How and from what to make candied fruits at home. Candied vegetables and fruits How to cook candied fruits

Both children and adults love candied fruits. Prepare them at home yourself, and you will get not only a tasty, but also healthy delicacy.

Selection of raw materials

To prepare candied fruits, it is better to take berries and fruits with hard pulp: apples, pears, plums, quinces, cherries, cherries, rowan berries, melon, watermelon rinds, and citrus fruits.

Fruit preparation

You need to carefully sort through the fruits: remove unripe or damaged by insects, as well as remove all visible debris and rinse several times.

Next follows the usual procedure for making jam, i.e. The fruits need to be poured with syrup and cooked until tender, as you usually do. You can even overcook the fruits a little - boil them to the boiling point of the syrup (107-108°) (the syrup will be more viscous).

After boiling, the fruits along with the syrup should be poured into a colander or sieve and left for 1.5-2 hours. The syrup should be allowed to drain so that cooked translucent pieces of fruit or whole berries remain on the sieve.

Drying

Having laid out the berries or fruits soaked in syrup in one layer on a sieve, you need to dry them in the oven or oven at a temperature not exceeding 40°. After this, sprinkle the slightly dried fruits with fine granulated sugar, trying to ensure that the sugar covers the entire surface of the fruit or berries. During the sprinkling process, it is recommended to shake the future candied fruits lightly on a sieve. On average, 1 kg of fruit requires about 200 g of sugar. After sprinkling, the fruits or berries need to be dried a little in the oven or oven a second time.

Storage

Prepared candied fruits should be placed in glass jars for storage. If you were preparing several types of candied fruits at the same time, you can make a mixture. To prevent the appearance of mold, you need to seal the jars hermetically with tin lids or tightly close them with cellophane or parchment. The syrup and sugar left over from cooking the fruits and sprinklings can later be used for cooking jams, marmalades and preserves, or for making compotes.

Express method for preparing candied fruits

Citrus peels usually go to waste, but they can be used to make very tasty candied fruits. In this case, you can do without repeated boiling of the raw materials.

Place citrus peels (you can prepare a mixture of peels of different fruits) in an enamel bowl, add water so that it covers the peels. Bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes. Then drain in a colander and rinse under running cold water. Fill with water again, add 1 tsp. salt, after boiling, cook for 10 minutes. and drain the water again, rinsing the crusts with cold water. Pour water over the crusts and boil for another 10 minutes, but without adding salt. Place in a colander and rinse with running cold water.

After this, cut the softened and bitter-free peels randomly (this is the shape the candied fruits will be). Thin tangerine peels can simply be torn by hand, and grapefruit, lemon or orange peels look good when cut into strips.

Boil sugar syrup at the rate of 1 glass of water - 1.5 glasses of sugar (this amount of syrup is enough to make candied fruit from the peel of 5 medium oranges). Bring the syrup to a boil, immerse the chopped peels in it. Simmer over low heat until the liquid has almost completely evaporated (about 30-40 minutes). At the end, add a little citric acid (to taste), otherwise the candied fruits will turn out cloying. After this, place all the contents in a colander (the crusts will become almost transparent), and allow the remaining syrup to drain.

Place candied fruits to dry on a baking sheet, parchment paper or flat plate. You can also dry them in the oven with the door open or in a low heat oven. Roll dried candied fruits in granulated sugar or powder. Store in glass jars under a lid or parchment.

To ensure that sweet preparations, including candied fruits, are well preserved, do the following. Tie a white scarf on your head, cross yourself three times and, placing pre-washed and dried berries on the table, read the spell 3 times: “Mother Mother of God, good luck to me, the servant of God (name), surround me, bless me with a word. Brew a fragrant delicacy, tasty and pleasant to everyone, and I will tie myself up with an apron, girdle myself with good luck, let my treat be sweet and tasty for everyone forever and ever. Amen".

Not long ago I learned about the existence of a very unusual recipe for making homemade healthy sweets. It all started with the fact that my children brought homemade candied fruits from school, they were treated to it and they wanted to give me a new and unprecedented delicacy to try. And I tried it :) And the result of that event was this recipe that you are seeing now.

We all liked homemade candied fruits, as you might have guessed, and I started looking for a recipe in the hope of making homemade candied orange peels myself.

