One of the biggest reasons why people don't branch out and buy more different types of fruits and vegetables is because they don't know what to do with them. I didn't let that stop me when I picked some fresh red currants at Wasem Fruit Farm. Their sour cherries is what brought me to the farm. I had some time to pick some currants afterward so I picked about a pound and a half.
What is a Currant?
Currants originated from western Europe. They grow on a short shrub in clusters. They are a member of the gooseberry family. They are quite tart. They come in red, black, and white. The ones I picked were red.
What Can You Make with Them?
The most common thing to make with them is jam or jelly. I read that it is common to serve currant jelly with lamb in England. Most of the uses I find online is for jelly. Currants contain a lot of pectin, so it's an easy jelly to get to set up. But I didn't want to just go that route. I decided I wanted something more like the homemade cranberry sauce I enjoy around Thanksgiving. So I decided to try using red currants in place of the cranberries in my recipe. I was very happy with the results.
Ingredients
12 oz fresh red currants
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
Instructions
Bring the water and sugar to a boil. Then toss in your red currants. Boil, stirring often for about 10 minutes. This will give the currants enough time to release their pectin as well as break them down. Pour your sauce into a bowl through a strainer. Let the sauce cool down before placing it in the fridge to fully chill. You should be awarded with a thick sauce, that looks like cranberry sauce, but has it's own unique taste.
Leave a Reply