Classic ways of harvesting pears for the winter
This exquisite fruit has a sweet taste, mouth-watering aroma and many useful substances that you don't want to part with for a long time. Therefore, culinary experts use a variety of ways to harvest pears for the winter in order to enjoy their favorite fruit all year round. Each of them has its own characteristics and principle of preparation. As a result, pears acquire a refined and unique taste.
The fragrant fruit contains a large amount of potassium. Therefore, it is useful to eat it for those who have heart problems.
Ways of harvesting pears for the winter: tips, tricks, recipes
Timeless traditions of grandmothers - drying
In those days, when food was cooked on wood, and there were no glass jars, people tried to somehow prepare fruit for the winter. One of the easiest options is drying. This is the way our grandmothers used it several decades ago. They knew very well how to preserve pears for the winter and not lose a single valuable vitamin.
In winter, dried fruits are added to kefir, cottage cheese or oatmeal. They make a vitamin drink and a wonderful filling for pies.
To prepare a high-quality product, rather ripe fruits with a grainy mass of dense character are chosen. Sometimes immature variants are also used. When the fruits are harvested, and the hostess knows how to dry pears at home, she performs the following operations:
- thoroughly washes the fruits with running water;
- after complete drying, cuts into small slices;
- cover a wide baking sheet with paper;
- puts the prepared fruit slices on top of it so that they do not touch each other.
Grandma's method of harvesting pears for the winter is applicable for residents of country houses, since the baking sheet is placed in the attic or veranda. In addition, there must be constant air circulation in the room. The whole process usually takes about 7 days, and the fruit should be turned over regularly.
Harvesting dried fruits in the oven
A modern approach to business makes it possible to speed up the process without having a detrimental effect on the fruit. A wonderful way is to dry pears in an electric oven. For this, the prepared fruits are spread on a baking sheet in one level. Then it is sent to a cabinet heated to 60 degrees. When about 2 hours have passed, the temperature is increased to 80 ° C. The fruit remains in it for about 20 more hours.
Every 30 minutes it is necessary to turn the fruits over so that they dry thoroughly.
Profitable time savings – electric dryer
Recently, enterprising housewives have begun to widely use modern machines for harvesting fruit for the winter. Drying pears in an electric dryer begins with preparing the device for operation. First, it is harvested according to the instructions, and then they deal with the fruits:
- select high-quality copies;
- wash well under the tap;
- wipe each fruit with a paper towel;
- cut into equal pieces;
- neatly folded in the container of the unit;
- run the dryer for 15 or 19 hours.
Thanks to a simple recipe, dried pear retains its beneficial elements, aroma and excellent taste. The finished fruits are neatly folded into glass jars, corked with nylon lids, and then placed in a safe place. Ideally, it should be as dry as possible, well-ventilated, and preferably dark.
Dried pears are actively used for the preparation of vitamin drinks and jelly. Fruits are added to pie filling, put in oatmeal in the morning and chewed raw instead of sweets.
The perfect treat of all time - dried pears
On winter evenings, when there is an eerie cold and darkness outside, I really want to eat something tasty. Maybe some candy? But this is not always helpful. Wise housewives think about this in advance. They cook dried pears at home, which can easily replace any sweetness. In addition, they are an exclusively natural product.
The fruits prepared in this way can be used as a cake decoration, pie filling and an original natural dessert.
The technology for preparing dried pears consists of simple operations.
Ripe fruits are thoroughly washed under running water and cut in half. Next, the bones and core are removed. The stalk is left so that it is convenient to eat such a dessert in winter. Several punctures are made in the fruit using a sharp knife. As a result, they become much juicier. Then the fruits are put into a deep container, covered with granulated sugar and kept for about 30 hours.
The next step is to pour the juice into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Then they spread the fruits there and cook for about 10 minutes. During this time, they will be thoroughly saturated with aromatic syrup. The finished pears are transferred to a colander. When the juice is gone, transfer to a bowl to cool.
Then they are placed on the pallet of an electric dryer, set the temperature to 60 degrees and start the unit. The time required for drying depends on the variety and size of the pear. For example, large specimens will dry for about 15 hours. In this case, the unit is periodically turned off until it cools completely, so that the fruits absorb sugar and acquire an appetizing appearance.
Simple ways to process pears at home
Experienced chefs know many different options for preparing these fragrant fruits for the winter. Someone dried them, someone liked dried fruits from pears, and some preserved them, pickled them, made jam or jam. In addition, the fruit goes well with such products:
- berries;
- grapes;
- citrus fruits;
- Rowan;
- ginger;
- cloves;
- cardamom.
One way to process pears at home is to make delicious jam. To do this, take the following ingredients:
- ripe pears (2 kg);
- sugar (1 glass);
- lemon (half);
- water.
Sugar syrup is first prepared in a deep container. Then cut pears and lemon slices along with the peel are spread there. When the mixture boils, remove it from heat and cover with a clean towel. After a day, the jam is brought to a boil again and set aside. This operation is done 4 or 6 times, depending on the desired result.
Recently, it has become fashionable to store summer fruits in the freezer to serve them later as a fragrant dessert. Is it possible to freeze pears for the winter without losing the fruit's nutrients. Practice shows that this is a worthwhile business. After all, this way you can save precious time, which is always in short supply.
For freezing, rather ripe medium-sized fruits are chosen. They should have firm flesh. First the pears are washed, then cut, cored and dried on paper towels. Then the pieces are put on a cutting board, placed in the freezer.When they are cured, they are placed in plastic bags and stored at -18 ° C. The product is used for making compotes and as a fragrant filling for pies or cakes. There is nothing tastier than natural products when there is snow and a cold wind blowing outside.