Tuesday 22 January 2013

How to make Juniper Molasses

A big thank you goes to April of In the kitchen with April who has solved the mystery of how juniper molasses (andız pekmez)  is created.   She pointed me to this You Tube clip Making Pekmez in Anamur which shows exactly how it is done.  The cones are collected, then bashed with a hammer and put in a vast vat of water to soak.  The liquid is then strained off and boiled in successive caldrons, until a thousand litres is reduced to a hundred litres and a thick syrup results.   I'm always amazed at how these processes were ever discovered. It takes a great leap of imagination to look at a small juniper cone and create a process to turn it into a nutritious and delicious syrup.  All pekmez is a good source of calcium, potassium and magnesium and juniper molasses is said to be efficacious in the treatment of coughs, bronchitis and hepatitis.
I can't write the word "efficacious" without the Scaffold's "Lily the Pink" starting on a loop in my head.   Shows my age!


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16 comments:

  1. ArtyZen22 January 2013 at 23:41

    It's positively bizarre how often this song has found its way into my consciousness over the years. Efficacious definitely brings it winging back - and now it's tied permanently to juniper molasses. Though maybe it will be a long time before I hear about those again. Axxx

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    1. BacktoBodrum23 January 2013 at 11:58

      Such a good word - to add to your collection.

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  2. Anonymous22 January 2013 at 23:55

    Ahhh... and I thought you were implying that the lyrics of 'Lily the Pink' were some obscure coded recipe for juniper Pekmez.

    'For she invented, the juniper pekmez, most efficacious.....'

    It will be going round and round in my head all night now!

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  3. the fly in the web23 January 2013 at 00:12

    Oh dear...Lily the Pink is now running through my head.....

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  4. Ozlem's Turkish Table23 January 2013 at 12:21

    A real revelation for me re making of juniper molasses, how fascinating. Now I look forward to listening Lily the Pink!:)

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  5. Senior Dogs Abroad23 January 2013 at 12:35

    B to B, When you described bashing the cones with a hammer, I wondered if you were again describing how to cook octopus! Darn! that song goes 'round my head because it's so cute (and British).

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    1. BacktoBodrum23 January 2013 at 14:26

      A hammer does come in handy in cooking sometimes.

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  6. Kathy23 January 2013 at 14:06

    An interesting clip, BtoB, but like the others I'll now have the words and music of Lily the Pink running through my mind all day. It's just one of those songs.....:-)

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    1. BacktoBodrum23 January 2013 at 14:28

      I surprised myself by still knowing all the words to "Lily the Pink"

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  7. Unknown24 January 2013 at 22:38

    Now I am going to have to google "Lily the Pink"! lol!

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  8. Erica (Irene)26 January 2013 at 02:21

    ....very interesting on how they make that pekmez. But I would have slammed a finger or two if I had to hammer them juniper cones all day.
    Now I will youtube Lily the Pink and listen to it because I honestly have never heard of it before....

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    1. BacktoBodrum26 January 2013 at 10:38

      You may wish that you hadn't - it stays on the brain. Paul McCartney's brother and one of the UK's best poets, Roger McGough are in the group.

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