As
promised here is the recipe for Haw Sauce – a surprisingly delicious asian-style
sauce made with the berries from the Hawthorn tree. The ingredients are very
simple so the flavour really is in the haw berries. As May is duck shooting month in New Zealand this might be a good recipe to go with dinner.
I
should probably have put this up last month when the berries were at their best
but there are still some out there on the trees. If you are lucky enough to live in an area where
the old settler-planted hawthorn hedges are still intact then be thankful for
them and try to preserve them – they are sources of shelter and food for the
birds and other animals.
The
Recipe.
For
every 500 grams of berries you will need 1 ¼ cups of white wine vinegar or
cider vinegar. ¾ cup of sugar. A pinch of salt and some good grinds of black
pepper.
Wash and
destalk (as much as possible) berries.Use scissors if easier.
Wash
and sterilize sauce bottles. Smaller ones are good.
Put
berries into a preserving pan and cover with the vinegar plus 1 ¼ cups of
water. Cook until soft.
Take
off heat. Carefully put mixture into a sieve and press through to remove seeds
and skins. (This is a bit tiresome – sorry. Any suggestions how to make this
easier would be helpful. I have been making quince paste and you have to do the
same thing. My arm is still sore.)
Put
the puree back into the pot, add sugar and heat gently stirring until the sugar
has dissolved. Bring to boil and cook 5 minutes. Now add the salt and black
pepper and pour into sterilized bottles.
This
is really delicious with pork or duck.
Credit
for this recipe goes to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Pam Corbin and can be
found in the River Cottage Preserves Handbook.
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