Aronia fruits have grown on me.
I like fruit that tastes good fresh and doesn't require processing. Aronia doesn't taste good fresh, but I like it for making an awesome juice.
I planted Viking Aronia several years ago. At first, I thought it was another one of those plants I was duped into spending money on. Though it does have pretty flowers and lovely fall color, the fresh fruits are downright awful. I could not figure out why on earth anyone would grow this thing for food.
Then the plant started producing copiously. And I thought maybe I ought to at least try some of the recipes that are out there….
The first thing I noticed was just how easy the fruits are to pick. They all ripen at one time - there is no hunting and pecking for which ones are the darkest in color like you do with blueberries. Just grab them by the handful and fill your container - quickly. It takes about two minutes to pick a quart.
The quickest and most satisfying way to use them is to make a “juice” out of the berries. I put 1 quart of berries and 1 quart water into a saucepan and simmer for a few minutes. I find that if you mash the berries, the final product is astringent, so I skip doing that. Strain out the berries, give them to the chickens if you’ve got them. Let cool. Add 1/2-1 cup of sugar. Dilute with up to 1 quart additional water - be careful because you can dilute it too much. It tastes good as it is, but if you’ve got a lemon, add some for an even better experience.
What you’re left with is something that tastes remarkably like a good concord grape juice.
Aronia berries are incredibly high in antioxidants. I suppose if I am going to add that much sugar to something, aronia is what I could make an exception for. My kids are always wanting juice of some kind, and I feel better about giving them this juice than any other.
The berries freeze fantastically. Last year I got 12 quarts off of 2 relatively small plants. I just stuffed the berries into quart jars and popped them into my freezer.
The plant is easy to grow with no pest and disease issues. I’ve never watered mine, but I have it growing near a wetland and it likely found an underground water source. The internet tells me it can take wet soil, and some sites say it can handle some drought but I don’t have personal experience with this.
Other recipes are out there, but I haven’t played around with them much. Maybe one day I will try Wajopi or non-astringent jam.
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Have you tried any recipes? Drop me a comment below.