After studying the recipes for making candied orange peel offered on the Internet, I set about implementing the idea. But the preparation of candied orange peels begins a day before the actual start. This is because you first need to get rid of the bitterness in the orange peel, and this is done by soaking the peel in water with the addition of a small amount of salt. After a day or at least 10 hours of such soaking, the bitterness from the peels goes away and after that you can safely count on the delicious taste of future candied orange peels.

Apart from soaking the peels, preparing candied orange peel does not take much time. I was very interested in preparing them, I couldn’t wait to see and try the result of my labors. And the result did not disappoint me.

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Number of servings – 10

Ingredients:

3 oranges (peel)
1 tsp salt
1 cup sugar + 5 tbsp. Sahara
0.5 glasses of water
0.3 tsp citric acid

Homemade candied orange peels

Peel oranges should be carefully removed, leaving them as intact as possible. I did this: I cut the peel along the “equator”, and then made the same vertical cut. Then I carefully peeled off the peel, resulting in 4 identical pieces of orange peel from each orange. At the same time, the oranges themselves remained absolutely intact and the children and I ate them safely.

Place the orange peels in a deep container and fill them with water. Add a teaspoon of salt, stir lightly and leave the peels to soak in water for a day or less. During this time, the bitterness will disappear from the crusts.

It's been a day for me. Drain the water from the crusts and cut them into beautiful thin slices.

Place a glass of sugar and half a glass of water into the pan. Let's prepare sugar syrup. Place the pan on the stove and turn on medium heat. Without disturbing, wait until the sugar is completely dissolved in the water and the syrup is actively boiling.

Add citric acid and chopped orange peels to boiling sugar syrup.

Cook them in syrup until it evaporates completely and is absorbed into the crust. Stir the crusts from time to time. It took me about 12-15 minutes for the entire process of boiling the syrup.

Place the finished candied orange peels on a sheet of parchment (don’t worry, they won’t stick) and sprinkle them with a few tablespoons of sugar. Use your hands to help the sugar distribute evenly. Leave the candied orange peels to dry on parchment until the next day.

Now the candied orange peels are ready. They retained their aroma and color, remaining bright like the sun. As it turns out, these candied orange peels are very tasty to “gnaw” with a cup of tea or coffee. They are also great for baking (they can be finely chopped and added to cupcakes, muffins, and pies).

Everyone knows what candied fruits are. They are a pleasure to prepare and then store, like jewelry, in boxes and jars. Today, candied vegetables and fruits are used everywhere: they are added to baked goods, jelly, ice cream and other dairy desserts, including cottage cheese, they decorate various confectionery products, in addition, slices of fruit boiled in syrup are sometimes served as an independent sweet dish for tea or coffee instead of sweets. Candied fruits serve as an excellent filling for muffins, rolls, and puff pastries.

In Rus', candied fruits have also been loved for a long time. Only they were called Kyiv dry jam or “balabushki”. The first mention of Kiev dry jam dates back to the 14th century. It was brought from Kyiv and served at the wedding feast of the Lithuanian prince Jagiello. In 1777, Catherine II issued a decree according to which dry jam from apricots, wild strawberries, strawberries, pears, dogwoods, cherries, Hungarian plums, rose hips and pink, so beloved by her, was supplied to the court. Every autumn, stagecoaches with boxes and boxes of Russian candied fruits departed from Kyiv to St. Petersburg. In the middle of the 18th century there was even a separate position - “candy apprentice of the Kyiv imperial court.”

The process of making candied fruits has not changed significantly since then. The fruits are thoroughly washed and dried beforehand. They are then dipped in rich sugar syrup and cooked for a long time. At the next stage, the fruits, thoroughly soaked in syrup, are dried, after which they become similar to what we can see in the store. There is nothing difficult about making candied fruits yourself. Any fruit, berries, citrus peel with zest, as well as some vegetables, such as pumpkin, carrots and zucchini, are suitable for this.

It is worth noting that candied vegetables and fruits also have a number of useful properties that many other confectionery products do not have.

Candied oranges and watermelons are very tasty, or rather, from their peels, which we usually throw away.

Ingredients:
1 kg watermelon rinds,
1 kg sugar,
200 ml water,
5 g citric acid,
orange zest, almonds, lemon zest, vanilla - to taste.

