People have long known about the medicinal and nutritional properties of the black nightshade and learned how to use its plant raw materials and fruits in traditional medicine, as well as making sauces, preserves, jam and fillings for baking from berries. In this article we will explain how to make jam from these fruits, as well as about its benefits for the body.
Description
Nightshade is an annual herb up to one meter in height, which is found everywhere on the Eurasian continent, except for the northern regions. His favorite places of growth - gardens, orchards, arable land, coast of water. Plant stems are erect, branched, slightly pubescent. There are regular pointy-oval sheets up to 13 centimeters in length and up to 8 centimeters in width.
Small white flowers are clustered in bent inflorescences in the form of umbrellas. Fruits are black, sometimes white and green, round, up to 1 cm in size and very juicy. Flowering period - all summer months, fruiting begins in July and ends in October.
Important! All parts of nightshade black, except for fully ripened berries, have poisonous properties, so self-treatment with this medicinal plant is unacceptable. Preparations based on this plant should be prescribed only by a doctor, and they should be consumed strictly according to the prescribed dosage.
High content of the following elements was found in the berries, grass and leaves of the plant:
- coloring and tannins;
- carotene;
- sugars;
- organic acids;
- Dulkamarin (bitter glycoside);
- glycoalkaloids (solanine, solacein).
Find out what is good nightshade and what are the subtleties of its cultivation at home.
Because of its medicinal qualities, nightshade is listed among the medicinal plants. The fruits have the following healing properties:
- choleretic;
- antipyretic;
- anti-inflammatory;
- expectorant;
- antirheumatic;
- sedative;
- diuretic;
- disinfectant;
- cleansing.
As the nightshade has antipyretic properties: silver goof, barberry, Rhodiola rosea, meadowsweet, blackberry, viburnum, cornel, heather, sloes.
Eat berries, as well as the aboveground part of the plant in the form of decoctions, infusions and juice are recommended for the following health disorders:
- atherosclerosis;
- dyspepsia;
- hypertension;
- diseases of the genitourinary system;
- epilepsy;
- skin diseases;
- nervous system disorders;
- oncological diseases of the blood (leukemia);
- pain syndromes;
- pyelitis;
- sore throat;
- festering gums.
Ointment from the leaves of the plant cure:
- lichen;
- boils;
- ulcers and festering wounds.
Did you know? English professor Vik Morris (Institute for Food Research, UK) proved the ability of pectins found in apple jam, plums, apricots, black currants and nightshade to block the growth of cancer cells, thanks to the galectin-3 protein found in them.
Benefits of the nightshade
The above described beneficial qualities of a plant are possessed by food from it, in particular, solanaceous jam. In numerous collections of traditional medicine recipes, it is advised to consume daily up to five tablespoons of jam from these juicy fruits with the following indications:
- cleansing the body of toxins;
- as a general tonic;
- blood pressure regulation;
- as a remedy for constipation;
- as anti-inflammatory;
- blood composition enhancer;
- mild sedative;
- with frequent headaches;
- under stress;
- in the prevention of gastrointestinal poisoning (natural sorbent).
Normalization of blood pressure also contribute to: cantaloupe melon, champignons, cherry plum, gooseberry, chervil, basil, beet leaves, mint, celandine.
Ingredients
Now directly tell you how to cook this healing delicacy. First, we indicate the necessary ingredients for jam, as well as what kind of utensils and tools will be needed.
You will need:
- 1.5 kilograms of ripe fruit;
- 1.5 kilograms of sugar;
- colander or sieve for washing berries;
- container with a lid for cooking jam (stainless steel pan);
- skimmer for removing the foam from the surface of the jam during its preparation;
- spoon for mixing berries;
- sterilized 0.5 liter jars;
- sterilized canning lids;
- seamer.
Did you know? Approximately 1,400 plant species belong to the Solanaceae family, and a single plant of nightshade can produce more than thirty thousand seeds per season.
