150 g of cherries, red currants and strawberries.
- Sugar (to taste).
Frozen berries are laid out in a large saucepan and poured with water. All this is sent to the stove, brought to a boil and cooked within seven minutes. Shortly before the end of the indicated time, the future compote is sweetened with the right amount of sugar. And before serving, the drink is insisted under the lid and filtered.
With viburnum
This rich berry mix compote has a pleasant spicy aroma, and its taste and color depend on the plant materials used. To weld it, you will need:
- 50 g of viburnum.
- 190 g of any berries.
- 4 slices of lemon.
- 2 cinnamon sticks.
- 2 stars star anise.
- 2 leaves of dried mint.
- 4 tbsp. l honey.
- 1.8 liters of standing water.
Before making compote, frozen berries are left for a short time at room temperature. When they thaw slightly, they are poured into a saucepan and supplemented with lemon slices. Cinnamon, star anise, dried mint and viburnum are added there. All this is poured with the required volume of water, brought to a boil and almost immediately removed from the fire. The finished drink is infused under the lid until completely cooled, sweetened with honey and served in beautiful glasses.
With blueberries
This delicious compote is a good combination of berries and lemon, which means it will not escape the attention of citrus lovers. To cook it in your own kitchen, you will need:
- 300 g blueberries.
- 120 g of sugar.
- 2 liters of standing water.
- 1 lemon.
Pour water into any suitable saucepan and bring to a boil. As soon as it begins to boil, sugar is poured into it and wait for it to dissolve. Frozen berries and washed, sliced lemon are loaded into the resulting syrup. All this is boiled for ten minutes, and then covered with a lid and insisted for at least half an hour.
With strawberries and mint
This sweet fragrant drink will be an excellent alternative to store juices and soda. To cook it for yourself and your loved ones, you will need:
- 550 g of strawberries.
- 140 g of mint.
- 260 g of regular sugar.
- 2.2 liters of standing water.
- Ground cinnamon.
It is advisable to start the process with the processing of mint. They wash it, knead it in a mortar, pour boiling water and leave it for a quarter of an hour. After that, frozen berries, sugar and cinnamon are added to it. All this is boiled for ten minutes and insisted under the lid.