Grapes are loved by many. It is delicious not only fresh. Great wines, amazing desserts, original salads - this is just a small list of what can be prepared based on its berries. In addition, their use in folk medicine is invaluable due to a wide range of medicinal properties.
Not only the fruits of the plant are used by man. Since ancient times, the benefits brought by such medicinal raw materials as grape leaves have been known. And the harm from their use, especially excessive use, can also be present. But if you take precautions, and also do not use foliage for certain diseases, negative effects on the body can be avoided.
Useful properties and composition
Grape leaves due to their composition have long been noted by folk healers. They are rich in minerals, trace elements and vitamins. It is enough to use only 30 grams to provide the body with the necessary daily intake. It is not even necessary to cook grape leaves for this. The beneficial properties of the constituent components will appear even if you just chew a few leaves.
They are also very rich in tannins, acids and organic oils, which makes them indispensable in cosmetology. Creams prepared on their basis not only improve the contours of the face, smoothing out wrinkles, but also perfectly tighten enlarged pores.
Vine leaves in folk medicine
There are many homemade recipes based on greens and young shoots of grapes that have been used by people since ancient times. They are able to help in getting rid of various ailments. Grape leaves, the benefits and harms of which have long been studied by man, have been used in the treatment of such ailments:
- Upper respiratory infections (bronchitis, tonsillitis).
- Varicose veins.
- Migraines and burning eyes.
- Any diseases of the digestive tract, except for oncology, including diarrhea of any severity and vomiting.
- Urinary tract diseases.
Decoction of leaves with sugar can relieve a person of a hangover and improve appetite. Leaves are also good for external use. With their help, warts and freckles are perfectly removed, hair growth is accelerated and their structure improves, and as an antiseptic, they even heal festering wounds. Just do not use the preparations prepared from them for malignanttumors of the stomach or intestines, as well as diabetes and tuberculosis.
Culinary masterpieces from grape leaves
But foliage is not only used for medicinal purposes. Cooking has also become an area of application. After the hostess decided to please her family with a new dish, which includes grape leaves, the calorie content, the benefits and harms of this ingredient become the main issue. The foliage contains only 93 kcal per 100 g, so it is an excellent flavor addition to all kinds of gourmet and dietary dishes.
The most famous of them, which can please any gourmet, is dolma. It is a traditional treat in the Middle East and the Caucasus. This is the prototype of our cabbage rolls, only minced meat with rice is wrapped in a grape leaf. Dolma is usually steamed.
The peoples of Transcaucasia and the Balkan Peninsula especially often use grape leaves as a culinary component. Benefits and taste are the main advantages of this ingredient. The leaves are stuffed not only with meat, but also with vegetarian fillings, such as raisins mixed with rice and olive oil.
Can grape leaves be used to make kvass?
You cannot find a person who would not prefer kvass to all other drinks in the summer heat. There are many recipes for its preparation, the ingredients used are also different. But surely everyone will like kvass from grape leaves. Its benefits and harms are of interest to many. Sothis issue is worth considering in more detail.
This drink retains a large amount of vitamin C, which is a very powerful antioxidant necessary for all women without exception. Indeed, thanks to it, collagen fibers are formed, which preserves youth and beauty of the skin and protects the body from free radicals.
Kvass recipe
Preparing this drink is not difficult even if a person has never done it. Grape leaves, the benefits and harms of which have long been studied, are finely chopped so that the fermentation process goes faster, and are placed in a jar. For dishes with a volume of 3 liters, you should take half a glass of granulated sugar and raisins in the amount of five pieces. All prepared ingredients are poured with hot water, the top of the jar is covered with a piece of gauze and left warm for two or three days. The higher the temperature in the room, the faster the kvass will be ready.
You can prepare this magnificent drink for future use. It is enough to apply the sterilization process - and jars of kvass will stand in the cellar for a long time. Only in this case you should open them carefully, since when you remove the caps from them, the same effect occurs as when you open a bottle of champagne.
Grape leaves for making tea
Not only for the preparation of soft drinks is used by man fresh greens of the vine. A lot of people brew a fragrant tonic tea from it. Those who try it for the first time immediately becomefans of this magnificent drink. If a person is offered to drink tea from grape leaves, the harm and benefit will surely interest him.
You can immediately say that the beneficial effects of the drink on the body are many times greater than the harm from it. Grape leaves brewed as a tea are not recommended only in cases where a person suffers from manifestations of diabetes or gastrointestinal diseases.
Also, consultation with a specialist is required for those who are obese or have a stomach ulcer. Women in the third trimester of pregnancy should also refrain from grape tea due to the effect of leaves on the activity of the mammary glands. And in all other cases, grape leaves have no contraindications and, with moderate use, bring invaluable benefits to a person.
Collection and storage
And for the winter you can prepare grape leaves. The benefits and harms of dishes prepared from them in the cold season excite many housewives. But, judging by how widely such an ingredient is used in cooking, we can say that it has much more useful properties than harmful ones.
In order for them not to lose their properties during harvesting, certain rules should be observed:
- Used for these purposes only the youngest spring foliage.
- The easiest way would be to pack the leaves in a plastic bag with minimal accessair and freezing.
- S alting will also be effective - scalded leaves are rolled up into tubes, placed in jars and poured with hot brine. Such a preparation is used in any culinary recipes and completely replaces fresh foliage in winter.
