I can’t help noticing that there’ve been a lot of people looking at my bullace jam recipe lately and I thought another use for these tasty wild plums might not go amiss.
They’re growing in profusion again this year and they have a wonderful flavour, but because they’re tiny and are mostly skin and stone, they’re not the easiest things to cook with.
May I therefore present (loud fanfare) Mrs Portly’s Bullace Gin. You don’t have to stone the little blighters to make it and it tastes sublime. The only drawback is that you have to wait at least three months before you can drink it (and preferably much longer).
You can use the same recipe for black bullaces, sloes and damsons, although it’s a good idea (if laborious) to prick sloes if you’re using them, to let the juices run. I know people say freezing works but in my experience it doesn’t unless they’re very ripe.
A note on the sugar: I prefer my fruit gins not too sweet. I’ve taken a middle position here but if you’re in any doubt, go with a smaller quantity then taste it when you bottle it. If it’s not sweet enough, add some concentrated sugar syrup.
Bullace Gin
Ingredients:
100-150g sugar (I used golden caster)
Up to 1.5 litres of gin
Method:
Half-fill a 2 litre preserving jar with bullaces, add the sugar and top up with gin. Seal the jar and give it a shake every day until the sugar has dissolved, then store in a cool dark place for at least three months.
Then strain the gin through a sterilised wrung-out muslin cloth and bottle it up. The longer you leave it, the better it gets, but it’s a sore temptation when it’s sitting in the cupboard winking at you.
It’s up to you what you do with the gin-soaked bullaces at this point. My sister once made a seriously alcoholic pie with the leftovers from damson gin but the stone-to-fruit ratio in bullaces is probably too high. Perhaps a boozy version of the wild plum jam …
Gin-based drink: what’s not to like? 😉
Sh’marvellous! 😀
Is it possible to use blackberries or are they too soft ?
Hi Michael and Linda – blackberries are fine and they make a lovely drink. A friend of ours has just made blackberry whisky to a similar recipe but you can use vodka or gin. Good luck!
You know, I thought our pantry was bad, but the stuff you keep in yours… Ken
It’sh all highly hicaholic. Well, moshtly.
Hi everyone,when you have finish straining your bullaces/sloes or whatever if you can be bothered to destone some of them,put put them into individual paper cake cases in a neat pile then pour melted chocoloate of your choice over them,let cool before eating.if served also with either whipped or clotted cream as a finishing touch then thats a double whamy.It is well worth the effort.Keith
Thanks for the tip Keith. My sister once made a pie from the damson gin leftovers and everyone got a bit sozzled. 🙂
Hi,
I’m going for the Bullace gin, but I wonder if it’s possible to mix Bullace with Blackberries as well?
Regards,
Shane
Hi Shane, there’s no reason why not. Some people make a Hedgerow Gin by chucking in a few hips and haws, too. I’d just make sure none of the blackberries is at all mouldy. Cheers! Linda
If cooking the gin-soaked bullaces after decanting the gin, best to stone them first to avoid cyanide poisoning.
Stoning bullaces is a mite fiddly, Peter. I shouldn’t think most people would actually bother cooking them after making the gin, to be honest, but if they did, they might find this article useful: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/a20705824/are-stone-fruit-seeds-poisonous/
No problem stoning bullaces with a cherry-stoner – that’s what I do when I make bullace jam, which is well worth the effort. In fact, I’ll be making some this week.
Because the stones are large in relation to the fruit the cyanide risk is greater, and I don’t believe the GH suggestion that cooking removes the cyanide. I once tried stewing bullaces without removing the stones and my wife and I both felt light-headed after eating them. Since then I’ve always removed most or all of the stones (except when making gin). Better safe than sorry!
That sounds scary. Thanks for the heads-up.
I once made a wine from equal measures of Sloes and Bullaces – it ended up as a rose – it was a sweet desert wine and it was sublime.
It sounds it! Send some my way next time, please. 😀
Is it possible to make your jam with left over gin bullaces please?
Hi Louise, I haven’t tried it but yes, I don’t see why not. You might want to mix them with some fresh plums, depends on the flavour profile you want and how much pectin they still contain. Cheers, Linda
Do you ever freeze them for 48 hrs first .. heard it helps flavour?
Hi Clare, it’s supposed to help with sloes because they’re so hard, although in my experience they have to be fairly ripe already for it to make a difference. Although some autumn fruits are picked after the first frosts I’m not sure freezing them makes a difference in flavour here – and if you waited that long for bullace there wouldn’t be any!