Autumn came, and the memory of ancestors began to speak imperiously in the average Russian. She says: "Salts of a mammoth, otherwise there will be nothing to eat in winter!"
So everything that only grows on Russian soil and in the near abroad is salted, fermented, boiled, dried and dried in the absence of furry giants.
What products do the inhabitants of the former USSR prefer? Yandex specialists became interested in this issue, having analyzed more than 35 million requests for edible topics, which included the cherished “for the winter”. As a result, a list of the most popular products for harvesting for the winter was compiled. We present the top ten to your attention.
10. Plums
Few of any fruit can make such a wonderful jam - dense, velvety, tasty. You can make jam only from plums, or you can add apples, oranges, pears, nectarines and even juniper with tomatoes to it.
For plum lovers and sugar lovers, there are pickled plums with garlic or a sour sauce made from them, which is perfect for meat dishes. And also plums are frequent "guests" in compotes, usually mixed with cheaper chokeberry.
9. Cabbage
Cabbage can be fermented both in "natural" form, that is, only with salt, and with various flavorings. The usual companions of sauerkraut for the winter are:
- carrot;
- beet;
- apples;
- cranberry;
- lingonberry;
- and even honey.
And then there is the so-called "crumb" - when not only white, but also the top, green leaves of cabbage are fermented, which you cannot always buy in a store (there the cabbage is usually completely peeled). This dish is not consumed as an independent dish, but usually cabbage soup is cooked with it, which is called "gray" because of its color. And although this color is inconspicuous, in fact "gray" cabbage soup is very tasty.
If you don't like the taste of sauerkraut, you can marinate it solo or in the company of other vegetables (carrots, cabbage, garlic, etc.) or berries (cranberries or lingonberries). Or, in the "Georgian" version - with hot pepper. There is also a particularly vitamin version, which grandmothers like to feed their grandchildren - cabbage mixed with bell peppers, apples, onions and grapes.
8. Currant
One of the advantages of currants (in addition to their prevalence, frost resistance and comparative unpretentiousness) is that they are excellent gelatinous. Therefore, red currant jelly is one of the most popular dishes in all of Russia.
However, you can still make compotes from currants, cook jam, syrups (and then use them as a basis for fruit drinks), and also just wipe with sugar. The canned, unsweetened version of this berry goes well as a flavoring agent for fish or meat.
7. Carrots
Most often, carrots do not act as an independent ingredient for harvesting, but complete with other vegetables (many of which have already appeared in the top 10 most popular products for harvesting in Russia) - cabbage, beets, bell peppers, zucchini and eggplants.
And in solo it is usually used as a vegetable caviar - for example, in the Poltavskaya seasoning. Sometimes it is canned in oil or vinegar and served as a side dish with meat.
6. Apples
Another fruit (besides plum) that managed to break into the list of the most popular, tasty and healthy preparations for the winter. And for good reason. In terms of fertility and abundance, apples are akin to zucchini - they can also grow anywhere and in any way.
And in the fall, something must be done with this fragrant abundance. So they do it: they boil jams, compotes, distill apples into fragrant vinegar, cut the fruits and dry them in the oven in the form of chips, and even roll up jars with filling for pies in advance so that they don't mess around later. And apples are salted, fermented and soaked in kvass, rye malt or honey water.
5. Eggplant
In popularity as an ingredient for preparations for the winter, "blue" are not much behind the zucchini. Perhaps due to the fact that these purple overseas guests are more capricious in cultivation.
The summer of 2019 turned out to be cold, which influenced the ratings of many vegetable crops. Judging by the search queries, the citizens looked at the prices on the counters, sighed and decided that the mammoth is a mammoth, and they want to eat right now.
As a result, the number of requests on the topic “how to cook eggplants for the winter” decreased by 15%; currants and tender strawberries also suffered.
What is done with eggplant? They are fermented on their own, fermented along with cabbage (stuffed), marinated both simply in salted water with vinegar, and in a more refined mixture of olive oil, rice wine, soy sauce and rice vinegar. And for beauty, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Another very popular dish is stewed eggplant with vegetables, either cut into rings or in the form of vegetable caviar.
