The fruits of most dogwood species are reminiscent of cherries, but not those of the Japanese dogwood (Cornus kousa). Sometimes referred to as Asian or Chinese dogwood, this flowering shrub develops deep red, raspberry-like and very tempting-looking drupes after very warm summers. Although these are edible, they usually do not taste particularly good.
Although the fruits of the Japanese dogwood are edible, they are not particularly tasty
Fruit edible, but not always tasty
Japanese flowering dogwood is not only cultivated in its East Asian homeland for its distinctive flowers, but also for the fruit. These are reminiscent of raspberries or lychees from the outside, but they do not taste as aromatic as these. The flesh is orange in color and has a gelatinous consistency. In addition, the fruit is covered by a rather leathery skin. Only very ripe fruits (recognizable by the dark red color, they should also be very soft) have a very sweet taste, although the gelatinous mouthfeel is not for everyone when eaten raw.
Process the fruits of the Japanese dogwood
This, however, as well as the rather tough skin, is lost when the fruit is cooked, and the peel in particular is almost completely boiled away. Only the seeds - after all, it is a stone fruit - should be sieved out. For this reason, you can process the fruits of the Japanese dogwood very well into jam, jelly, fruit juice or liqueur.
Cook Marmelade
The taste of the dogwood fruits harmonizes very well with sweet apples, which is why you
- 300 grams of dogwood fruit
- 150 grams of apples
- 500 grams of preserving sugar (ratio 1:1)
with a little apple juice to make a delicious jam. The fruit should of course be washed well beforehand, the apples peeled, removed and cut into small pieces. Be sure to cook the fruit until the shell has disintegrated, and the jam should then be passed through a sieve or cloth and only then poured into jars.
prepare liqueur
Especially in Japan, a fruity liqueur is made from the raspberry-like fruit, which you can of course also try at home.
- Fill an empty and cleaned liquor bottle half full with washed dogwood fruit.
- In addition, sugar or raw sugar gets in there,
- about two thirds of the amount of fruit.
- The whole thing is topped up with at least 37.5 percent vodka,
- well sealed
- and stored in a cool and dark place for several weeks.
- Shake the bottle regularly.
- After about four to six weeks you can taste the whole thing
- and add more sugar if needed.
tips
Incidentally, the fruits of the red dogwood (only cooked) and the cornel are also edible.