Air and moisture can affect the quality of Juniper. So, you should use airtight containers or plastic bags to store the juniper berries. It will keep the moisture away and will keep them fresh for a long time. Can You Freeze Juniper? For long-term storage, you can store the juniper berries in the freezer.
What are the best ways to use juniper berries?
Dried berries aren’t juicy, but they are spicy and enticing. Fresh or dry, juniper berries have a strong flavor, so use them in moderation. Just a few berries, coarsely ground in a mortar with a pestle, are enough to flavor an entire batch of sauerkraut. They also make a great glaze for cookies and a super-simple fermented beverage called smreka.
Can You dehydrate juniper berries?
After gathering the berries, it is time to dry them. It has turned rather chilly and humid here, so I’ll most likely use the dehydrator. It takes quite a while to fully dry a juniper berry because it is highly resinous. You can expect to allow them to air dry for up to three weeks or at least two days in the dehydrator.
How do you protect juniper berries from birds?
You will have to fight the birds for ripe cones during juniper berry harvest time. If the plant is located on your property, cover it with bird netting to protect those precious cones from greedy birds. Harvesting juniper berries can be a slightly painful experience because their leaves are very sharp.
What is the best time to harvest juniper berries?
It is best to harvest juniper berries in the morning, as they will be juicier than later in the day. Juniper berries can be stored fresh or frozen for later use. Which juniper berries are poisonous? The berries on the Juniperus communis tree are edible, but the berries on other species of juniper trees can be poisonous.
How long can juniper berries be stored?
2 to 3 yearsJuniper berries will have a shelf life of 2 to 3 years when stored correctly. Juniper berries perform a unique role by contributing as much to the character of food through their freshening ability, as they do by way of their specific taste profile.
How do you harvest and dry juniper berries?
Juniper leaves are sharp, so it's best to use gloves when picking juniper berries. The time-honored way to pick is much like mulberry picking. Place a sheet underneath the shrub, grasp a branch with berries, and gently shake. The berries will fall off quite easily.
Do juniper berries need to be crushed?
The dried berries should be crushed well just before using as the flavor will decline rapidly once exposed to the air. You won't need many, three or four of the berries will flavor most dishes without overpowering the main ingredient or other seasonings.
Can I use fresh juniper berries?
If you want a strong juniper aroma and flavor to your dish, crushing fresh berries before adding them to a sauce or marinade is the way to go. For a more subtle flavor, you can toast the berries, but be careful not to burn them or they'll taste bitter.
How do you make juniper berries for consumption?
Juniper Berries?Crush the berry or toast it; crush it if you want a stronger flavor.Rub it into the meat with some ginger or garlic.Sear the meat.Deglaze the hot pan (add some liquid to loosen up the meat flavors at the bottom of the pan).Add some eggplant or a tart apple, such as a Braeburn or a Granny Smith.More items...•
When should you pick juniper berries?
Juniper berries (which are actually cones) should be collected from about September through to December. They should be blue when ready. Try to avoid picking them when they are green. Cones are not always produced every year as they may take two seasons to ripen completely.
What part of juniper berries do we eat?
Juniper berries have a strong, bitter, slightly peppery flavor and gritty texture. Instead, just a small quantity of mature juniper berries are added to recipes as a flavoring or spice. They can be added whole and fresh off the shrub to marinades, meat rubs, wood chips when smoking meats, or added to pickling meats.
How many juniper berries can you eat?
Most juniper berry supplement labels recommend taking 1–6 grams per day, divided into multiple doses.
What are the benefits of juniper berries?
Juniper berries or extract of the plant has traditionally been used as diuretic, anti-arthritis, anti-diabetes, antiseptic as well as for the treatment of gastrointestinal and autoimmune disorders.
How do you know if juniper berries are safe?
Make sure you can recognize the bush that is the source of the safe seasoning or some very unpleasant experiences may await from harvesting juniper berries off the wrong plant. The common juniper is hardy in USDA zones 2 to 6 and is found in a wide variety of soils. The plants grow in Asia, Europe, and North America.
Can you dry juniper berries in the oven?
Your oven does the job just fine. Drying fruit in an oven is a pretty simple process: just bake it at a low temperature for a long time.
Which juniper berries are poisonous?
The berries produced by Juniperus sabina and Juniperus oxycedrus are toxic. Only consume berries from juniper plants that you can positively identify. The entire juniper plant contains Savin oil which is harmful to the kidneys even in small doses.
