TOP 3 simple recipes for pickled prunes for the winter in cans
Plum is one of the best fruits for preservation. Its main advantage is the richness of taste and the ability to keep its shape well during heat treatment. On the Web, you can find thousands of recipes for jam and compotes from plums, but today you hardly surprise anyone. The same cannot be said about pickled prunes - a rather rare but tasty appetizer, which, moreover, is easy to prepare.
Cooking secrets
Not all varieties are suitable for pickling prunes. The "Hungarian" variety (also called "Ugorka") is considered optimal in taste and properties. These plums are firm, with dense pulp, retain their shape well when heat treated.
To preserve the elasticity of the fruit, cognac is added to the marinade - in a symbolic amount (1-2 tablespoons per 1 kg of fruit). Cognac not only improves the quality of the fruit. It also imparts an exquisite spicy flavor and aroma.
Most recipes contain vinegar. There are no clear recommendations regarding its type: you can use both regular table vinegar, and apple or wine vinegar - whoever likes what.
Preparation of containers and products
When choosing fruits for pickling, give preference to firm, no damage, not fully ripe. This will save the dish from being mashed. Before cooking, the fruits are carefully sorted out, discarding those that have a hint of defects, remove the cuttings and rinse well under running water.
Like any preservation, rolling pickled prunes requires sterilization of the cans. Sterilization can be carried out in any of the known ways:
- on a steam bath: water is boiled in a saucepan, then a colander or sieve is placed on it, and jars are placed on it with the throat down. Sterilization time - 10-15 minutes;
- in the oven: washed cans are sent to an oven preheated to 160 degrees and left there for 10 to 25 minutes, depending on the volume of the container;
- in a double boiler or microwave oven according to the instructions for use of the technique.
How to pickle prunes for the winter in jars?
Marinating prunes for the winter is no more difficult than making jam or compote from it. In this case, you can roll it up in cans in the usual way or pasteurize.
Simple recipe
The easiest way to cook prunes is to pickle them whole, right with the bone.
Ingredient List:
- plums - 1 kg;
- water - 0.75 l;
- sugar - 1 glass;
- citric acid - 2 tbsp. l .;
- anise - 1 pc.;
- black pepper - 3-5 peas;
- cloves - 3-5 pcs.;
- cinnamon - 0.5 sticks;
- bay leaf - 1-2 pcs.;
- cognac - 1 tbsp. l.
Choose solid, semi-ripe plums with no external defects, remove the cuttings and wash well.Then place tightly in the desired volume of jars.
Boil water in a saucepan and pour it over the plums up to the neck. Let the fruit sit and cool.
Now drain the water back into the pot, add the remaining ingredients (except for the cognac) and simmer for 10-15 minutes after boiling. Add cognac to the marinade two minutes before removing from heat.
Pour the prepared spicy marinade over the prunes in the jars and roll them up in the usual way: using a key or special screw caps. Your dish is ready!
Without spice sterilization
You will need:
- prunes -1 kg;
- water - 1 l;
- salt - 1 tsp;
- sugar - 2 tbsp. l .;
- peppercorns - 12 pcs.;
- star anise - 4 pcs.;
- cloves - 6-8 pcs.;
- juniper berries - 3-4 pcs.;
- cinnamon - 2 sticks;
- table vinegar - 100 g;
- dill - 1-2 branches;
- horseradish - 1 sheet.
Prepare the fruit: wash thoroughly, peel off cuttings, check for spoilage and hardness of the fruit. Cut the plums in half without removing the pit.
In a saucepan with water, mix salt, sugar and spices: pepper, star anise, cloves, cinnamon, juniper - and put on a high heat. As it boils - remove the pan from the heat, pour in the vinegar. Dip the plums into the finished marinade and let stand for a while.
Put horseradish leaves with dill in a liter jar and add prunes with marinade. Send the resulting workpiece to pasteurize in a water bath for 10-15 minutes. The pickled prunes are ready, it remains to cool it in a cool, dark place.
With cloves
There are a lot of recipes for making pickled prunes with cloves. Cloves are found in almost all savory recipes. But if you are a fan of cloves as the dominant spice, this recipe is just for you. You will have to be patient, because the cooking process is not quick, but it's worth it!
So, you will need:
- plums - 2 kg;
- cloves - 5 g;
- bay leaf - 7-8 g;
- vinegar - 200 ml;
- sugar - 600 g
Go through and clean from the plum cuttings, wash them. Add bay leaf and cloves to the container to the fruit, mix well.
In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar and sugar and simmer until the sugar dissolves. Pour the resulting syrup over the plums and let them brew for 12 hours.
Don't worry about the marinade coming out a little. Each time, its amount will increase due to the own juice of the plums.
After 12 hours, drain the marinade and boil it. Then fill them with plums again and leave for 12 hours. Repeat these steps five times.
Before the last boil, evenly spread the spices in jars, put the plums in them and cover with boiling marinade. Screw the lids back on and leave in a cool place for a month.
Storage rules and periods
Like any other type of preservation, pickled prunes should be stored in a cool, dark place. A basement or pantry is ideal if it's not hot.
If the plums have been pickled without pits, they can be preserved for 3 years, keeping their freshness and taste. If the bones were not removed during the preparation, the shelf life is reduced to 1 year due to hydrocyanic acid, which gradually begins to penetrate from the seeds into the marinade.
If stored properly, pasteurized prunes retain their taste and quality also for 1 year.
