Mulberry is a fruit favored by many families to soak in sugar to make syrup, make cooling drinks or as a spice for desserts. However, mulberry is very easily fermented if done incorrectly, causing the soaked water to foam, become sour or spoil quickly.
In fact, just doing a few basic steps, you can soak mulberries until they have a beautiful color, strong fragrance and can be stored for a long time without worrying about blisters.
1. Choose medium-ripe mulberries, not crushed.
Delicious mulberries for soaking should be dark purple in color, plump fruits, not mushy or rotten stems. Fruits that are too soft or bruised will make syrup ferment quickly and spoil easily.
2. Wash gently to avoid crushing the fruit.
Mulberry is very soft, so do not wash it vigorously under running water. It is best to wash it quickly with clean water or soak it in diluted salt water for about 3-5 minutes and then take it out immediately.
3. Let the strawberries drain thoroughly before soaking
This is the most important step, but many people do it perfunctorily. If strawberries are still watery, the soaking jar is prone to blisters, air bubbles and quick fermentation.
You should let the strawberries drain completely or spread them out in a basket to dry naturally.
4. Standard sugar ratio helps strawberries not to be sour
The ratio applied by many people is:
• 1kg mulberry • 800g to 1kg sugar
If you use less sugar, the soaking water will quickly become sour and difficult to store for long.
5. Arrange strawberries and sugar in layers to absorb evenly
The correct way to do it is to arrange 1 layer of strawberries and then spread 1 layer of sugar, alternating until finished. This method helps the sugar dissolve evenly, the strawberries absorb quickly and limit the situation of the fruit floating on the surface causing damage.
6. Use a clean and absolutely dry glass jar
The soaking jar needs to be washed, rinsed with boiling water and completely dried. If the jar is still damp or greasy, mulberries are very prone to blisters.
7. Store properly to keep mulberry syrup fragrant for a long time
After soaking for about 12 - 24 hours for the sugar to dissolve, you should put the jar in the refrigerator. When using, you should take a clean, dry spoon to avoid spoiling the syrup.
If stored well, soaked mulberry can be used for many weeks and still be fragrant and delicious.
Just do the above secrets correctly, you will have a jar of mulberry soaked in beautiful purple color, deep fragrant water, no scum and can be used for a long time. This is a delicious and economical dish, very worthwhile to make during the mulberry season.