How long does it take for juniper berries to dry?
It takes quite a while to fully dry a juniper berry because it is highly resinous. You can expect to allow them to air dry for up to three weeks or at least two days in the dehydrator.
Why are juniper berries crushed?
Just a few are used, and they are usually crushed to release their flavor. It is said that they make a domestic meat taste like their wild counterparts. In medicine, juniper berries are recognized for both their high content of volatile oils and their beneficial resins.
How tall does a Juniper tree grow?
It has grown from a modest six feet to easily 11 feet over the past 15 years. I won’t bother picking any of the berries above my head. In that way, I can leave some of the berries for the birds. Juniper leaves are sharp, so it’s best to use gloves when picking juniper berries.
What is juniper berry tea?
Juniper berries have a long tradition of use in food, beverages, and medicine. I wrote some weeks ago about the fact that they are the main flavor in gin. In Norway, where my family originates, it is common to home brew with juniper berry tea. You’ll find recipes that include juniper berries with meat, especially fish.
How to pick mulberry bushes?
The time-honored way to pick is much like mulberry picking. Place a sheet underneath the shrub, grasp a branch with berries, and gently shake. The berries will fall off quite easily. You are looking for only the blue, ripe berries. Anything green will rot before it dries.
Do juniper trees need to be trimmed?
They are often planted near sidewalks and streets. They don’t need much in the way of maintenance, so no need for a grounds crew to keep them trimmed.
Identify Your Species
Before you go nabbing the cones to eat or use medicinally, be sure of the species you are harvesting from.
How to Identify a Ripe Berry
You can’t eat or plant unripe berries, so it’s important that you know how to identify the ones that are ripe.
How to Harvest
Before you start, ensure that you are foraging in safe areas away from roads, and only collect from plants that have not been sprayed with chemicals.
Preservation and Storage Tips
You can dry the fruits to make them last longer, but be aware that this reduces the flavor.
Perfect Your Juniper Harvest Technique
The trick to harvesting juniper berries is knowing the right time to take the plunge. Now you have the info you need to do the job right.
When to harvest juniper berries?
The best time to harvest juniper berries is in the fall when they are ripe and have a deep blue color.
How do you know when juniper berries are ripe?
The best way to determine if juniper berries are ripe is to taste them.
What month do juniper berries ripen?
To find out what month juniper berries ripen, we have to look at the life cycle of a Juniper bush.
How do you collect juniper berries?
Juniper berries can be collected by hand or with a tool such as a rake.
Which juniper berries are poisonous?
The berries on the Juniperus communis tree are edible, but the berries on other species of juniper trees can be poisonous.
How long do juniper berries last?
Juniper berries are around blue-gray fruit in the same family as apples and pears.
Conclusion
Juniper berries can be harvested at different stages of ripeness, depending on the desired use.
How to store fresh berries in the fridge?
If your berries came in a ventilated plastic clamshell-type package, wash it with soap and hot water, rinse and dry, then line it with a dry paper towel. Put the clean, dry berries back in the clamshell and store them in the fridge.
How to clean a berry?
What to Know Before You Start 1 This method works best for firm berries like strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries. 2 Fragile raspberries should get the classic "rinse right before eating" treatment with just plain water. 3 The vinegar bath won't "cure" very moldy berries; it's best to pick those out and discard them right away. 4 Berries that are super-ripe to begin with should be eaten within a couple of days.
How to get rid of a smelly berry?
Drain berries, then rinse with clean, cold water until any trace of vinegar aroma or taste is gone. Spread out rinsed berries on clean cloth or paper towels, and pat and roll lightly with towels to dry them well. Step 2.
How to kill mold on berries?
Vinegar Bath to Kill Mold. Discard any berries that show even a bit of mold. Combine 3 cups cold water and 1 cup white vinegar in a large bowl or salad spinner. Preparing a water and vinegar bath for fresh berries. Credit: Vanessa Greaves. Immerse berries and swish around for about a minute.
Can you dry off mold from berries?
Good news: You can easily kill off mold and bacteria with a quick vinegar and water bath, then dry off the berries before they go in the fridge.
How long does it take for a juniper to ripen?
Juniper fruit takes about two years to ripen, so it’s not unusual to find both green (unripe) and purple/blue (ripe) fruit on the tree at the same time. And while a ripe fruit makes an excellent trail nibble, an unripe fruit is intensely bitter and unpleasant.
What does juniper berry taste like?
