Fine soups, creams and sauces – without the bothersome bits and pieces
Straining separates the solids from the liquid. This is useful for removing bay leaves and juniper berries from sauces, or berry seeds and leftover peel from cold dishes.
Although pureeing and straining both have a similar desired effect of forming a smooth consistency, the procedures are in fact very different. The main goal of pureeing is to make one homogenous mass out of the solids and liquids. This is often done with a soup broth and its vegetables, or with a fruit juice and its fruit pieces. An immersion blender will shred any of the larger chunks and blend everything together with the liquid.
Straining, on the other hand, removes any bits from the liquid. For example, when making a beef stock with bones, vegetables and herbs, once cooked, the mixture can be strained through a fine sieve or a cloth strainer, leaving just a clear liquid. In case you want a velvety fruit sauce without any of the annoying seeds, strain it through a normal sieve so that only the smaller pieces remain.
To rid a sauce of larger pieces like bay leaves or vegetable bits, simply run it through a sieve. For a very fine and clear liquid, it is best to pass the mixture through a fine cloth strainer or a cotton tea towel. The same rules apply when making your own jelly – make sure to filter the juice through a sieve to remove all the pieces of fruit.
If the sauce doesn’t need to be particularly fine or clear, a normal sieve should suffice. This method is ideal for things like tomatoes, apple sauce and berries, helping to remove larger chunks, skin and seeds. Simply use a spoon to push the mixture through the sieve. Pureeing the mixture beforehand may make things easier. For a creamy and smooth sauce, try leaving some of the vegetables in and pureeing them. The pureed vegetables will act as a bonding agent.
Tomato passata is, quite simply, strained tomatoes with all the seeds and skin removed. You can usually find it in a carton or tin in the supermarket, or the other option is to make it fresh at home. Simply slice the tomatoes into small pieces and cook them for a short period of time. It is possible to skin the tomatoes first but, because the mixture will pass through a sieve or a food mill at a later stage, there is very little need to do so. A food mill can also be useful for food products such as apple mousse or baby food. If you don’t regularly use the straining method, however, a simple sieve and spoon should suffice.
RELATED TAGS
MyFooby Login
You must log in to your MyFooby account to save recipes. Still no account? Register now!
Log in with Supercard IDNo Supercard ID yet?
The Supercard ID is the unique login for all of Coop’s digital services.
Register for Supercard IDChoose a cookbook
Like this recipe?
ith myFooby, you can not only access your saved recipes on all your devices, but also save interesting stories and helpful cooking instructions and easily refer back to them.
L'article te plait ?
ith myFooby, you can not only access your saved recipes on all your devices, but also save interesting stories and helpful cooking instructions and easily refer back to them.
Do you want to remove this recipe?
Do you want to delete the recipe permanently and remove it from all cookbooks?
Supprimer l'article complètement ?
Do you really want to delete this article from your cookbook?
Successfully saved!
Saving failed!
Please log in!
Log on now – easily and conveniently – to FOOBY with your Supercard ID, save the shopping list on all your devices and benefit from additional advantages.
The recipe has been saved in your shopping list under myFOOBY.
Unfortunately, the shopping list was not saved.
Like this recipe?
Now you can user your Supercard ID to log in to FOOBY easily and conveniently and make use of all the functions and advantages.
Choose a cookbook:
L'article te plait ?
ith myFooby, you can not only access your saved recipes on all your devices, but also save interesting stories and helpful cooking instructions and easily refer back to them.
Supprimer l'article complètement ?
Do you really want to delete this article from your cookbook?
Remove recipe?
Do you really want to remove this recipe from the cookbook?
Delete the entire recipe?
Do you really want to delete this recipe from your cookbook?
Successfully saved!
Like this recipe?
Log in with your Supercard ID to have access to a cookbook with your favourite recipes from all your devices.
L'article te plait ?
ith myFooby, you can not only access your saved recipes on all your devices, but also save interesting stories and helpful cooking instructions and easily refer back to them.
