Kalina is affectionately called by the people "kalinushka", "kalinka", they compose songs and fairy tales about her. This widespread wild plant has long served people, provides food and medicine, and is used in everyday life. Kalina can be found in the forests and copses of Russia, in the Crimea, in the Urals and Siberia. There are 8 types of viburnum in nature. The most popular among them is the common viburnum.
Viburnum vulgaris is a shrub that grows up to 3.5-4 meters in height. The plant has a grayish-brown bark and textured opposite leaves, three- or five-lobed. In horticulture, there are varieties that are successfully grown as a horticultural crop. Viburnum blooms in late May-June. The fruits are red, bitter and juicy drupes, ripen in September and can hang all winter, which makes the plant very decorative. Kalina is planted along garden plots, especially on fertile and moist soils, where it gives maximum yields of valuable berries.
The benefits and medicinal properties of viburnum
Kalina is placed on the same level with such "heavyweights-wild plants" as rose hips, blueberries, cranberries. The fruits of viburnum ordinary vitamin C - an important antioxidant, is 1.5 times more than in raspberries, lemon and other citrus fruits, and hematopoietic iron is 1.5 times more than in rose hips. There are many micro- and macroelements necessary for the human body in the fruits of viburnum, as well as organic acids, tannins and sugars.
For medicinal purposes, flowers of inflorescences, young shoots, bark, fruits, seeds are used.
What diseases does viburnum treat
Kalina has always been used in Russia as a fortifying vitamin remedy. Viburnum is a natural antibiotic. Viburnum tea is especially useful for colds, hoarseness, and coughing. Here is the simplest and most understandable recipe: knead one tablespoon of berries in a glass, pour in hot boiled water and let it brew for about 10 minutes.
Sugar or honey is added to the infusion to taste. This drink is useful for both adults and children. Take this drink warm.
Kalina gently lowers blood pressure, normalizes the work of the heart muscle, increases hemoglobin and improves blood composition. Viburnum fruit juice is taken as a prophylactic agent that prevents the appearance of malignant tumors.
Fresh berries weaken and help with headaches, migraines. Kalina is useful for a sick stomach and duodenum, as well as for cholelithiasis and kidney stones.
All parts of the plant have antiseptic properties. Infusion of fruits and flowers is a good cosmetic natural remedy at home. After repeated washing with infusion, the skin becomes clean and soft. Such procedures help in the treatment of eczema, abscesses, boils. For tonsillitis, rinsing the throat, rinsing the nose are useful.
The use of viburnum as a product: simple recipes
As you know, food is not only food, but also medicine that helps a person to be healthy and strong, young and beautiful. Since ancient times, the fruits of viburnum have been used in the preparation of drinks, jelly, kvass. Undoubtedly, the less viburnum is subjected to heat treatment, the higher its medicinal and nutritional properties. Here are some very simple recipes to expand the use of viburnum in cooking and diversify the family menu with such a valuable product.
… Take 500 g of viburnum berries, 100 g of granulated sugar, 100 ml of water. Juice is squeezed out of the berries. The remaining raw materials after pressing are poured with water and boiled for 5 minutes, filtered. Then combine the broth with squeezed juice, add sugar, stir and cool.
This juice is a good and nutritious basis for preparing various dishes and drinks. You can use honey instead of sugar.
The prepared juice (without sugar) does not lose its useful properties when frozen, and can be used in the preparation of fruit drinks, jelly. Viburnum juice can give a beautiful color to any drink. When using viburnum berries, one must remember that along with acid, berries also contain bitterness, which not everyone will like. Therefore, when using them in cooking, you should adhere to certain proportions.
In 2 liters of water, dissolve 300 g of sugar and add 200 g of viburnum berries and 400-500 g of apples cut into slices. Cook over a fire for about 10 minutes, cool.
… You will need 50-70 grams of viburnum juice, 150 grams of sugar, 40-50 grams of potato starch and 2 liters of water. The starch is diluted in a small amount of water and poured in a thin stream into boiling sweet water with viburnum juice, stirring to bring to a boil. Kissel is cooled and served warm or cold.
The berries are separated from the twigs and debris, and the rotten ones are removed. Then they are washed in a colander under water, laid out on a towel to remove excess moisture. Then the berries are ground with a blender or through a meat grinder, mixed with sugar in a 1: 1 ratio,
mix again and put in dry jars, close with plastic lids and store in the refrigerator. Adding honey instead of sugar makes this classic recipe more nutritious and adds value. And when honey and walnuts are added to raw jam, it is a medicine that can restore the loss of strength, normalize blood pressure and strengthen the heart.
This is one of the easy recipes. The berries are prepared, washed, dried from moisture and frozen in portions in the freezer. Such vitamin raw materials can be stored for up to a year. This is the fastest way to prepare a natural remedy for the winter.
For 2.5 kg of apples - 800 g of viburnum, 2.5 kg of granulated sugar. Juice is squeezed out of the viburnum and poured into a separate bowl. The apples are cored and cut into slices and covered with sugar. Prepared apples are boiled a little so that a drop of syrup does not spread. Then the juice from the viburnum is poured into the juice, brought to a boil and hot, laid out in jars, covered with lids, and allowed to cool.
Steamed viburnum berries are used for filling pies, and it is also a delicious treat if you add sugar or a spoonful of honey. Coffee is made from seeds. To do this, they are washed from the shell, dried, overcooked.
Viburnum juice is added to various sauces for meat and fish, vodka is tinted. Berries are added to salads, to stewed cabbage.
