What is a wine berry? Wine berry among fruits

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Southern fig fruit is often called a fig. This is one of the most ancient cultivated plants belonging to the genus Ficus. Hence the other name of the fig - fig.

The history of the origin of the wine berry

According to the Old Testament, Adam and Eve ate the fruits of the forbidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil, after which they were expelled from Paradise. In the ancient manuscript there is no exact name of the tree and fruits that were eaten by the progenitors of the human race. But according to one of the legends, they were figs. From the leaves of the fig tree, Adam and Eve made a garment for themselves to cover their shame.

Does anyone know the name of the fig in the Jewish Talmud? In the holy book there is a description of a tree exuding honey and milk on the ground. This plant is called the fig tree, and its fruit is the fig tree.

It is known that people have been growing cultivated figs for over five thousand years. Initially, fig trees grew in the western part of Asia, from where they further spread along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Then, by sea, the fig tree migrated to other southern countries. Currently, the plant is widely cultivated in warm and sunny regions: countriesMediterranean, India, Central Asia, Transcaucasia, Crimea, California. More than four hundred varieties of figs are known.

In fact, figs have a truly heavenly taste - soft, moderately sweet, with a slight tart tinge. The wine berry absorbs all the power of the generous southern sun and is filled with the juice of the earth. The fig tree is harvested twice in a season.

What are figs

The fig tree grows up to ten meters in height and has a wide spreading crown with large rounded leaves. Fig fruits look like small soft sacs filled with small seeds. The color of the berries may vary depending on the type of tree. There are figs of white, yellowish, red, purple, brown shades. Fig skin is soft and velvety. The ripe fruit weighs about fifty grams and fits comfortably in the palm of your hand.

From a biological point of view, the fig is not a fruit. In fact, this is a syconium - a kind of shell, inside which there are a large number of small flowers. To fertilize them, small wasps settle in the syconium. A mature fig looks filled with many tiny fruitlets.

In what form are fig fruits eaten

Fig is a very tender and delicate fruit that does not tolerate transportation well. If you remove the berries in an unripe form (like bananas), that is, they will be impossible because of the pungent taste. Figs will not be able to ripen - they will simply rot.

What is wineberry, it becomes quite clear when ripe fruits of a fig tree are tried to be subjected to long-term storage. Inside the fig, the fermentation process begins very quickly, turning it into a real wine berry. Therefore, most people are unfamiliar with the taste of fresh figs.

Those who are lucky enough to visit warmer climes in the summer will be able to enjoy the delicious fruits of figs. They are eaten whole without peeling off the skin. The consistency of the berries is tender and soft. The fruits of the fig tree are most widely used in the form of dried fruits, jams, preserves or in canned form.

Chemical composition of wine berries

Strength and resistance to the human body is given by proteins and sugar, the amount of which in dried fruits reaches a content of over 75%.

The presence of minerals - potassium, iron, copper, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, zinc - enhances the body's metabolic processes. Wine berry enhances immune defense, helps in building and maintaining bone tissue, and prevents the development of anemia.

Vitamins A, C, PP, K, group B contribute to the normalization of the body's biochemical processes and protection against many diseases. Dried and fresh figs contain a very valuable substance, phenol. It is an antioxidant that contributes to the active protection of cells from oxidation. Regular consumption of dry figs can reduce the risk of cancer by up to seventy percent.

Treatment with fig fruit

Figs have long been known in folk medicine asbroad-spectrum drug. In other words, there are practically no such ailments from which the wonderful fruit of the wine berry cannot help.

Those people who suffer from diseases of the heart and blood vessels should definitely introduce dry figs into their daily diet. Potassium and sugar, contained in large quantities in figs, regulate cardiac activity, reduce blood pressure and prevent swelling.

Good diuretic and laxative properties of wine berries help people with various diseases of the stomach, intestines, kidneys. Figs are able to reduce the temperature in sore throats, respiratory diseases and pneumonia. With a long and persistent cough, figs steamed in hot milk help well.

The wine berry is endowed with a very large number of useful properties. Among the fruits of other plants, one cannot find those that would be as rich in ficin as figs. The increased content of a useful enzyme, as well as potassium ions, provides blood thinning, which prevents vascular thrombosis and normalizes blood pressure.

It is especially worth noting the presence of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in figs, which are essential for the full functioning of the human brain and nervous system. This fact is unique to plants.

In folk medicine, not only the fruits, but also the leaves of the fig tree are actively used. It has been noticed that an infusion prepared from green mass helps to restore lost hair and prevents hair loss. Decoctions of fig leavesapply in the form of rinses, compresses, lotions.

Positive effect on the human body

The benefits of figs for human he alth are undoubtedly very high. In a fresh wine berry, the maximum concentration of nutrients, minerals and vitamins. Ancient warriors took dried figs when they went on a long trip. Due to its high nutritional value, fruits could fill people up very quickly.

To strengthen the body after serious illness, great physical and mental stress, it is very important to eat high-calorie foods. Dried and dried figs are an excellent nutritious fruit. For elderly people, the fig helps to regain lost strength, gives energy, and improves mood. The pectic substances of the wine berry are a good prevention of atherosclerosis.

Contraindications for eating figs

When dried, figs are a sugary-sweet fruit. Wine berry is highly undesirable in the menu of patients suffering from diabetes. The high calorie content of dried fruits will not benefit overweight people. You should not feast on the fruits of figs and those who have a peptic ulcer. It is also contraindicated to use figs in the presence of kidney stones or gallbladder.

Figs in cooking

The wineberry is a delicious treat that can be eaten on its own or used in a variety of culinary preparations.

Dried figs in crushed form are useful to add to muesli, cereals, fermented milk drinks and cottage cheese. Figs improve the taste of bread,puddings and casseroles.

The combination of dried or dried figs with smoked meat products gives dishes a special piquancy. Fig fruits can be stewed in sweet and sour sauce and served with meat, poultry or ham.

When using figs with hard cheeses and nuts, there is an excellent combination of flavors and a combination of useful qualities. The taste of an egg omelette baked with a few slices of figs will seem very unusual to gourmets.

And of course, you can not do without sweet figs in the preparation of a variety of desserts: ice cream, cakes, jellies, sweets. Compotes, jelly, jams or jams are wonderful in taste. And what a fine wine comes from ripe figs!