To Keep Grapes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the grapes
Select fresh grape clusters and cut the end of the stem smooth.
Dip the stem end into melted sealing wax.
Let them stand for one day after sealing.
Pack and store
Wrap the grapes in cotton batting and pack them in wooden boxes.
Pack the grapes in boxes with dry sawdust, alternating layers of sawdust and grapes.
Do not crowd the bunches.
Store the boxes in a dry, cool place.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Fresh grape clusters
- The fruit being preserved; their freshness at the start determines how well they keep.
- Melted sealing wax
- Coats the cut stem end to seal it against air exposure.
- Cotton batting
- Cushions the wrapped grapes so they are not bruised in storage.
- Dry sawdust
- Packing material that keeps the grapes separated and dry in the box.
The step that matters
Sealing the stem end. The cut end is the main route for air and moisture to reach the bunch. If the wax is not fully applied, the stem can spoil and the rot can spread to the rest of the cluster.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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