Chokeberry Ideas

[Chris Hennes]

Chokecherries have only been mentioned a few times here over the years: every now and again someone casually mentions a chokecherry syrup, or wine, or jelly, or sauce. There's even a mention of a chokecherry grenadine. I'm on the hunt for chokecherry recipes in general, but especially those that might follow a different path than what seems to be the most common "basically syrup" approach. I've gleaned a bit of inspiration from @gfron1's Acorns and Cattails (maybe riffing on his pate de fruit), but I'm wondering about any potential savory or savory-ish applications. Or unusual things: pickles, hot sauce, etc. Has anyone played around with these things? I've got a dozen or so bushes behind the library I work at.

[heidih]

Oh my sounds like a challenge but there is a chokecherry festival in Lewistown, Montana. You like to travel right (maybe not now). Also seen mentions of vinegar and mustard  http://lewistownchokecherry.com/  Sounds like they can be the fruitiness in any savory app if ypu like that mix an pick them ripe. Not exactly a Southern Cal plant

Edited August 9, 2020 by heidih (log)

[Smithy]

I've been eyeballing the chokecherries that grow wild around here, without having done more than taste them. I had grand plans last year and then didn't get to them. My book on cooking with wild berries and fruits from this part of the country has a recipe for a cherry barbecue sauce (any of the wild cherries would work). Ingredients are the cherries, orange juice, shallot, ginger root, ground black pepper, hot red fresh chile, tomato paste, white wine vinegar and salt. They say it works well with almost any grilled meat, but especially with game such as duck or goose. Let me know if you'd like more detail.

 

I've also been wondering about making a chutney with the chokecherries. This same book has a recipe for spicy plum chutney in which the wild cherries could be substituted for the plums "(if you have the patience to pit 3 cups!)" My last chutney attempt, using crabapples, was a dud but I think that was operator error.

 

One cautionary note from my book is that the pits and leaves of the wild cherries must not be eaten, nor should they be crushed during cooking or straining. They contain low but nontrivial levels of hydrocyanic acid. Cooking or drying eliminates the compound. 

 

The reference books I discuss above, for anyone interested, are both by Teresa Marrone:

Wild Berries and Fruits Field Guide of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan

Cooking with Wild Berries & Fruits of MN, WI and MI (Foraging Series)

 

She has similar books out for other parts of the country.

[chromedome]

3 hours ago, Chris Hennes said:

I'm wondering about any potential savory or savory-ish applications. Or unusual things: pickles, hot sauce, etc. Has anyone played around with these things? I've got a dozen or so bushes behind the library I work at.

I haven't done much in that direction in the past, though I have access now to copious quantities of chokecherries (we used them for wine, and it was pretty passable).

Anywhere you'd use any other dark fruit/berry is a good starting point...all of those recipes in the classic repertoire that use red currants, for example. Game and game birds are good starting points. Be aware that they're quite tannic, and in some applications you'll need to work carefully with that. Also, there can be significant differences in flavor from one bush to the next. Taste fruit separately from each, before deciding which direction to go with your flavoring/seasoning.

[kayb]

16 hours ago, chromedome said:

I haven't done much in that direction in the past, though I have access now to copious quantities of chokecherries (we used them for wine, and it was pretty passable).

Anywhere you'd use any other dark fruit/berry is a good starting point...all of those recipes in the classic repertoire that use red currants, for example. Game and game birds are good starting points. Be aware that they're quite tannic, and in some applications you'll need to work carefully with that. Also, there can be significant differences in flavor from one bush to the next. Taste fruit separately from each, before deciding which direction to go with your flavoring/seasoning.

 

I don't know chokecherries from personal experience (don't guess we've got 'em down here), but based on the description above, I'd be inclined toward Vivian Howard's Blue Q barbecue sauce (she uses blueberries).

 

[Chris Hennes]

I chickened out and just went with jam after all. I was actually really pleased with it, to me it has a much more interesting flavor than most berry jams. I kept it simple: just the berries, sugar, and pectin. On homemade bread, of course.

 

[Chris Hennes]

Here's the finished video (and note that these turn out to be called "chokeberries" and not "chokecherries" which are apparently a completely different thing... So let's go with "Aronia Berries"...)

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I passed a chokeberry this afternoon in a local arboretum.