It’s the season of fresh plums on the shelves of grocery stores. Some will brew homemade plum liqueur. Apples are good for homemade liqueur as well.
The process is the same as for plum liqueur. Place the chopped apple in a sterilized glass jar, add some rock sugar and fill with white liquor (shochu). Store in a cool, dark place for a while to get the fruit flavor to be extracted.
The higher the ratio of apple volume, the richer the medicinal effects will be. Adding to the efficacy of regulating the tummy, it could help those who are concerned with muscle fatigue, rough skin, dry skin, skin blemishes or dark circles on the skin.
Medicinal Apple Liqueur
| Ingredients 1 (about 180 g) Apple 1/4 Lemon 40 g Rock sugar 200 ml White liquor (Shochu) |
| Instructions 1. Wash and dry the apple. Core and cut into 8 equal parts and slice them into about 5mm. Peel the lemon then slice. 2. In a sterilized glass jar, put above fruits and rock sugar. Fill with white liquor. Close the jar tightly. 3.Let it stand in a cool, dark place for 2 months. It’s ready to serve on the rocks or dilute with soda water. |
When brewing liqueurs at home, obey the local law of your residency.
Say you can’t wait for 2 months? Here is a recipe for Sangria, a red wine with fruits. Loaded with apples, you can appreciate the therapeutic effect of the medicinal cuisine by eating soaked apple slices. Just add chopped apple and citrus fruits to red wine. Store in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours, then it’s ready to serve. Adding some honey is a choice, if preferred. For those who are concerned with coldness, warm it up with spices such as cinnamon and serve.
About the Medicinal Cuisine
The rock sugar in the above recipe can be replaced with other sweeteners. For example, brown sugar can be substituted, or spices be added for people concerned with body coldness. Let me introduce some therapeutic effects of the ingredients used for the medicinal liqueurs. Depending on the individual constitutions and conditions, tailor your own medicinal liqueurs to promote overall well-being.
| Sweeteners – Rock sugar and granulated sugar Food property: Neutral Good when dryness and fatigue are concerned – White sugar Food property: Cooling For dry coughs and hangover – Cane sugar Food property: Neutral When dryness and upsetting feeling are concerned – Brown sugar Food property: Warming For cramps and fatigue recovery – Honey Food property: Neutral For delicate constitution, constipation and dryness |
| Apples Food property: Neutral It’s said to keep the digestive system healthy and hydrate the body. For an upset stomach or a dry cough |
| Lemons Food property: Neutral To cool down and hydrate the body For heat exhaustion, fatigue, loss of appetite |
| Oranges, navel oranges Food property: Cooling It is the ingredient that is supposed to heal stress-related physical discomfort. For problems of vomiting, bloated stomach and when feeling down |
| Dried orange peel Food property: Warming It is the ingredient that is supposed to heal stress-related physical discomfort. For problems of vomiting, bloated stomach and indigestion |
| Cinnamon Food property: Heating It’s the ingredient that has a strong warming effect on the body. It’s recommended for those who have coldness at the extremities of the body and the pain due to coldness. |
| White liquor (Shochu) Food property: Heating It’s said to promote blood circulation of the body. For body coldness and when stress-related discomfort is concerned. |
| Wine Food property: Warming It is the ingredient that is supposed to heal stress-related physical discomfort. For problems of vomiting, bloated stomach and insomnia |
Touko Tanaka
Born in Aomori, resides in Tokyo at present. Being a free- lance food related writer, she works on merchandising, planning and recipe creation. She is a member of editing and writing office of “Vegetable Sommelier Journal” published by Japan Vegetable Sommelier Association. Certifications are: Professional Vegetable Sommelier, Chinese Medicine Counselor, etc. Expertise: Easy side dish and daily medicinal cooking. Publications: “Seasonal vegetables – with the knowledge of medicinal cuisine”, “Every day Delicious Tomato Recipes”, etc.
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- How about tasting your homemade Apple Medicinal Liqueur?
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