If you’ve ever tasted gin, you know what juniper berries taste like. The flavor is sometimes described as citrusy and evergreen, sometimes as reminiscent of rosemary. Juniper fruit has both bitter and sweet overtones. It’s complex, and useful for flavoring much more than gin.
What is the most flavorful juniper berry?
Since this isn’t a botany class, I’m going to call them berries for the sake of conversation. The fruit of common juniper ( Juniperus communis) is generally considered to be the most flavorful juniper berry, but J. virginiana (eastern red cedar) also produces tasty, edible berries.
Is it safe to eat juniper berries?
If eaten in huge quantities over an extended period of time, juniper berries may be toxic. But don’t let this alarm you unnecessarily. The same can be said of other common cooking spices.
Is juniper fruit fresh?
When you forage for your own juniper, you’ll know exactly how fresh and flavorful they are. The flavor of fresh juniper fruit is juicy and complex; I pick them as a trail nibble when I’m hiking. Dried berries aren’t juicy, but they are spicy and enticing. Fresh or dry, juniper berries have a strong flavor, so use them in moderation.
Is Juniperus sabina dangerous?
There is one juniper ( Juniperus sabina) that may be dangerous when eat en, but scientific literature on the subject is frustratingly incomplete. Studies have been made of both the bark and essential oil of J. sabina. The amount of essential oil estimated as harmful to humans is approximately one gram.
What temperature to cook juniper berries?
Try adding juniper berries to your next batch of roasted potatoes. Preheat the oven to 350 F. (177 C.).
What are juniper berries?
In fact, you may have tasted them before without even knowing it if you drink alcoholic beverages. Juniper berries are what gives a gin martini its unique flavoring. While gin has been a popular intoxicant for over 300 years in western culture, juniper berries have actually been used medicinally since the 16th century.
How long to cook juniper berries in oven?
Preheat the oven to 350 F. (177 C.). Place olive oil and juniper berries into a baking pan and put in the preheated oven for a few minutes to warm the berries and get them to release their essential oils.
How many seasons does a juniper berry mature?
Male and female reproductive organs are found on separate plants, thus only females have fruit. These berries mature in 1-3 seasons and contain 1-12 seeds, although the norm is around just three. In the past, juniper berry uses were primarily medicinal.
Why are junipers used in tea?
The berries were used either chewed raw or steeped into a tea to treat gastrointestinal complaints, rheumatic pain, and for back and chest ailments. Rich in volatile oils, junipers have been used as herbs in aromatherapy, a science that can be traced back over 5,000 years.
How many species of juniper are there?
How to Use Juniper Berries. Common juniper, Juniperus comunis, belongs to the family Cupressaceae that encompasses around 60-70 species of aromatic evergreens throughout the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed conifer in the world and the most common in the Northern temperate region. Male and female reproductive organs are found ...
What is a juniper berry?
Juniper berries are a small round berry that grow on conifers. They’re most notably known for flavoring gin. They have a piney, fresh flavor that’s often used in Scandinavian and Eastern European cuisine. All juniper shrubs and trees grow these berries, but some are too bitter or toxic to eat. You can forage for juniper berries, ...
Can you eat Juniper berries on their own?
Because of their strong flavor, juniper berries aren't eaten on their own like other berri es. Rather, they're used like a spice or a flavoring for a dish. The most prevalent way they're used is to flavor gin.
Where do juniper berries come from?
Dried juniper berries (or fresh ones, when they are available) are used as a flavoring in Northern European cuisine, especially in Scandinavia, Germany and the Alsace region of France . Americans are most likely to have encountered juniper in gin, the liquor that gets its name from the Dutch or French word for juniper.
What does juniper berry taste like?
If you’ve ever tried gin you’ll have a fair idea of what juniper berries taste like, although the ones used for cooking are riper. They have a slightly piney flavor with a touch of both fruitiness and pepperiness.
Can you use juniper in game?
But if you are not pregnant and you use them sparingly, you may want to try juniper in game dishes, one of the spice’s most common uses. Pairing them with prunes over roast duck, as in a recipe from Bon Appétit magazine, sounds like it would make for a nice balance.
Do juniper trees have berries?
Botanically speaking, the dark little berries of juniper trees—which are conifers—are female seed cones, not true berries. But we’re speaking culinarily, in which case the dark violet orbs look and taste enough like berries to deserve the name. Dried juniper berries (or fresh ones, when they are available) are used as a flavoring in Northern ...
