Bird Cherry Juice
Bird Cherry Juice is a modern British recipe (based on a Russian original) for a classic method of boiling bird cherries in lightly-salted water to make a juice that can be used as the base for other recipes such as jams and jellies, or even cocktails. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Bird Cherry Juice.
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
20 minutes
Total Time:
40 minutes
Makes:
2 bottles
Rating: 
Tags : Wild FoodSauce RecipesBritish Recipes
Bird cherries are very tart and can be bitter. This recipe is for making a starter bird cherry juice that can then be used for making jellies, jams and syrups. The bitterness of the fruit is offset slightly by the addition of a little salt.
Method:
Combine the cherries, water and salt in a pan. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil and continue cooking until the skins of the bird cherries begin to split. Reduce the heat to a slow boil and continue cooking for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Take off the heat and use a potato masher to separate the pulp from the pits (but be careful not to crush the pits). Turn the mixture into a fine-meshed sieve (make certain it's not metal) and allow to drain through over night. If you are making jelly or syrup do not press down on the fruit, as this will make the jelly or syrup cloudy. If, however, you are making jam then use the back of a spoon to press through as much of the pulp into the juice as you can.