Juniper berries can improve the aroma and taste of many dishes, they give the meat a tart flavor. They are also popular with hunters who themselves cook caught game. Famous chefs use not only the berries of this plant, but also cones and twigs.
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Dried and fresh juniper berries will help to reveal the taste of fatty meat (goose and pork), poultry, fish, they can be added to any roast, for example, from beef. This seasoning is also useful for preparations for the winter. Especially often it can be found in sauerkraut with garlic and soaked apples.
Berries are added to drinks: beer, jelly, kvass. At home, gin and vodka are prepared with juniper. From dry berries, plants make sugar, which serves as the basis for syrup for gingerbread and many desserts.
To enjoy the aroma of these berries and get all the useful elements contained in them, you can not cook a complex dish, but brew tea, which is stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. To do this, 1 tsp of berries you need to pour 0.5 l of boiling water and leave for 1.5 hours.
Before adding the berries of this plant to the dish, you need to know what seasonings they can be combined with. To obtain a sophisticated aroma, marjoram, rosemary, cumin or mint are useful. Juniper is also great for dishes with garlic, onions and celery. Ready seasoning can be prepared at home: crush in a mortar for 1 tbsp. juniper, dried mushrooms and coriander, 1 tsp. allspice and black pepper, then add 1 tsp. coarse salt. This mixture is best suited for pork, especially chops.
It is important to know some rules for using this spice. Calculate the required number of berries, taking into account the weight of the dish. For 1 kg of any product should not be more than 6 pieces.