4. Bulgarian pepper
Like carrots, pepper rarely appears as an independent dish among the blanks. Usually he is an invited guest, designed to set off the vegetable splendor of the harvest. Except for lecho.
Surprisingly, this dish, Bulgarian in its origin, won the ardent love of Russians. If you use a search engine with the words "bell pepper for the winter", then the vast majority of recipes will be about it - about lecho. Although peppers can also be simply marinated or even made unsweetened confiture mixed with hot peppers - for meat and poultry dishes.
3. Zucchini
Oh, those zucchini. They are ways to survive in the most unimaginable conditions and delight their owners with a bountiful harvest, grow up to huge size... However, joy quickly gives way to sorrow, when tired owners load the tenth bucket into the car, and the zucchini does not end there.
So you have to throw all your strength into the fight against the harvest - fry, stew, boil and, of course, prepare for the winter.
Zucchini is usually marinated in a mixture of water, sugar, salt and vinegar. There are also more refined options when vegetables or even berries (gooseberries, currants) are added to the zucchini. And if the zucchini are very young and did not have time to mature, they can be salted - yes, just like cucumbers, using the same technology.
But the most important plus of zucchini is their ability to accept the taste of surrounding products, acting as a kind of ideal receptor. So the thrifty housewives rejoice, giving the zucchini the taste of mushrooms, sweet pepper or even gooseberries with lemon in the form of jam.
2. Cucumbers
Interestingly, it turns out that a person's place of residence can be determined by whether he spins tomatoes or cucumbers for the winter.
- The closer the cuisine is to the Pacific Ocean, the higher the popularity of the cucumber.
- Behind the Yenisei, a green and pimpled vegetable reigns in the blanks almost completely.
- The only two renegade regions that violate the overall green picture with bright red are the Khabarovsk and Primorsky Territories. Although there Signor Tomato overtakes his lanky vegetable counterpart at a minimum distance.
- True, there are also dissidents in the European part of the country. For example, in Crimea, cucumbers are preferred - the only green island among the Red Sea. Maybe they are especially tasty among Crimeans.
Usually, for the winter, cucumbers are salted at full strength or until "lightly salted" state. And they also make blanks for pickles out of them - they rub the green ones on a grater, mix with salt and garlic and roll them into jars.
1. Tomatoes
The first place in the selection of the best products for preparing for the winter went to a valuable source of vitamins and antioxidants. In addition, it is quite easy to cultivate and grows almost everywhere. What do they do with him? Why don't they do it!
Kvass: leaves of horseradish, dill, currant or cherry, horseradish root, garlic, (if there is a desire for hotter, then a small incised hot pepper) are put in a bucket, poured with brine. Then they wait two weeks at room temperature and put them in jars or just take them out onto the winter balcony.
Heat treated: used as a base for seasonings, usually adjika. Adjika recipes are great - every family has its own. Some like it sharper and put more horseradish, others lean on hot peppers, and the third like the "apple" version - when tomatoes are minced with apples, carrots, bell peppers and garlic.
If desired, you can add hot peppers. The resulting mixture is stewed in sunflower oil, brought to a boil and immediately poured into jars. Or they make an Indian spice - chutney, when tomatoes are rolled into jars along with apples, onions, raisins and fresh ginger.
Pickled. There is also room for imagination - tomatoes can be pickled both separately and stuffed (cabbage, carrots, mushrooms). And it is not even necessary to wait for the ripening of the fruits - there are recipes for green tomatoes.
Salted: tomatoes are poured with a solution of salt mixed with sugar and dry mustard, rolled in jars and patiently waiting for the New Year, when the red ones can be put on the table.
Dry: Recently, this method has become more and more popular among cooks, beginners and not so much. Usually cherry tomatoes are used for drying, which are cut in half, sprinkled with a mixture of salt, pepper and herbs (usually marjoram) and put in the oven. When the vegetables have dried well (the whole process takes from noon to a day), they are poured with olive oil and sealed for the winter.
Enjoy your meal!