Preparation:
To prepare candied fruits, use watermelons with a thick rind, as well as unripe melons, which are usually thrown away as inedible products; in this case, they will be very useful to you. Peel the watermelon rinds from the thick rind and soft part, cut into pieces of the same size, keeping in mind that they will boil down later, add water and cook for 3 minutes. Then drain the water, rinse the boiled pieces with cold water, pour boiling syrup made from sugar, water and citric acid. For flavoring, you can also add lemon or orange zest and almonds. Boil the watermelon rinds until transparent, remove with a slotted spoon, dry and roll in powdered sugar.

Ingredients:
1 kg zucchini,
200 g honey,
1 lemon,
500 g sugar.

Preparation:
Wash the zucchini, remove the peel and seeds, cut into rectangular pieces or cubes, sprinkle with sugar (200 g), refrigerate until the juice releases, then drain the juice. Wash the lemon, pour boiling water over it, cut into small pieces along with the peel, remove the seeds, pour in a glass of zucchini juice, heat and cook for 10 minutes, then pour in the remaining sugar (300 g), cook the syrup over low heat (until the sugar is completely dissolved ). Pour boiling syrup over the zucchini, add honey, put on low heat and cook until tender (until the zucchini becomes transparent and the syrup is thick like honey). Remove the zucchini from the syrup, dry and roll in powdered sugar. Place the finished candied fruits in candy boxes for storage, and use the remaining syrup with lemon slices as regular jam.

Ingredients:
1 kg plums,
1 kg sugar,
1 g ascorbic acid.

Preparation:
To prepare candied fruits, the seeds do not need to be removed. If you are preparing candied fruits from seedless plums, cut the fruits crosswise and not lengthwise - in this case, the skin will not curl during cooking. Place the prepared plums in a wide-bottomed pan, sprinkle with sugar and leave to separate the juice. After this, boil the fruits until the juice turns into a thick syrup. Remove the plums from the syrup and place them on foil or parchment paper to dry. If you dip the dried plums in hot syrup two or three more times, drying them each time, you will get a very tasty plum in caramel.

Ingredients:
1 kg sugar beets,
3 g citric acid,
100 g sugar,
500 ml water,
lemon zest, vanilla or other flavoring of your choice.

Preparation:
Wash the beets, peel and cut into pieces of the same size (cubes or slices), add water, add sugar, citric acid and simmer over low heat until all the liquid has evaporated. For flavoring, beets can be boiled together with lemon or orange zest, honey, cardamom or vanillin. Just like in previous recipes, dry the beets and roll in powdered sugar.

Ingredients:
1 kg pumpkin,
1 orange,
200 ml water,
800 g sugar.

Preparation:
Wash the pumpkin, peel and remove seeds, cut into cubes or cubes, sprinkle with a small amount of sugar. When the juice comes out of the pumpkin, drain it.
Wash the orange, pour boiling water over it, cut into small pieces along with the peel, remove the seeds, pour boiling water over it and cook for 10 minutes. Pour the orange broth (along with orange slices) over the sugar, place on low heat and cook until the sugar is completely dissolved. Pour boiling syrup over the prepared pumpkin pieces. Place the cooled mass on low heat and cook until tender (the pumpkin pieces are transparent and the syrup is thick). Remove the boiled pumpkin pieces from the syrup, dry them, roll in powdered sugar and place in a pastry box. Use the remaining syrup with orange slices as jam, and the remaining fresh pumpkin juice can be brought to a boil, immediately poured into sterilized jars and rolled up. This juice will be especially useful for children, and adults are unlikely to refuse it once they try it.

It’s not for nothing that they say that “carrots polish the blood.” This is a very healthy and valuable vegetable containing many useful substances. If you want to eat not only tasty, but also healthy sweets, prepare candied carrots. To prepare this delicacy, it is better to choose young, fresh carrots - they will provide the most pleasant taste and benefits.

Ingredients:
1 kg carrots,
1.2 kg sugar,
1.5 stack. water,
citric acid (on the tip of a knife).