Cooking jam step by step
Next - step-by-step recipe for the preparation of the product:
- To pick up the picked berries from leaves and spoiled or unripe fruits, to put in a sieve or a colander, and to wash out under flowing water. Let the water drain completely.
- Pour sugar on the bottom of the pan and flatten with a spoon to make a layer of about 1 cm.
- Then pour a layer of berries on a layer of sugar and smooth them.
- Alternate layers of sugar and berries, leveling them with a spoon.
- Sprinkle the top layer of berries with a layer of sugar and level the surface.
- Cover and leave to highlight the juice for 8-10 hours.
- After this time, mix the berries with the released juice and the remnants of the sugar not dissolved.
- Put on the stove and turn on the middle fire, stirring the mixture.
- From the moment of boiling, reduce the heat and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring it constantly and taking off the skimming skimmer with a skimmer.
- Pour the finished dessert in sterilized jars and roll them using a seamer with boiled canning lids.
Video: Strawberry Jam
Important! Nightshade is quite high in calories - about 220 kilocalories per 100 grams of the product, so frequent use of this delicacy is not desirable for people seeking to lose weight.
Recipes of nightshade jam with other ingredients
To enhance the healing effect of the nightshade jam on the body, as well as to improve its taste, you can prepare this delicacy with the addition of other useful products, such as lemon peel and quince. Below are the recipes for making dessert with a combination of the above ingredients.
We recommend you to get acquainted with the recipes for making raspberry, mandarin, blackthorn, hawthorn, gooseberry, pumpkin, pear, white cherry, quince, Manchurian, red currant and strawberry jam recipes.
Nightshade jam with lemon zest
Composition of products:
- 1 kilogram of fruits of nightshade;
- 1 kilogram of granulated sugar;
- 1 lemon peel, grated on a fine grater;
- juice of 1 lemon;
- 1-2 bags of vanilla sugar.
Cooking process:
- Enume the berries, rinse under running water and allow water to drain.
- Pour the fruit into the pan and mix with the sugar. Let stand 10 hours.
- Stir the contents of the pan and cook in 2-3 doses for 5 minutes, with an interval of five hours between doses, stirring constantly and removing the foam.
- At the last brew, add lemon peel, grated on a fine grater, and the juice squeezed out of it.
- Before removing from the heat pan with the finished product, it is necessary to add vanilla sugar and mix everything.
- Pour the jam into jars and roll up.
Important! In the ripe berries of the nightshade, the harmful substance solanine is practically absent; therefore, it is permissible to eat only fully ripe fruits.
Nightshade Jam with Quince
Ingredients:
- 1 kilogram of nightshade;
- 1.5 kilograms of sugar;
- 1.5 glasses of purified water;
- 6 pieces of quince fruits of medium size;
- 1 lemon;
- 1 handful of barberry berries (optional);
- vanillin on the tip of a knife.
Step-by-step instruction:
- Berries to sort, wash under running water in a colander and let dry.
- Wash the quince, peel, grate on a medium grater.
- Wash lemon and twist in a meat grinder along with zest.
- Mix the nightshade, grated quince, twisted lemon and add to the mixture the fruits of barberry.
- Leave to infuse for 5 hours.
- Add sugar and pour water, mix and cook for 30 minutes over medium heat.
- Remove from heat and allow to stand for another 12 hours.
- After the specified time, put on fire again and boil another 30 minutes.
- At the end of cooking add the vanilla.
- Pour the finished hot product on the banks and roll up.
Read how to prepare for the winter compote of cherries, juice from grapes, red currant jelly, currants and watermelons.
What to give
The jam according to the above recipes is moderately thick and fragrant. It can be used either in its pure form, with tea or milk, or added as a filling in pies, curd casseroles, wrapped in thin pancakes and added to desserts and ice cream.
Important! Contraindications to the use of drugs from the nightshade is individual intolerance, children under 5 years of age, pregnancy and lactation.
Thus, not only fresh nightshade is used for medical purposes, but also sweet desserts made from its juicy berries. Try to make jam from these berries according to our recipes, and you will see that using it will keep your health in good condition.
