Liqueurs are peculiar drinks and not everyone likes them. But those who love them, sometimes very sadly perceive the numbers on the price tags in stores. Whatever you say, they are depressing. However, this is not a reason to deny yourself the pleasure of sipping your favorite drink on holidays: making the same banana liquor at home is quite simple, and it is in no way inferior to the store competitors in taste. And no expensive ingredients are needed.
Choose the main ingredient
Before making banana liquor at home, you need to purchase bananas correctly. These fruits are sold year-round and everywhere, so if the product does not suit you at the nearest store, do not be too lazy to go to the next. The banana should be ripe - green stripes and hard pulp will give your favorite drink unnecessary bitterness. However, it is not necessary to take the ripened fruits either: the black elements even in the form of dots will fill the banana liquor, prepared at home, with a putrid taste and spoil the aroma. Although when you eat such a fruit, you will not feel anything like it.
Something about the alcohol component
Equally important in the manufacture of liquor is the quality of the component that gives it strength. Either high-quality vodka, of which you are sure, is taken, or food (medical) alcohol. The latter is bred according to all the rules: alcohol is poured into water, the fortress is brought up to 40 degrees (an alcohol meter will not hurt).
Taste variety is achieved by the introduction of other strong drinks. Banana liquor at home based on rum (preferably white) or brandy is very refined. With whiskey you need to be careful: some of its varieties have a rather heavy aroma. And the gin, perhaps, is not at all suitable for our purposes, although experimenters may risk it.
Basic recipe
So, we make banana liquor at home. The most primitive way is as follows. A large, lovingly selected banana is chopped finely, poured with half a liter of good vodka and thoroughly kneading. Better a wooden spoon. From these actions, the banana pulp will turn black. The container with the workpiece is removed in the dark and cool for a couple of weeks. After the specified period, the liquid is drained. Syrup is brewed from a glass with a hill of sugar and half a glass of water. It is combined with tincture, a spoonful of vanilla extract is added - and another month of aging. Again, filtering, after which the banana liquor (at home it is not difficult to make it) is ready for ingestion.
Variations on a Theme
To get liquor, almost identical to the famous Creme de Banana, the proportions need to be changed: the dose of sugar syrup should be twice as much. Bananas are taken in an amount of 2 pcs. per 750 ml bottle of alcohol.
The accelerated version is prepared as follows: two bananas are kneading, which must be filled with 700 milliliters of vodka; thick syrup is prepared from a third of a kilo of sugar and an incomplete glass of water; all components are mixed and aged from three to four days. Shake regularly, at least once a day, but better often.
To idealize the taste, you can add a spoonful of clove buds to the liquor. Or a little cinnamon stick. Or both, and the other together, as you prefer.
Banana Orange Version
Another way to make banana liquor at home with an enrichment of the basic taste. It will take two weeks to insist, but your patience will pay off with a fragrant and tasty drink on the gala table. In addition, unlike fast liquors, this one can be stored for a long time, and not even in the refrigerator. The only thing that he will need is not vodka, but alcohol - food, of good quality and tested for strength.
Two oranges are scalded, the zest is carefully removed from them. After that the white layers between the skins and slices are removed and the juice is squeezed out of the pulp. Four peeled and finely chopped bananas are placed in the same jar. A glass of sugar is poured here, the contents are thoroughly mixed. Zest is added - re-mixing. The last pouring alcohol (750 milliliters). The jar is tightly, but not hermetically sealed with a lid and retracts into the darkness to settle. After two weeks, its contents are filtered. Syrup is made from a liter of water and six glasses of sugar and poured into a jar in a chilled form. After mixing, a wonderful liquor is bottled in beautiful bottles and waits in the wings to be served.
Velvet Liquor
There are situations in which there is no time to wait. If you hit one of them, you can prepare a delicious banana liquor at home in just half an hour.
Three bananas are peeled and finely chopped. Two eggs, previously chilled, only from the refrigerator, are divided into proteins and yolks. The first are laid in a mixer or a blender. A glass of milk is poured there (make sure it is fresh, otherwise your liquor will curl up) and a can (a quarter liter) of good condensed milk. Bananas are poured into the bowl, and together they make their way to homogeneity. When it suits you, pour a third of a liter of vodka in a thin stream, without turning off the unit. The result is a rather thick mixture. The container with it should be covered (you can even clean it with a napkin) and put in cool for half an hour. The last step will be filtering. Moreover, because of the density of the cocktail, it may require enough patience from the future consumer. On the other hand, if you are satisfied with the consistency of the drink, you can refuse to filter.
By the way, if condensed milk seems cloying to you, it can be successfully replaced with cream. And if you “play” with seasonings (cinnamon, cloves, vanilla), you can get a unique and inimitable taste.
Banana liquor at home: a moonshine recipe
Cooking is long-playing, but the investment is minimal. Only moonshine still needs to be taken at the highest quality, after double distillation and refined so that the scent of siwi does not spoil the impression.
It is recommended to freeze bananas - experts say that insisting on frozen fruits is faster. After liberation from the skin, they are mashed. A potato crush is also suitable, although, of course, things will go faster with a blender. Puree is poured with two volumes of moonshine and mixes well. The container closes - this time tightly - and is put for a month in the dark and cool. If the bottom of the refrigerator is used as such a place, the jar should be wrapped with parchment so that the light does not get into the contents even when the door is opened.
When the banana liquor at home is ready, it is already habitually filtered and poured into storage containers.
Cocktail fantasies
Having chosen any of the recipes for making banana liquor, it would be nice to think about drinking it for those who do not welcome sweet drinks. Several options can be offered:
- A glass of homemade liquor, a half glass of normal vodka and a spoonful of fresh lemon juice. For a minute work as a shaker - and in a glass. The perfect decoration is cherry.
- In a stack of self-made banana and bought cream liqueurs, a double dose of pineapple juice is passed with ice through a shaker. The cocktail is decorated with pineapple slices and whipped cream.
If you intend to use liquor in its pure form, it is better to combine it with fruit. The recommendations to supplement it with chocolate and cakes, in our opinion, are not too correct: the liquor is already sweet. Although if you like cloying, such a combination will suit you.