Of the many ways to prepare such a wonderful, tasty and healthy fruit as apples for the winter, juices and apple compotes are very popular. Freshly squeezed concentrated natural homemade ones - they have a number of advantages over any, even the most expensive, purchased in a store: they are rich, very tasty, aromatic and healthy, without various harmful additives and preservatives.
Tannins contained in apples contribute to long-term storage of the finished product without additional sterilization. But the container for canning must be sterile.
Juice can be prepared using a press or meat grinder, but the easiest way is to use a juicer. You don't need to have any special skills at all. Just a little time and effort, plus the presence of a juicer, and as a result in winter - a healthy, high-quality, natural, delicious drink.
Its taste will depend on the type of apple. They should be selected depending on the desired result (sweet or sour, pulpy or clear). Moreover, you can use not only beautiful fruits from the tree, but even carrion. Then you just need to remove the damaged areas. Apples are often combined with other fruits.
Today we will look at several options for preparing pure apple juice. It can be boiled for several minutes or just heated without bringing to a boil. In the second case, more beneficial properties present in the fruit are preserved. Let's consider in what cases you need to add sugar, and in what cases you can do without it. We will definitely make everything delicious and delight our loved ones in winter!
Apple juice for the winter at home without boiling - recipe using a juicer
Delicious clear juice, which is prepared very easily, without boiling. Thanks to this, all vitamins and nutrients are preserved in it. The product is highly concentrated. Therefore, after opening it should be diluted with warm or cold boiled water.
Ingredients:
- Apples - any quantity.
- Sugar - to taste.
Preparation:
1. Wash the apples thoroughly under running water.
It is better to choose sweet fruits, but the most important thing is that they are juicy.
2. Cut into 4 parts, remove seed pods and damage.
You can use a special tool to remove the cores. If the fruit does not have any flaws, then you can use it whole.
3. Pass the prepared apples through a juicer.
Due to the iron content in apples, which oxidizes in air, the juice darkens. To make it lighter, you can add citric acid or squeeze lemon juice.
By the way, from the pulp that remains, you can later make jam.
4. Pour the juice into a large container and let it stand for a while.
Next, remove the formed compacted foam using a strainer.
Some of the foam and pulp that could not be collected will then sink to the bottom in the form of sediment.
5. If the apples are sour, then add sugar to taste, but if the fruits are sweet, then it is not necessary.
6. Place on low heat. Stir. Heat to 95 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, then when the first bubbles appear around the perimeter, immediately turn off the heat.
It is important not to bring to a boil.
7. Pour the hot juice into glass jars or bottles, still warm after sterilization. Screw on the boiled metal lids.
8. Turn it upside down to check the seal. Wrap until completely cool.
This product can be stored for a long time in a cool and dark place.
Helpful information
To keep apple juice for a long time, you need to take into account the following tips:
- Do not use rotten or crushed fruits for cooking. They will lead to rapid spoilage of the drink and worsen its taste.
- If the apples are very sour, you can add a little sugar to the juice. It is always used when seaming.
- You can slightly improve the drink by adding currants or elderberries to it. Citric acid is used to brighten the color.
- If a person suffers from stomach problems, then the drink should be diluted with water, honey or sugar should be added to it. This will reduce the acidity level.
If apple nectar has fermented, it is used to prepare a marinade for meat or as a dough for kneading bread. Housewives prepare vinegar from the acidified juice.
All the most important things about storing apples can be found in this section.
How to make apple juice for the winter without sugar?
Preparing this juice for the winter couldn’t be easier! And it turns out very tasty, beautiful and transparent. You don’t need anything else from your produce other than apples! And in winter there will be such a pleasant pleasure, as if a piece of fragrant summer has been returned!
Ingredients:
- Apples - from 2.5 kg you get 1.1-1.2 liters of juice.
Preparation:
1. Wash the apples and squeeze the juice out of them (whole) using a juicer.
It is best to use aromatic sweet and sour varieties.
2. Pour into a large saucepan and put on fire.
3. After boiling, reduce the heat and skim off the foam. Cook for another 2-3 minutes with the lid closed.
4. Sterilize jars and lids.
5. Pour juice into them. First, let the container warm up a little, then fill it to the neck.
Screw on the lids.
6. Turn the closed jars over and make sure that the juice does not leak.
Leave to cool to room temperature. It is recommended to store for up to 6 months.
Storage Methods
There are several different approaches that will help preserve juice efficiently. They are suitable for different situations and are very different in nature. The main ones include the following:
- Freezing. This is a very good method both from the point of view of the longevity of preserving the juice and from the point of view of preserving vitamins - most of the biologically active substances remain in the composition and do not disappear anywhere. All you need to do is pour the juice into plastic bottles, then immediately place it in the freezer before it oxidizes. If the freezer has a dry and fast freezing mode, great, if not, then any will do.
