Fruity brew

All for health purposes of course.

Homemade fruit enzymes are still very popular these days. I can understand why, the many beneficial qualities offered (health wise) is very attractive. Not only that it is simple and fun to make.

So what shall it be?
Apple & lemon
Orange, pineapple & lemon
Dragon fruit, grapes & strawberries
Dragon fruit & lemon
Grape & lemon
Mango, apple & lemon
Other fruits to consider include banana, kiwi, star fruit, papaya, peaches, plums, etc.

Other variations include aloe vera, red dates, wolf berries, dried longan, garlic, ginger, etc. Seems the limitation is as wide as our minds are closed (er, did you get that?)!! ha ha ha

Unless you have a fixed combination, best probably decided with a trip to the supermarket and be dictated by what’s on OFFER!!! I'll elaborate more later.

Making it is simple as long as you remember a few rules.

1. 3 parts fruits and 1 part sugar (brown slab sugar, honey, normal brown sugar or even gula Melaka is fine).
2. Wash container, utensils and fruits. Wipe and air dry them well.
3. Entire preparation process is done without any additional water since everything else is clean. This is to prevent/limit possible contamination, ie mouldiness!
4. In a clean jar, fill 1/3 sliced fruits of your choice, then add a few slabs of sugar.
5. Keep alternating fruits and sugar until jar is about 70% full.
6. End final layer with sugar.
7. Close jar, using some cling wrap at the mouth of the jar if desired.
8. Store in dark cool place giving the bottle a shake every 3 days for 3 weeks. Open the bottle to let out some gas once every 2-3 days. Note some bubbles will be evident in the early days. If the entire process is done right, the mixture will not get mouldy (hence, probably not 'safe' to consume??).
9. When ready (after 3 weeks or 21 days), sieve and bottle them. Keep in cool area or in the refrigerator to stop/retart it from turning into alcohol.
10. WAIT, don’t throw out the fruit remnants – be eco-friendly and either: a) use as compost/fertiliser for your plants or b) even exfoliate the body.
    Personally, I would go for (a) but your choice if you wanna go with (b).

Exact recipe??
Well it really depends at the end of the day what expectations you have in consuming the fruit enzyme. Just remember the above rules and the 3 parts to 1 part combination.

How to consume?
1-2 tbsp a day mixed with some tepid water.

The benefits?
Depending on the combination of fruits used – apparently the benefits are aplenty!!

Here are some that I came across in my reading:
Digestive aid, cleanse our body digestive system, stimulate blood cells production, rejuvenate the skin, reduce fat and many more.

Sounds like a real miracle cure-all doesn't it????

The brew....

Since dragon fruits were also on sale at the supermarket - got them for a dollar each, why not start with them. Btw, I’m not a fan of dragon fruit (find them somehow lacking in taste) so perhaps they might fare better as a slightly alcoholic enzyme drink, you think?

Dragon fruit, lemon and aloe vera.


Test Bottle #1 - The lemon smell is very refreshing.

The next day, star fruits were on sale - rm1.20 for 3 in a pack and couldn't resist. And so I bottled my 2nd. At this stage my family are a little concerned that I might have gone enzyme crazy - why so many bottles and even without any certainty that they will turn out properly!!

Star fruit, orange, aloe vera and wolf berries.


Bottle #2 - Was a little surprised that the star fruit smell was much stronger than the orange!

Since I had a few pineapples around which I got from a friend’s farm recently, decided to concoct a 'tropical' brew - if only I could add in some kahlua or coconut milk, I'm sure that would make a very 'refreshing' Malibu drink indeed!!

Tropical mix - Pineapple, papaya and lemon.

Test Bottle #3.

If you are wondering why there is an aloe vera stem in every brew, the reason is that I have a big pot of it and have always wanted to do something with it since it purportedly has many beneficial qualities.

Jotting down some observations on the experimental brews.

After one day, some bubbles are visible.

After 2 days, noticed that as the fruits have reduced a little, with more room at the top.

See how much the fruits have reduced by so I suppose its ok to pack the fruits full to the top (well at least in my case). Just make sure you open the cap to let out any gas after the 1st day.

The 'precious' fruit enzyme being cultivated! Note that if you are successful, there will be lots of bubbles like a fizzy can drink. *claps hands - a little excited with my dragon fruit and lemon brew*

Err, a little gross but just to share that the presence of mould may appear. If so, discard and press on ahead with fingers-crossed that it will come together at the end.

Actually, not too sure how this one will turn out at the end. Marked 'possibly contaminated'!! Ha ha

Anyway, happy experimenting and brewing. I still got at least 2 more weeks before I can taste anything. Apparently it is suppose to taste slightly alcoholic, hopefully not too fermented or yeasty! Will report back which it is. Finger crossed no one gets food poisoning ;p

Bento #244

Finally got a chance to use this cute new bento box.

Been toying with a sushi bread since last week and finally got my act and ingredients together. Certainly not difficult, don't know why it took me so long to put it together!!

Place 3 pieces of pan fried bread together and cut them into smaller bite size. Place a piece of shape cut-out ham on top of the bread and finish it by wrapping a piece of seaweed/nori. Of course you can do this with rice and make them into onigris but MP prefers bread.

In this bento - some sushi bread with ham, some cucumber and bananas.