Quince - Description
Quince - the name of the tree of the same name, as well as its fruit. This is one of the oldest cultures grown by man. Nowadays, quince is cultivated almost all over the world. It is found in the Caucasus, the Crimea, Central Asia, Europe, Africa, America, Australia, as well as on the islands of Oceania. It grows on edges, in forests and on the slopes of the lower mountain belt, rising to a height of 1,400 meters. He likes deep and loose, moist and fertile soil.
The most fruitful quince grows on heavy loam, and earlier it begins to bear fruit on sandy soils. On dry soils, fruits grow smaller and drier, and on wet soils - astringent and woody, but more succulent. The fruits of cultivated trees can reach 2 kg of weight, and wild - from 60 to 100 grams. Wild quince fruits less intensively, up to 10 fruits per plant.
Quince even with a ripe form is very difficult to eat raw. Its fruits have a spherical shape, or a pear shape. Depending on the cultivar, the quince may have all shades of yellow. The rind is covered with thick small villi, and the pulp consists of a number of stony cells, which makes it very hard, thin, astringent, tastes sweetish. The seeds are brown, a lot of them, more than in an apple.
Quince - useful properties
All varieties of quince, due to a number of useful properties, positively affect the human psyche, improve mood, invigorate. Its composition includes sodium and potassium, malic and citric acids, as well as pectic substances. Juice from mature fruits has antiseptic, astringent, diuretic and tonic properties.
Quince is rich in vitamins and a number of micro and macronutrients. The flesh of the quince has a fixing effect, therefore it is useful in the treatment of the gastrointestinal tract. Quince juice helps alleviate the condition of asthmatics. Also, the fruits are used for diseases of the ears. Quince seeds and fruits themselves are used in cosmetology.
At home it is possible to prepare tonics, masks and lotions for oily skin. If you add vegetable or animal fats, yolk or starch, you can use it for normal and dry skin. An effective anti-inflammatory agent is mucus obtained from seeds by boiling or infusing. It is also suitable for the treatment of oily seborrhea of the head and burns.
Quince - contraindications
For the preparation of mucous infusion of quince seeds can not be crushed. They contain the toxic glycoside amygdalin. Also, you can not use a quince with constipation and pleurisy. In addition, tart fruit is harmful to the voice and larynx.
Quince - caloric
Quince calories: 40 kcal per 100 grams
Quince - use in cooking
Because of the astringent taste and the very coarse pulp, the fragrant fruit of quince is practically never used fresh, except by connoisseurs as an additive to tea instead of lemon. This tea is more palatable. Quince is widely used in the cooking of many countries. Included in the elite white wines (Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and even Chardonnay.)
Quince slices are added to the soup or borscht, they give a unique sour taste. Ever since ancient Greek times, quince has been baked with honey, in Eastern cuisine fruit was stuffed with ground beef or beans. After heat treatment, quince is used as a side dish for poultry or meat, as well as seasoning for the preparation of national dishes such as pilau, beef soup with quince, bozbash (from mutton) and many others.
It is also used to flavor desserts and sweet dishes, compotes, juices, and jam are prepared. Filed in the process of cooking quince gives them a sour taste and refined aroma. The normal dose of quince per serving is 30-50 grams.
Recipe Examples with Quince
Recipe 1: Quince jam
Quince jam is similar to pear, but has a brighter taste. It is recommended to boil it using syrup so that it is not too thick.
Ingredients: quince (400 grams), water (1.5 cups), sugar (4 cups).
Method of preparation
Peel the quince from the skin and seeds, cut into cubes, put in the basin, cover with water (cold), covering the quince, cook until semi-ready. Then gently fold to a strainer and allow water to drain. Strain this water. Weigh a quince and for every 400 grams, take one and a half cups of water, and which she boiled, and 4 cups of sugar. Prepare the syrup, boil it down to thickness, and add a quince. Let the jam boil several times over high heat, removing each time from the stove for several minutes, removing the foam and shaking the basin. Catch over low heat to quince transparency.
Recipe 2: Stewed pork with quince
Great pork dish. Gentle meat becomes juicy and fragrant, has more saturated taste. The meat is fried, then slowly stewed with onions and quince until cooked.
Ingredients: pork fillet (1 kg), quince (800 g), 4 onions, salt, pepper, vegetable or ghee (to taste).
Method of preparation
On a hot skillet, fry the fillet from all sides in oil in one piece until golden crust appears. Put the meat in a saucepan, add a small amount of hot water, so as not to overdry it, dry it until half cooked. In the fat left over after roasting the meat, fry the onion rings and add it to the meat. As the liquid boils away add hot water and periodically turn the meat over. When the pork is almost ready, lay out the peeled (without the core and peel) and chopped quince. Serve the meat, cut into thin slices, with onions and quince, as well as the juice that was formed during cooking.
Recipe 3: Quince Dessert with Cinnamon
Baked quince with cinnamon in the oven. The original and very simple recipe. You can replace the fortified wine with any fruit liqueur or sweet red wine. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.
Ingredients: quince -3 pieces, cloves -6 pieces, water -1.5 cups, fortified wine (fruit liqueur) - 0.5 cups, cinnamon sticks - 3 pieces, sugar - 1/3 cups, whipped cream (optional).
Method of preparation
Wash, wash, cut into halves and remove the middle of the unpurified quince. Put the halves in a baking dish (convex side up). Stick a nail into each piece. Add wine, water, cinnamon sticks to the form and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the quince for 35-40 minutes at a temperature of 190 degrees until it starts to brown. Then turn the pieces over and bake until it softens for about 10 minutes. Allow the quince to cool slightly, then remove the clove, arrange it in portions and pour over the syrup formed in the baking dish. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.
Recipe 4: Cold dessert with quince
Delicious dessert, but will require many ingredients. But as a result, you can surprise your friends. Perfect for a romantic dinner by candlelight, as it contains a significant amount of liquor. Ingredients: Quince (2pcs), cottage cheese (200gr. 5%), lemon (1pc), strawberries (1 cup), mango (1pc), brandy (100 ml. + 50 per water), walnuts (half a glass), coffee-milk liqueur (200 ml).
Method of preparation
Wash the quince, cut into two parts and remove the core with a spoon. Toothpick or other thin and sharp object make a lot of pricks on the quince. Fill with cognac and let it brew for about 10-20 minutes, fill the middle of half a quince with walnuts and cottage cheese, sprinkle with brandy with lemon juice, close with the second half of quince. Wrap it in foil and place in a preheated oven (180 degrees) for about 45 minutes. Then let it cool and set to cool.
After that, mix the cottage cheese with liqueur and put it freeze in the freezer. In a blender, beat the mango pulp and also put in the freezer for about half an hour. Wash the strawberries and peel the tails, whisk in a blender and send to the rest of the ingredients in the freezer. Spread the frozen cottage cheese in the bowl, put quince on top with fruit puree and nuts, pour brandy. The dessert is ready, surprised, enjoy your meal!
Quince - useful tips from experienced chefs
Quince juice - a rarity. It is made from ripe fruit harvested closer to autumn. Not all varieties of this plant are suitable for making quince juice. Only from the nutmeg varieties will be a tasty and fragrant drink. At home, it can be very easy to prepare with the right equipment. The unusual nature of quince juice lies in the fact that it should not be prepared from freshly picked fruits, they should be left to “ripen” for 10-25 days. In such fruits, biological activity increases several times. Quince juice goes well with apple, thick peach, apricot and banana juices.
