Back in Russia, jelly was a very popular drink. Modern housewives also indulge their households with this unique dish, preparing it according to a variety of recipes. Further we will consider some of them, and also we will learn features of preparation of kissel.
General information
Kissel is a fortified drink that is considered quite satisfying. It is very often used for nutrition during gastritis and other diseases of the stomach and intestines. Specialists in the field of medicine note that natural and properly cooked kissel favorably affects intestinal motility, which is especially necessary during its disorders. Moreover, the drink has an excellent effect on the body as a whole, strengthening it.
Kissel is recommended for those people who carefully monitor their weight, and also tend to lose a few extra pounds. So, nutritionists recommend drinking this drink on an empty stomach in order to minimize overeating, as well as eliminate the feeling of heaviness in the stomach. The special consistency of the drink allows you to significantly activate the metabolic process in the human body, as well as normalize the kidneys.
Which starch to choose
Kissel is a drink whose thick consistency is achieved by adding starch to it. There is an opinion that for its preparation it is necessary to use only a product extracted from potatoes, however, in fact, this is not so.
Some recipes use rice starch. This ingredient gives the finished drink an excellent taste, but the transparency of the finished product is eliminated - the jelly becomes cloudy and, as a result, gets an unpresentable appearance. It is necessary to use the named component very carefully and in small quantities, since otherwise rice starch interrupts the taste of the drink.
Jelly made with corn starch is great for making a milk-based drink as well as oatmeal. It also gives the texture a dull look. As for wheat starch, it is almost never used at home.
How to control consistency
If desired, you can cook both very thick and liquid jelly. The second type of drink is more suitable for consumption on hot summer days, when you need to quench your thirst. In order for the drink not to turn out to be very thick, you need to take the main ingredients at the rate of 2 tablespoons of starch per liter of liquid (water, fruit drink, milk, broth, etc.). If you want to make not a drink, but a dessert, it is recommended to take about 4-5 tablespoons of starch per liter of liquid per liter of liquid.
How to get the perfect mass without lumps
Before adding starch to a liquid, it is recommended to first dilute it in a small amount of water (not more than half a glass). It is necessary to introduce the prepared mass with diluted starch very carefully, in a thin stream - this way you can avoid unwanted lumps. After the introduced mass dissolves, the pan must be immediately removed from the heat. In the case of prolonged cooking of the mass, it will begin to liquefy, which is undesirable for the drink in question.
What to cook jelly
Almost all jelly recipes indicate that the process of preparing this drink must be done in an enamel bowl. The most inappropriate packaging for the preparation of the dish in question is one that is made of aluminum. This is due to the fact that when interacting with berries, which are among the ingredients of any drink, aluminum will give the finished dish a very unpleasant metallic taste.
Calorie jelly
As mentioned above, jelly is a drink that is recommended by almost all nutritionists to people who want to lose a few extra pounds. This is due to the fact that a properly prepared drink contains a small amount of calories. On average, this indicator is 53 kcal per 100 g of finished product.
However, this applies only to the berry drink. If we are talking about milk, then the calorie content will be much higher - about 100 kcal per 100 g.
Next, we consider several options for recipes for jelly from berries, as well as with the addition of other ingredients.
Lemon jelly
The jelly made on the basis of a lemon has an interesting taste. To prepare it, you need to take a couple of medium citruses, wash them and remove the zest. After this, the fruits must be divided into slices, and the zest combined with half a glass of sugar, mix well and, pouring 500 ml of water, put on fire. As soon as the water boils, it is necessary to remove the separated zest from it, and bring the remaining liquid back to a boil and pour 80 g of potato starch into it, previously diluted in a small amount of warm water.
After this, the mixture must be mixed well, producing this process continuously until the mass thickens. As soon as this happens, the jar container must be removed from the stove and, adding juice squeezed from lemons into it, mix again and then cool.
Berry jelly
You can make such a drink from any seasonal berries. To create it, you need to take 300 g of fresh fruits, rinse them well and, having removed everything unnecessary, pass through a juicer in order to separate the juice from the pulp.