Preparation:
Wash and peel the carrots. Cut into medium-sized pieces or thin strips. Boil water and boil the carrots in it for 10 minutes, after which, after cutting, cool them in cold water. Cook the syrup: add sugar to water, boil and wait until the sugar has completely melted. Place carrot pieces in boiling syrup and boil for 15 minutes. After this, leave the carrots to infuse in the syrup for 10 hours. Repeat this procedure 3 times. At the end of cooking, add citric acid and cool. Strain the carrot pieces through a colander and place them on parchment-lined plates or baking sheets. The syrup can be sealed in sterile jars - it will be useful for soaking or preparing glaze for baking. Dry the carrots in the oven on low or with the door open until tender, or for several days at room temperature in a well-ventilated area. You can use an electric dryer. Dip candied fruits in powdered sugar and place in jars with airtight lids.

You can make very tasty aromatic candied fruits from any berries. For example, take strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, gooseberries, red and black currants, cherries and place them on a clean baking sheet in one row, sprinkle with sugar (1 kg of berries requires 200 g of sugar) and place in the oven preheated to 200°C, for about 20 minutes. As soon as the berries boil over the entire surface, watch carefully so that they do not burn and warm up evenly. Then pour the hot berries onto foil and dry them, and pour the thick juice remaining on the baking sheet into a jar and use, for example, as a sweet sauce or an additive to jelly and compotes. When serving, add any nuts to the candied berry mixture.

Ingredients:
1 kg orange peels,
1 kg sugar,
200 ml water,
5 g citric acid.

Preparation:
Wash the orange peels, cut into cubes, add water until they are completely covered, and cook for 5 minutes, then pour out the broth. Make syrup from sugar and water, adding citric acid. Dip boiled orange peels into the syrup and simmer over low heat until they become translucent. Remove them from the syrup with a slotted spoon and dry them on parchment paper or foil. Roll the dried candied fruits in powdered sugar and place them in a box (can be used for candies or cookies). Store at room temperature. Use the remaining syrup to flavor confectionery products or for further preparation of candied fruits.

Take in your palm some of the multi-colored candied fruits you have prepared and admire: the scattering of sunny, like amber, and transparent candied fruits in the palm of your hand is like precious stones - it’s as if a sunbeam is caught in each of them. It’s impossible to resist trying at least a small piece - feel the sweetness and aroma, reminiscent of honey and flower nectar, melting and taking you to the world of dreams and hot summer.

Happy preparations!

Larisa Shuftaykina

Candied fruits are fruits or berries in sugar that can be used as a dessert or as a decoration for cakes, pie and other confectionery products. Unusual sweetness can be added when baking, to cream, dough or glaze.

Candied fruits have a very long history. The word is borrowed from the German language. The Germans call the sweet treat “zukkade”. In Russia, candied fruits became widely known only in the 18th century, when Catherine II issued a decree on the supply of an unusual delicacy to the court. At the same time, a dry jam store with many interesting culinary products, including candied pieces, was opened for the first time in the city of Kyiv.

Nowadays you can buy delicious sweets everywhere. But if you don’t like factory-made candied fruits because of the dryness, coarse fiber and cloyingly sweet taste, prepare them yourself at home. They can be made from the following products:

Citrus fruit;
Pumpkin;
Carrot;
Watermelon and melon rinds;
Quince;
Beet;
Apricots;
Pears;
Plum;
Strawberry.

If you have little experience, choose firm fruits rather than juicy ones. Apricots, strawberries, and plums tend to become overcooked, so making excellent quality sweets from them is not so easy.

Recipes

Candied citrus fruits

This type of candied fruit is especially popular in winter due to its unsurpassed aroma. The taste of citrus sweets is spicy and sweet, with a pleasant sourness. The cooking recipe is very economical, because fruit peels are most often thrown away. So, you will need:

300 grams of grapefruit zest;
300 grams of orange zest;
300 grams of sugar;
100 grams of powdered sugar.

Preparation step by step:

Place the peel in cold water for a day.
Remove the peels from the water and cut into 1.5 cm slices.
Fill about half a pan with water and pour sugar into it.
When the sugar has dissolved, add the citrus slices.
Cook candied fruits for 7 minutes.
Repeat cooking after 8 and 16 hours. You will have 3 brews in total.
Remove the slices and allow the syrup to drain. You can place the candied fruits in a colander.
Place paper on a baking sheet and place candied fruit on top.
Dry the slices in the oven for 5 hours at 50 degrees.
If the candied fruits are not dry enough, leave them overnight at room temperature.
Sprinkle the finished candied fruits with powdered sugar.

