What is a wine berry? Wine berry among fruits

Southern fig fruit is often called a wine berry. This is one of the most ancient cultivated plants, belonging to the genus Ficus. Hence another name for a fig is fig.

History of the origin of the wine berry

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

Does anyone know how the wine berry is called in the Jewish Talmud? In the sacred book there is a description of a tree emitting honey and milk to the ground. A plant is called a fig tree, and its fruit is a fig tree.

It is known that people have been cultivating cultural figs for over five thousand years. Initially fig trees grew in the western part of Asia, from where they became 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 areas: the Mediterranean countries, India, Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Crimea, California. There are more than four hundred varieties of figs.

In fact, figs have a truly paradisiacal taste - soft, moderately sweet, with a light, tart shade. The wine berry absorbs all the power of the generous southern sun and is poured with the juice of the earth. For a season with a fig tree, harvest is removed twice.

What is a fig?

The fig tree grows to ten meters in height and has a wide sprawling crown with large rounded leaves. Fruits of figs look like small soft pouches, filled with small seeds. The color of the berries can be different depending on the type of tree. There are figs of white, yellowish, red, purple, brown shades. The fig skin is soft and velvety. A ripe fruit weighs about fifty grams and fits freely in the palm of your hand.

From the biological point of view, the wine berry is not a fruit. In fact, this sycony is a kind of shell, inside of which there is a large number of small flowers. To impregnate them, small wasps settle in the sycium. The matured fig looks filled with a lot of tiny fruit.

In what form do they eat fig fruits

Figs are a very delicate and delicate fruit that does not tolerate transportation. If you remove berries in an immature form (like bananas), that is, they will not be possible because of caustic taste. Ripe figs can not - he will simply rot.

What is a wine berry, it becomes quite clear when ripe fig-tree fruits are tried to be stored for a long time. Inside the figs, the process of fermentation very quickly starts, turning it into a real wine berry. Therefore, most people do not know the taste of fresh figs.

Those who are fortunate enough to visit the summer in the warm regions will be able to enjoy delicious fig fruits. Eat them whole, not cleaning the skin. The consistency of the berries is gentle and soft. The greatest distribution of fig tree fruit was obtained in the form of dried fruits, jams, jam or in canned form.

The chemical composition of the wine berry

Strength and resistance to the human body is given to proteins and sugar, the amount of which in dried fruits reaches more than 75%.

The presence of mineral substances - potassium, iron, copper, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, zinc - promotes the strengthening of metabolic processes of the body. The wine berry strengthens the immune defense, helps in the construction and maintenance of bone tissue, 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. In the dried and fresh fruits of figs is a very valuable substance phenol. It is an antioxidant, which promotes active protection of cells from oxidation. Thanks to the regular use of dry figs, you can reduce the risk of cancer by up to seventy percent.

Treatment of fig fruits

Figs from ancient times are known in folk medicine as a medicinal product of a wide spectrum of action. In other words, there are practically no such ailments, from which a wonderful fruit can not be helped by a wine berry.

Those people who suffer from diseases of the heart and blood vessels, it is necessary to introduce into the daily diet of dry figs. Potassium and sugar, contained in figs in large quantities, regulate heart activity, reduce blood pressure and prevent the appearance of swelling.

Good diuretic and laxative properties of wine berries help people with various diseases of the stomach, intestines, kidneys. Figs can reduce temperature in angina, respiratory diseases and pneumonia. With a long and stubborn cough, the figs steamed in hot milk are good.

A lot of useful properties are endowed with a wine berry. Among the fruits of other plants are not found those that would be as rich in ficin as figs. The increased content of a useful enzyme, as well as potassium ions, ensures the dilution of blood, which prevents blood vessel thrombosis and normalizes blood pressure.

Particularly noteworthy is the presence of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in fruits, which are essential for the full operation of the human brain and nervous system. This fact is unique for plants.

In folk medicine, not only fruits are actively used, but also leaves of a fig tree. It is noticed that the infusion, prepared from green mass, promotes the restoration of lost hair and prevents the loss of existing ones. Decoctions of fig leaves can be used in the form of rinses, compresses, lotions.

Positive effect on the human body

The use of figs for human health is undoubtedly very high. In a fresh wine berry, the maximum concentration of nutrients, minerals and vitamins. Ancient warriors took dried figs, going on a long trip. Thanks to high nutritional value, fruits could very quickly saturate people.

To strengthen the body after severe illnesses, large physical and mental stress is very important to eat high-calorie foods. Dried and dried figs are an excellent nutritious fruit. For people of advanced age, the fig helps to regain lost strength, gives energy, improves mood. Pectin substances of wine berries are a good prevention of atherosclerosis.

Contraindications to the use of figs

In dried form, fig is a lusciously sweet fruit. Wine berry is extremely undesirable in the menu of patients suffering from diabetes. A large amount of calories in dried fruits will not benefit people with excess weight. Do not feast on the fruits of figs and those who have peptic ulcer. Also contraindicated is the use of figs in the presence of stones in the kidneys or gall bladder.

Figs in cooking

Wine berry is a delicious treat that you can use on your own or use in preparing a variety of culinary products.

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

The combination of dried or dried cantaloupe with smoked meat products gives the dishes a special piquancy. Figs of figs can be stewed in sweet and sour sauce and serve them to meat, poultry or ham.

When using figs with hard cheeses and nuts, an excellent taste combination and a combination of useful qualities are noted. It is very unusual for gourmets to taste the egg omelet baked with several slices of figs.

And of course, you can not do without sweet figs in preparing a variety of desserts: ice cream, cakes, jellies, sweets. Wonderful to taste are compotes, jelly, jam or jam. And what a wonderful wine comes from ripe fig fruits!