Next, the pulp must be poured with a liter of purified cold water and put on fire. The mass must be brought to a boiling state, and then, after cooking for a minute, strain it. The separated liquid must be put back on fire and boiled again, then pour 3 tablespoons of sugar (with a slide) into it, as well as starch (2.5 tablespoons) previously diluted in warm water. Constantly mixing the mass, it is necessary to give it a thick consistency, and then pour the previously squeezed juice, mix again and remove from heat. Once the mass has cooled, it will be ready for use.
Cooked according to this recipe, the jelly from starch and berries is quite liquid, it can be consumed even in the summer, if you want to quench your thirst. If there is a need to make it more dense, you need to slightly increase the amount of starch added.
Frozen Berry Jelly
In the winter season, you can prepare a delicious berry drink. The jelly recipe from frozen berries is quite simple to implement, and the technology provided by it is feasible even for a novice housewife.
To prepare jelly, you need to take 500 g of frozen berries, thaw them at room temperature, without using boiling water and a microwave, and then collect the juice that drains from them. From the remaining mass, remove all available bones and grind the mass through a sieve. Next, the fruit mixture should be poured with water (1 liter) and, having mixed, put on fire. After boiling, the pan with the broth must be removed from the stove, and then separate the broth from the berries. Next, the filtered broth needs to be put back on the stove and let it boil.
While the broth is boiling, it is necessary to prepare starch - 3 tsp. It must be diluted in purified water (0.5 cups). As soon as the broth boils, it is necessary to pour the diluted starch into it in a thin stream and begin to mix the mass well. Bringing the contents of the pan to a boil, it must be removed from the stove in a couple of minutes. To give a brighter taste to the finished drink, pour juice separated from berries during defrosting into the contents of the pan and bring the mixture to uniformity. Kissel is ready.
This recipe for jelly from frozen berries involves the use of a small amount of starch. If you want to make the drink more thick, you can increase the declared amount of this ingredient.
From Hercules
If you want to increase immunity, you need to pay attention to the jelly recipe (you can see the photo of the finished dish in the article) from hercules. It is especially useful during exacerbation of diseases of the stomach and intestines, as well as with elevated cholesterol in the body. Moreover, this product is very useful for babies. Hercules kissel is a drink that eliminates colic in the stomach, which every now and then is observed in young children. It also helps stabilize daily stools. It is necessary to give such a product to the child in small portions, carefully observing the reaction of his body.
In order to cook the jelly from hercules, according to the recipe, it is necessary to pre-soak a small piece of rye bread in a small amount of purified water. Once it becomes soft, squeeze the water, and then combine the bread with 500 g of cereal. The components should be poured with a liter of water and covered with gauze, put in a warm place for a day so that the fermentation process occurs.
After a day, the mass must be filtered and squeezed out its remains, which can then be discarded.
In the separated liquid, you can add a little salt, to taste, mix and put the mass on fire. It is necessary to cook until the mass becomes thicker. During the whole process of making jelly, the liquid should be constantly stirred, otherwise it will burn, and the taste of the drink will be spoiled.
After the mass becomes thick, it should be removed from the heat and allowed to cool - the jelly is ready.
Milk jelly
The most high-calorie and hearty drink is milk jelly. The recipe for its preparation is quite simple, and for the preparation of such a drink, you can use aluminum utensils.
To create milk jelly, you need to take 1200 ml of fresh milk and, pouring it into a pan, bring to a boil. As soon as this happens, turn off the stove and cool the mass, then separate the glass of milk from it.
In separated milk, 4 tsp should be diluted. corn starch, as well as 4 tablespoons of sugar. The rest of the milk should be returned to the stove and let it boil again. At this stage, diluted starch is required to be added to the general packaging and, stirring constantly, bring the jelly to a state of readiness.
In order to give the finished drink a unique flavor, at the final stage of its preparation, you can pour a small pinch of vanilla into the pan.