The peels of oranges and grapefruits are soaked in water to remove the bitterness. In addition, the crusts swell and become soft. When the crusts become transparent during cooking in syrup, this is a clear sign that they are ready. The finished candied pieces should be placed in a jar or other container and stored in the refrigerator.

Perhaps repeated cooking is the only drawback of traditional preparation of sweets. To get quick sweet pieces from citrus fruits, you need to pass lemon peels and oranges through a meat grinder. Then cover them with sugar and place them in a glass container for 3 days in the refrigerator. After this, you should cook the fruit in syrup until completely thickened. Syrup is one and a half glasses of sugar and a glass of water.

To prevent candied fruits from being overly sweet, do not forget to add 1 to 3 grams of citric acid at the end of cooking.

Candied tangerines are very fragrant. To prepare them you will need:

290 grams of sugar;
100 ml water;
Tangerine peel 290 grams;
A little lemon liqueur.

Thick-skinned tangerines are best suited for candied fruits. You can also use clementines. Start cooking by soaking the crusts in water for 6 hours. Then change the water and soak for another 6 hours. The crusts must be immersed in water at all times. To do this, cover them with a saucer and place something heavy on top. Cover the crusts again with fresh water and bring to a boil. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove the candied fruits and dry them on a towel. Prepare the syrup. Proportion of water and sugar: 1.5:4. Combine sugar and water, add candied fruits and boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. A few minutes before the end of cooking, add lemon or orange liqueur. Remove the candied fruits and dry them. If you like it mildly sweet, it's ready to go. If you need the candied fruit to be firm, place it in the oven for a few hours. To dry, place them on special paper or non-stick sheet.

The process of preparing candied carrots takes several days. But the effort required is minimal. Prepare the following foods:

1.5 tbsp. water;
500 grams of peeled carrots;
500 grams of sugar;
1/4 tsp. citric acid;
Powdered sugar for sprinkling.

Cooking process:

Cut the carrots into cubes, place in a container and fill with water.
Bring the candied fruits to a boil and cook for 10 minutes.
Place the cubes on a slotted spoon and run cold water over them.
Combine water and sugar and place on the stove.
When the syrup boils, dip the carrots into it. Cook for 15 minutes and remove from the stove.
Leave the bars in the syrup for 10 hours.
Repeat the cooking procedure 2 more times with a break of 10 hours.
When the carrot pieces are sugared, the candied fruit is ready.
Add citric acid to them, boil again, and then drain the syrup.
Place the carrots on a baking sheet and sprinkle with lemon juice.
Dry candied fruits in the oven or simply indoors at room temperature.
Roll candied fruits in powdered sugar.

In order to give a sweet dish a pleasant aroma and slight sourness, show your imagination. You can sprinkle them not only with lemon juice, but also with orange or liqueur. Do not throw away the strained syrup, but dilute it with hot water, boil it and pour it into a jar. You can use it to make glaze or soak baked goods in it.

You can use an electric dryer to dry candied fruits. But if you are simply drying indoors, place the candied fruits in a sunny and well-ventilated place.

Making candied pumpkin is quite simple. You will get pleasant marmalades with a caramel aroma. The advantage of these pieces is that they will not have a pronounced pumpkin smell. So, you will need:

1 medium sized pumpkin;
5 tbsp. Sahara;
3 tbsp. water.

To make the glaze, take:

4 tbsp. milk;
3 tsp cocoa;
50-70 grams of butter;
8 tbsp. Sahara;
honey on the tip of a knife.

Cooking diagram step by step:

Peel the pumpkin and cut into squares. Please note that the candied fruits will boil down 4 times.
Combine sugar and water and bring to a boil. Place the pumpkin in the syrup and leave for 6 hours.
Do the procedure at least 3-4 times.
Place the candied fruits and let the syrup drain.
Place the pumpkin on a baking sheet and dry for 2-3 hours. The temperature should be as low as possible. You can even open the oven door slightly.
The candied pieces are ready when they become firmer.

