Kvass from birch sap with barley

Birch sap is a national drink, the pride of the people. Since ancient times, this healing natural elixir has helped and saved from many ailments, especially in the difficult spring season, when all winter supplies are coming to an end, and there are no fresh green vitamins yet. To preserve the beneficial properties of birch sap, various drinks were prepared from it: kvass, honey, wine, champagne, mash. The recipe for kvass from birch sap on barley has been preserved today as one of the most popular among the people. This drink, having a rather sharp taste and thick rich aroma, most of all resembles traditional bread kvass. Perhaps this is the main secret of his popularity.

The benefits of homemade kvass from birch sap on barley

By itself, birch sap is a refreshing, strengthening and very pleasant tasting drink, with a slight hint of sweetness. All of its rich composition is completely preserved and transferred to home-made kvass. In addition to a rich set of vitamins and a variety of useful minerals (potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium), homemade birch kvass contains organic acids and tannins, fruit sugar and plant hormones, enzymes and phytoncides.

The sugar content in natural birch sap can vary from 0,5 to 3%, depending on the location and conditions of the tree. Most often, this is enough to make a tasty and healthy drink, since traditionally granulated sugar is not added to birch kvass on barley.

All this rich content provides irreplaceable help in curing many ailments.

• Due to its special tonic and restorative effect, it is useful to drink birch kvass when the body is in a weakened state after serious illnesses or operations, with loss of appetite, anemia and all ailments associated with increased fatigue.
• It has an anthelmintic, antipyretic and diuretic effect, therefore it can help with infectious diseases accompanied by high fever, with bronchitis, tonsillitis, tuberculosis, and also with kidney diseases. It is known that it is able to dissolve and remove stones from the body.
• It is no less useful for exacerbations of chronic diseases and severe intoxications.
• Possessing properties to remove cholesterol from the body and reduce blood sugar, kvass will be useful for diabetics.
• Since birch kvass on barley is an excellent blood purifier, it is used for any diseases associated with metabolic disorders, as well as for rheumatism, gout, arthritis, and venereal diseases.
• The drink can alleviate the condition with high blood pressure and heart pain.

  

• Regular use of birch kvass on barley helps to cleanse the skin, strengthens hair and teeth.
• Both antioxidant and antitumor properties of birch kvass are known.
• The healing effect of birch kvass on barley on diseases of the digestive system is also important: stomach ulcers, problems with the gallbladder, liver, and duodenum.
• For men, this is a good remedy for impotence, and it is very useful for women to use kvass on barley during menopause.
• Well, of course, this drink is a real panacea for beriberi, scurvy and scrofula.

Possible contraindications to taking this drink can only be in case of detection of individual intolerance to birch sap or allergy to birch pollen. Care should be taken to use birch kvass on barley for those who suffer from the presence of kidney stones and from stomach and duodenal ulcers.

Secrets of making barley kvass on birch sap

The very process of making kvass from birch sap with the addition of barley is not difficult at all, anyone, even a novice hostess, can handle it if desired. The most difficult thing, especially in a big city, is to get the right ingredients.

Birch sap is preferably extracted on its own. Only then can one be absolutely sure of the quality of the extracted product. Yes, and the walk itself through the spring forest will certainly inspire, give strength and heal from a possible winter blues. This is usually done in early spring, depending on the region, in March or April.

Barley grains are not easy to find in the average grocery store. Usually they are found in commercial establishments specializing in healthy eating.

Some recipes use barley malt instead of the grains themselves. It, too, if necessary, can be found on sale or it is easy to make it yourself. Since malt is just germinated grains, in which the fermentation process began to take place, responsible for the further fermentation of the product.

As already noted, in the classic recipe for making birch kvass with barley, granulated sugar is usually absent. This allows you to make the drink as natural, low-calorie and healthy as possible. True, it turns out to be somewhat harsh in taste and will appeal to adults more than children. With a special desire, sugar can be added to an already prepared drink so as not to provoke its further fermentation. The amount of barley added may also vary. Depending on the proportions used, the drink tastes more or less grainy.

Before use, barley grains are usually fried in a dry frying pan. This technique allows not only to give kvass a unique grain taste, but also gives a rich brown color to the finished drink. Therefore, the roasting time directly determines both the taste of kvass and its color saturation. If barley grains are roasted only to a slightly golden color, then the taste of the drink will turn out to be quite delicate, and the color will be light brown, golden.

If you hold the grains in the pan for a longer time, you can end up with a dark brown drink with a rich and even sharp taste with a slight bitterness.

The taste of birch kvass on barley is also determined by the time during which it is infused in the heat. With an increase in this time period, the taste of kvass becomes sharper and thicker.

To increase the healthfulness of the drink, various fruits and medicinal herbs are sometimes added to it when infused: rose hips, hawthorn, cumin, linden flowers, thyme, chamomile, pine needles and more.

The classic recipe for kvass from birch sap on barley

To prepare birch kvass on barley according to the classic recipe, you will need:

• 10 liters of freshly extracted birch sap;
• 500 g barley grains.

Manufacture:

1. Freshly harvested juice must first be filtered through a sieve with gauze laid at the bottom to get rid of possible forest contamination: pieces of bark, wood chips, shavings or insects.
2. Then it is covered with a lid and placed in a cool place for 1-2 days.
3. Barley grains are washed in cool water and dried to a crumbly state. There is no need to clean them or subject them to any other processing.
4. Dried barley grains are poured into a dry frying pan without oil or other fat and fried over medium heat for a while. The frying period is determined depending on what result they want to get in the end, which was discussed in detail in the previous chapter.
5. Birch sap is poured into the prepared sourdough container and roasted barley is added there.
   Comment! If you want to do everything carefully, so that barley grains do not float throughout the entire volume of juice, then they are placed in a gauze bag, which is tied up and placed in a container with juice.
6. The juice is slightly mixed, the neck of the container is covered from above with a piece of linen or gauze and left in a relatively warm place (temperature + 21-26 ° C).
7. Kvass is infused for 2 to 4 days, depending on the desired taste of the final product. After a day, you can try it and evaluate whether it should be left for further fermentation.

   

8. Every day the drink must be stirred.
9. When a decision is made that the kvass is ready, it is filtered again and poured into separate bottles with tight-fitting lids.

Since the fermentation process will continue even after corking, only with much less intensity even in a relatively cold place, bottles should not be filled up to the neck during bottling. In their upper part, it is necessary to leave 5-7 cm of free space.

Drink rules

Natural birch kvass on barley is perfect for making traditional okroshka.

On average, for the prevention and treatment of various diseases, the following regimen is used: 200 ml of kvass is consumed daily half an hour before meals, up to 3 times a day. It is enough to conduct such a course for 2 or 3 weeks to feel significant relief and a surge of strength.

In order for kvass from birch and barley sap to be preserved for a long time (up to six months), it must be sealed as tightly as possible and kept in a cool or even cold room without light. When preparing small volumes of kvass, a refrigerator is perfect for these purposes.

Conclusion

Among many similar preparations, the recipe for kvass from birch sap on barley is one of the most natural and healthy. Indeed, in its composition there is even no sugar, however, the drink can retain its beneficial properties for up to 6 months.