The Science of Spice

161

BARBERRY

Ba

Flavour Group | FRUITY ALDEHYDES | Barberry

RELEASE THE FLAVOUR

Berries can be rehydrated before

cooking to dilute their sharpness and

speed up the release of flavour compounds.

Soak in cold water for 10 minutes or

simmer briefly in a little boiling water.

BLENDING SCIENCE

Containing high levels of acids and sugars, dried barberries are a versatile flavouring that

straddle the sweet–sour spectrum. The ability of sugars to reduce tastebud sensitivity to

bitterness and sourness, alongside a bouquet of flavour compounds, including herby

hexanal and floral linalool, offer a wide variety of spice-pairing options.

FOOD PARTNERS

Salad Crush the dried berries and

sprinkle them over salads.

Red meats Crush barberries

with salt and use as a rub for lamb,

beef, or game.

Pilaf Soak the dried berries and then

fry them in butter before adding to rice to

make a pilaf.

Preserves Use fresh berries to make

a fruit “leather” by boiling down the fruit,

straining it, and spreading it out on a tray

to dehydrate.

Drinks Add a syrup made with the

dried berries to refreshing cool drinks.

Add half

the fruits’

volume

in water

Strawberries

0.4%

Apricots

1%

Apples (unripe)

1.5%

Barberries

2.2%

Pectin powerhouse

Pectin is the chemical glue that holds plant cells

together, and it is present in all fruits in varying

amounts. When fruits are cooked in sugar and

water, pectin seeps out and reforms into a gluey

gel when cooled – the basis for a jam. Barberries

are high in pectin, and their acidity causes it to be

quickly released. Flavouring jams and jellies with

barberries thus helps to achieve a quick, strong

set, particularly for medium- to low-pectin fruits.

Kitchen

creativity

Barberries tolerate being combined with other strong flavours very well,

and add zing to all kinds of savoury and sweet dishes. Their jewel-like

appearance also makes them an attractive decoration.

add more “green” spices

to enhance the aldehydes:

bay adds fresh and

floral notes that

complement barberry’s

hexanal and linalool

ajwain lends a “green”

quality that blends well with

the aldehydes

pair with other acid-

tasting spices for a

potent, sour hit:

sumac shares all

three acids

tamarind shares tartaric

acid and like barberry has a

sweet-and-tart profile

galangal’s penetrating

spiciness works well with the

acidity of citric acid

coriander brings complex

floral and citrus notes through

shared linalool

enhance the sweetness of

other sweetly fragranced

spices, and dampen the

sourness and bitterness:

cacao’s bitterness can

be tempered, and its sweet

aromas enhanced

cinnamon adds floral

notes from shared linalool

vanilla brings a creamy

quality that helps to balance

barberry’s sharp acidity

annatto is sweetly

aromatic with an edge

of bitterness from

caryophyllene

SUGARS

(EG. DEXTROSE,

FRUCTOSE)

sweet

ALDEHYDES:

HEXANAL AND NONANAL

green | grassy |

fruity

MALIC, TARTARIC,

AND CITRIC ACIDS

sharp | sour |

lemony

COMPARATIVE PECTIN LEVELS

Low Medium High

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