A simple recipe for making rhubarb compote for the winter
Rhubarb grows in the garden, its sour petioles are familiar to many from childhood, often there was jam from this plant on the table. Rhubarb compotes were also cooked; few people rolled it up for the winter. It turns out that the drink, even after heat treatment, will retain many useful substances, with regular use, it will increase immunity and protect against viral diseases. In addition, the drink is very tasty, and berry and fruit additives make the taste unusual.
The subtleties of cooking
The recipe for rhubarb compote for the winter has its own subtleties of preparation. In order for the result to be excellent, you need to know the following secrets:
- use only well-washed and sterilized containers;
- check the quality of the seaming, the covers must not allow air to pass through;
- use only trusted manufacturers when purchasing the necessary supplements;
- store the cooked product correctly.
To improve the taste, various spices and herbs are added to the compote, the main thing here is not to overdo it. It is best to use one type and then in moderation.
All berries and fruits that will be used are also thoroughly washed and dried. It is advisable to cut citrus fruits into thick rings or slices, remove the seed from the stone fruit, free the berries from cuttings.
Preparation of the main ingredient
Rhubarb compote for the winter can be prepared in several ways. The preparatory part should always be present, only in this way the drink will turn out to be tasty and healthy. Rhubarb stalks are prepared as follows:
- For preparations for the winter, only red petioles are used, green ones will not give a full taste, and sometimes they can spoil the finished product.
- The stems are washed well before use. Cleaning is mandatory, removing the film from the surface of each petiole.
- Only chopped stems are used in rhubarb jam and compote.
- It is best to take freshly cut petioles.
Advice! If it is not possible to use the stems of the plant immediately after cutting, do not store them in the refrigerator, after a couple of days they will become unsuitable for conservation.
The peculiarities of the preparation include the use of lemon or citric acid in granules in the preparation of freshly squeezed juice. Cinnamon sticks, zest, berries and fruits are often added.
Cooking methods
It's time to prepare a healthy and tasty drink, all the ingredients are ready, and they start to work. Here are just a lot of recipes, everyone chooses for himself to taste.
The main ingredients will be water, rhubarb stalks, sugar, the rest of the ingredients will complement the solo element.
A simple recipe for the winter
Rhubarb compote is prepared for the winter, a simple recipe of which will not take much time, and in winter it will delight not only home guests, but also suddenly arriving guests with taste and color. You need to take:
- 12-13 medium petioles of the plant;
- 4 liters of water;
- a teaspoon of dried Sudanese rose flowers;
- a glass of sugar.
Water with sugar is brought to a boil in a container, prepared and chopped rhubarb stalks are placed in the syrup, hibiscus is added. All ingredients are boiled for 4-6 minutes, and then poured into prepared jars and rolled up.
Advice! So that hibiscus flowers do not come across in the compote, you can brew it in advance, and then prepare syrup for the compote on this basis.
Some housewives boil the petioles until they are completely soft, then mash them in mashed potatoes, boil them again with syrup, and only then pour them into jars. This compote is called a pulp drink.
With orange
Many people like rhubarb compote with orange for the winter. In addition to the aroma, the drink contains a high concentration of vitamin C, which helps fight viruses and bacteria in the cold season. A sprig of rosemary will add new notes to the drink, later it can become an excellent base for other warming drinks.
For cooking take:
- about 200-250 g of peeled rhubarb stalks;
- orange;
- half a liter of water;
- a glass of sugar;
- a glass of fresh orange juice;
- a sprig of rosemary.
Chopped orange and rhubarb are placed in prepared jars. In a saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil, add rosemary. Immediately after boiling, add juice and zest from the fruit. After 2-3 minutes of boiling, the syrup is poured into jars with prepared products and immediately rolled up.
Advice! You can put orange slices or rings and rhubarb in boiling syrup. After boiling, soak them in syrup for 5-7 minutes, and then pour into jars. In this case, rosemary need not be used.
With strawberry
Many people like rhubarb; recipes for making compote for the winter from it are very diverse. The method of cooking with strawberries is distinguished by its sophistication; in addition to the ingredients already listed, it will need a little mint, sugar and water for syrup. At the rate of 2 liters of water, take half a kilogram of strawberries and sugar, twice as many petioles from the garden will go, about a kilogram.
Strawberries are cut in half, rhubarb into small pieces, put into a saucepan, sprinkled with sugar and chopped mint. Add a small amount of water and simmer until the stalks are soft. In this form, the semi-finished product for compote is left to soak for 6-8 hours.
Syrup is prepared from water and a glass of sugar in a separate container. Warmed strawberries with rhubarb are placed in prepared jars and poured with hot syrup. Roll up and store until winter.
Advice! It is not at all necessary to use mint, without it the compote will be no less tasty and fragrant.
With apples
Rhubarb and apple compote is prepared without sugar for the winter, it is replaced with honey. An unusual ingredient is pomegranate seeds, which will give the drink a special taste and color. Prepare the drink like this:
- 45 g of natural honey are diluted in 1.3 liters of water, brought to a boil.
- Add 45 g of lemon juice, add chopped rhubarb and apple pieces.
- Boil for 5 minutes, then add pomegranate grains, boil for a couple of minutes, pour into prepared jars, cork.
Important! Before boiling the syrup, be sure to try it, add more honey if necessary. You can make rhubarb compote and apples with sugar.
With lemon
A drink with lemon is quite simple to prepare, the procedure will not take much time if you prepare correctly beforehand. The proportions are as follows: a couple of lemon slices, 2.5 liters of water, and one and a half glasses of sugar are taken per half a kilo of stems.
A syrup is prepared from water and sugar, cut rhubarb and lemon slices are placed in it. Boil for 4-6 minutes, pour into prepared jars and roll up.
Advice! For flavor, you can add some vanilla sugar at the end.
With cherries
A drink made from the following ingredients can please in winter:
- 400 g of cherries and rhubarb;
- 3.2 liters of water;
- sugar to taste.
The syrup is boiled, chopped cherries and rhubarb are poured into the jars, everything is poured with hot syrup, and corked.
Advice! It is advisable to wrap such a drink and leave it to cool completely.
Without sterilization
This option will take a little longer, but the drink will be more refined. Rhubarb compote for the winter without sterilization is prepared from the following components:
- a pound of stems;
- cinnamon sticks;
- a teaspoon of lime juice;
- a pinch of vanilla;
- one and a half liters of water;
- 70 g sugar.
The cut stems are placed on the bottom of the cans, water is boiled in a saucepan. Prepared petioles are poured with boiling water and covered with lids, but not rolled up. After 5-10 minutes, the liquid is poured back into the pan, the rest of the ingredients, except for lime juice, are added and boiled. Pour in the juice, bring to a boil and pour the resulting syrup into jars with scalded stems. Roll up.
It is important not only to prepare a drink correctly, storage conditions will also be important.
How to store such a compote
A cellar or basement, where it will be dark and cool, would be an excellent storage place. Only completely cooled cans are placed there, checked for leaks.
Periodically, it is advisable to check the container for swollen lids, such a compote must be poured. A swollen lid indicates that the process was not carried out correctly, some of the ingredients did not pass the required heat treatment.
