Chapter 1 of 12
If You Read Nothing Else
So rich in pectin (a soft fibre in fruit that thickens jam) it sets on its own.
Sour, and low in sugar for a berry; milder in aroma than blackcurrant.
Redcurrant
All 12 chapters on one page, in order. Read straight through, or jump to a chapter below.
Read one chapter at a timeChapter 2 of 12
If You Read Nothing Else: What Else to Know
Soluble fibre supports both the gut and cholesterol, and redcurrants deliver it with very little sugar — a useful combination in later life.
Sharp flavour that lifts sweeter food without added sugar.
Redcurrants hang in glassy scarlet strings, each berry so clear you can see the tiny seeds inside. They grow on a low bush that lacks the strong scent of the blackcurrant. A ripe string looks like a row of small red beads.
Family: Grossulariaceae (currant family).
Chapter 3 of 12
Traditional Uses in Europe and Persia
Persian temperament: Cool & Dry (1st degree). Sour and cooling. Given for thirst and a heated stomach, held back from cold and weak digestions.
European kitchen practice treated redcurrant as cooling and thirst-quenching, given in fever and for a heated stomach. Persian medicine reads sour red fruits in much the same way: cool, drying, useful when the body feels hot.
Chapter 4 of 12
Traditional Uses in Europe and Persia: In the Household
Traditionally made into cooling drinks during fever.
Used in the kitchen to set jams from low-pectin fruit.
Redcurrant jelly is one of the oldest European preserves, and the fruit still marks midsummer in northern gardens. The strings are traditionally hung over cake or set in a summer pudding for colour as much as taste.
Chapter 5 of 12
What It Contains
Primary compounds
Vitamin C.
Anthocyanins (the natural colour pigments that make fruit red, purple or blue).
Organic acids.
Other notable constituents
Minerals: Potassium, Manganese, Iron · Antioxidants: Ellagic acid, Quercetin (a plant compound found in onions, apples and tea)
Chapter 6 of 12
What Studies in People Show
What studies in people show
Anthocyanin-rich berry intake is linked with improved vascular (relating to the blood vessels) measures in trials of modest size.Emerging evidence
Chapter 7 of 12
Preparation and Kitchen Use
Run a fork down each string to free the berries.
Simmer with water and strain through cloth for a clear jelly.
Freeze whole on the string; they keep their shape.
In the kitchen: strip the strings and cook into a clear jelly. Raw, a few at a time, over cream or yogurt. As a sour note in a salad with walnut. Freeze on the string, then shake the berries off.
Chapter 8 of 12
What It Goes With
- Dairy:
Yogurt
Strip the berries off the stalk straight into the bowl. The colour bleeds and the bowl looks better than the effort deserves.
- Honey:
Honey
Sour fruit takes honey better than sugar, and less of it.
- Pairing:
Walnut
Oil against acid. This is the same logic Persian cooks use in fesenjan, at a much smaller scale.
- Grain:
Rice
Scattered over rice they behave like barberries, though sweeter and softer.
Chapter 9 of 12
Who Should Be Careful
- General caution:
Most redcurrant products are jellies with a great deal of sugar.
- General caution:
Wash well; they are grown low to the ground.
- Allergy:
Rare allergy within the currant family.
- General caution:
Very sour — may aggravate reflux (stomach acid rising into the throat) in quantity.
Chapter 10 of 12
Medicines and Interactions
- Medication interaction:
Warfarin — Redcurrants carry a little vitamin K. Consistency in how much you eat matters more than avoidance. (low concern)
- Medication interaction:
Blood pressure medication — Ordinary portions are irrelevant; a litre of juice a day isn't. Keep the amount sensible. (low concern)
Chapter 11 of 12
Pregnancy, Children and Older Adults
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding:
Safe as food and useful for iron absorption when eaten alongside beans, lentils, or greens. Wash the bunches thoroughly before stripping the fruit.
Children
- Children:
Small, soft, and easy for children to strip off the stalk themselves, which is often the reason they eat them at all. Sour enough that most need a spoon of yogurt with them.
Older adults
- Older adults:
Soft skins and no chewing effort, so they suit anyone whose teeth aren't what they were. The sourness helps a flat appetite.
Chapter 12 of 12
Through the Year
- Spring:
Spring
Flowering. Nothing to pick, and nothing worth buying.
- Summer:
Summer
The whole season is a few weeks in midsummer. Pick or buy then and freeze what you can't eat.
- Autumn:
Autumn
Over. Frozen fruit from the summer is genuinely as good for cooking.
- Winter:
Winter
Out of season, except from the freezer.
End of the Redcurrant guide