STRAWBERRY
THE ORIGINS OF STRAWBERRY
In Antiquity, strawberries grew wild in America, Asia and the sub-mountainous regions
of Western Europe. The harvesting of wild strawberries was widespread. But there was no strawberry cultivation.
In France, it was in the 18th century that Amédée François Frézier brought back large strawberries from Chile and Peru.
THE VARIETIES OF STRAWBERRIES
There are more than 600 varieties that differ in size, texture, colour, taste and use. They are divided into the production seasons:
The first ones:
- Camarosa, comes from Spain and has characteristics comparable to the gariguette.
- Gariguette, with its 20% production share, is the leading variety on the French market. Elongated fruit, bright orange-red. Firm, juicy and sour flesh.
- Pajaro, heart shaped fruit, blood red, with a firm and juicy flesh Ciflorette, newcomer, oblong with a beautiful light orange colour. It is well perfumed and has a good balance of sugar and acidity.
Seasonal strawberries:
- Elsanta comes from the Netherlands. It has a good appearance with its regular conical shape and clear red colour. They are a good choice for a pie.
- Cigaline, a very beautiful presentation of fruits.
- Cireine, its production should succeed that of the Chandler.
- Chandler, elongated, long and red.
The late ones:
- Valeta is characterized by irregular shapes.
- Ciloé is sweeter than Valeta. Brick red, its shape is more regular and conical.
The pick-me-ups:
- La Selva is the strawberry of coulis, compotes, pies and jams.
- The Seascape tends to replace the Selva. The fruit is long, conical and large size.
- The Mara des bois, of high quality, this strawberry tastes like wild strawberries.
- Cirafine and Cijossée are new varieties that should replace Selva.
HOW TO CHOOSE STRAWBERRY
Strawberries are fresh when they have a green collar, an upright stalk, a bright appearance and a uniform colour. Buy them in small quantities according to use.
Fragile, these fruits are to be placed on the top of the basket.
Depending on the size, you need 40 to 80 strawberries per kg. You should count 2 to 3 trays of 250g for a tart of 8 portions.
HOW TO STORE AND COOK
STRAWBERRY
Strawberries loose their favour in the water. At best, do not wash the strawberries, otherwise they should be washed under a stream of water and then de-stemmed.
To keep them, place them in the refrigerator, whole and not stalked. Take them out 20 minutes before eating. They will give off all their perfume. Lemon juice develops its aroma.
STRAWBERRY’S HEALTH PROPERTIES
In fact, strawberries are a false-fruit because the fruits of strawberries are the achenes. It is the small crunchy grains on the surface that are the fruits. The flesh of the strawberry we eat is the bottom of the flower whicj swelled under the influence of plant hormones.
The soft texture of the strawberry makes it easy for young children to handle. However, strawberries cause the release of histamines into the body and can produce a skin reaction for some susceptible individuals. We will wait until 6 to 7 months of age before giving strawberries to children and rather in cooked form (compote).
With a potassium content (152mg per 100g) and a large amount of water, strawberries help the kidneys to eliminate water. The presence of salicylic acid (aspirin) was also noted, which could have a beneficial effect on rheumatism.