- Sugaring. This method will retain about half of the vitamins, but it is very simple and quick. Add two parts of sugar to one part of apples, then place in jars, cover with a lid and move to a cool and dark place. Please note that the fruit must be dry.
- Scalding. In this case, the juice does not need to be squeezed directly. Instead, the apples are simply placed in a three-liter jar (can be chopped), after which a few tablespoons of sugar are added to them, then the apples are scalded with boiling water (the latter should reach the top of the jar). This method allows you to save two thirds of the vitamins.
- Canning. This method retains fewer vitamins than all others, but it allows you to store the juice for a very, very long time. To do this, you first need to boil the freshly squeezed juice, then pour it into jars and screw them with metal lids. After this, you need to store the resulting “canned food” in a cool and dark place.
- Horseradish preservation. This method will preserve the juice for several months. Its essence is that for every liter of juice ten grams of grated horseradish are added. Then everything is poured into jars as usual and sealed - or simply covered with plastic lids, it doesn’t matter.
You can learn even more about storing apple juice from this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzNtziITiuk
Homemade apple juice recipe with pulp
And this recipe is for lovers of sweet homemade apple juice, not clear, but with pulp. Many people believe that the taste of apples is stronger in it. To obtain abundant pulp, you should choose fruits with a denser structure, such as Freedom, Antey, Kosmonavt Titov or Elena. Especially for children, such a tasty and soft juice will be very useful in winter!
Ingredients:
- Apple juice with pulp - 4 l.
- Sugar - 2-3 cups.
Preparation:
1. Divide clean apples into slices. We put it (along with the peel and seeds) into a juicer and squeeze the juice.
2. Pour into a deep enamel pan. Add 2 cups of sugar.
3. Bring to a boil. We taste it, it depends on the degree of sweetness of the fruit and the sugar itself. If necessary, add more.
We remove the foam. Cook for 5-7 minutes.
4. Pour hot into clean, sterile jars and close with the same lids.
5. Turn it upside down. We keep them “under a fur coat” at night and put them away for storage.
We prepare apple juice for the winter using a juicer without pulp:
And we will prepare this juice from ranetkas - small apples with a special taste. Therefore, the juice itself will have an amazing, beautiful amber color. Cook easily and drink with pleasure!
Ingredients:
- Apples (Ranetki) - 6 kg yields 3 liters of ready-made juice.
- Sugar - at the rate of: 100 g per 1 liter of squeezed juice.
Preparation:
1. Wash the apples, remove the tails and cores.
If the cake is not planned to be processed further, then the whole fruit is used. You can boil the cake into jam, make pastille from it, or freeze it to use in winter for baking.
2. We pass the ranetki through a juicer.
3. Remove the foam with a slotted spoon. Pour into a saucepan through a sieve to get clear juice without pulp particles.
4. Pour in sugar and mix.
If the apples are not too sour, then less sugar can be used.
5. Place on the stove. After boiling, boil for 5 minutes. Be sure to remove the foam formed during boiling.
6. Wash the glass container well with soda. Sterilize in the oven for 10 minutes at 110 degrees. Fill the metal lids with boiling water and leave for 10 minutes.
7. Pour the juice hot into bottles or jars.
Immediately screw the lids on. No additional heat treatment is required.
Apple juice at home - a recipe for the winter without cooking
Nothing complicated or unnecessary! Just a little sugar and no cooking. This recipe is also good because you can make delicious vitamin juice from apples, both with and without pulp.
Ingredients:
- Apples - 5 kg.
- Sugar - 3 tbsp. l.
Preparation:
1. Wash the apples well and cut out the cores. Divide into slices.
2. Pass it through a juicer.
3. Pour the resulting juice into a saucepan.
To ensure that there is no pulp at all, you can strain through gauze folded in several layers.
4. Wash the jars thoroughly and fill them three-quarters full with boiling water. Leave for 10-15 minutes. We also keep the lids in boiling water.
5. Place the pan with the juice on the fire. Add sugar and mix. Bring to a boil, but do not boil, to preserve all the vitamins as much as possible.
6. Pour the juice into sterile jars and roll up the lids.
Wrap in a towel and leave until completely cooled.
How to store in the freezer
A drink made from fresh fruits or vegetables using a juicer can be frozen. In this case, the ice pieces will retain all their beneficial properties. You will need:
- take a special container with dividers;
- thoroughly rinse the compartments; pour juice to the top;
- set to freeze.
An ordinary container is also used, for example, a container made of high-quality plastic. You should not take glass - it will crack when exposed to low temperatures.
Pieces of frozen fruit ice can be added to various cocktails, ice cream, and to make fruit teas. Tomato or cabbage mixtures are added to vegetable soups or mixtures for children.