To prepare the glaze, simply combine all ingredients and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. You should get a homogeneous mass. Dip the pieces into the glaze and place on foil to set. The glaze takes about 30 minutes to set.

Candied fruits are high-calorie desserts. Therefore, this delicacy should be consumed in moderation. In addition to its excellent taste properties, the advantage of candied fruits is that they can act as an excellent antidepressant.

Candied melon

Candied melon is a wonderful reminder of summer. Ingredients:

500 grams of melon pulp;
300 grams of granulated sugar;
100 ml water.

The melon must be firm. It may even be a little underripe, with a green rind. But unlike oranges and other citrus fruits, you only need the pulp. The variety “Collective Farmer” is suitable.

Cooking method:

cut the pulp into slices.
Make syrup from water and sugar.
Dip the melon into the syrup, boil and cook for 5-7 minutes. Cool.
Repeat the procedure until the liquid has completely evaporated.
Remove the slices from the syrup and let them drain.
Place the melon on an iron sheet and dry in the oven at 100°C for 1 hour. Sometimes it takes longer to dry.
Cool the pieces and roll them in powdered sugar.

Candied ginger

Real sweet candied fruits can be made from ginger. Their taste is specific. For cooking, it is important to purchase fresh ginger, not dried. All you need for candied fruits is 200 grams of ginger root, 500 ml of water, 125 ml of water and 200 grams of sugar.

The preparation process is as follows:

Cut the ginger root into cubes.
Pour water over ginger, cover and cook for 1 hour. During this time, the bitterness and pungency will go away.
For the syrup, add sugar to 125 ml of water and boil.
Place the boiled ginger in the syrup. If any pieces are not in the syrup, they will darken. Watch this closely. Cook for an hour: the ginger should become transparent.
Remove the pieces from the syrup and place them on parchment paper.
Dry the ginger and roll in sugar.

Candied fruits purchased in stores are produced using dyes, flavors, and gelatin. Some substances may be hazardous to health. The composition of fruits prepared at home is completely natural. They preserve organic acids, essential oils, and vitamins. And only because of the high sugar content you need to know when to eat this sweetness in moderation.

Candied fruits are pieces of fruit boiled in thick sugar syrup and dried. Candied fruits are also called candied berries and fruits. They can perfectly replace sweets for tea.

In order to prepare candied fruits you will need the same raw materials as for jam. But it is better to use denser fruits and berries.

What products are needed to prepare candied fruits:

citrus peels: orange, tangerine, lemon, grapefruit. You can also take: apples, pears, cherries, plums, apricots, etc.;
salt - one teaspoon;
sugar - one and a half glasses;
water - one glass.

How to cook candied fruits

We will prepare candied orange peels.

The crusts must be filled with cool water and placed on the stove. Then cook over medium heat for approximately ten minutes.
Place them hot in a colander or plate and cool.
Fill the crusts with water again and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook for 12 minutes.
After we have boiled them, we need to rinse them again under running water.
And the last third time we cook again for 10 minutes, but there is no need to add salt.
Cut the boiled orange peels into strips or whatever way suits you best.

How to make syrup

For a glass of water you need to take one and a half glasses of sugar (candied orange peels, calculated for 5 pieces).
When our syrup boils, carefully place the boiled and chopped peels into the pan.
Cook our candied fruits over low heat until the liquid has completely evaporated (this will take approximately 30 minutes). Add citric acid at the tip of a knife to prevent them from becoming cloyingly sweet.
The orange peels have already become transparent, but the aroma and their color are preserved. Next, put the candied fruits in a colander and wait until the syrup drips.
However, you can not pour out the syrup, but use it, for example, to grease pancakes or pancakes. Place the candied fruits on a plate or tray and wait a bit for them to dry. Once they are dry, you can sprinkle them with powdered sugar.

That's it - delicious and sweet candied fruits are ready!

You can store candied fruits in an ordinary jar, but if guests often come to your house, then you won’t have to store them for long - they will quickly be eaten.

It should be remembered that candied fruits are a very high-calorie product. But pampering yourself a little and even calming down if something is bothering you is not only possible, but even necessary: the benefits of candied fruits are obvious. By preparing candied fruits at home, you have a great opportunity to save money.

Krot Olga, especially for the site The best recipes for you.