Chatsargana Juice

Ingredients

Berries

• 500 gsea buckthorn berries
• fresh or frozen
• 1 litrewater

To sweeten

• 150 gsugar, or to taste
• or 150 g honey
• a pinch of salt

Sometimes added

• 1apple, chopped
• a strip of orange peel
• a small piece of ginger

Equipment

• a saucepan
• a potato masher
• a fine sieve or muslin
• bottles

Directions

1. Rinse fresh berries in cold water. Pick out any leaves and stems. Do not thaw them out beforehand. Put the berries in a saucepan. Add the litre of water to them. Bring it slowly up to a simmer. Never let it boil hard at any point.
2. Let it simmer for about ten minutes. Take the pan off the heat entirely. Crush the berries with a potato masher. Press them against the side of the pan.
3. Work through the whole panful. Let it stand for ten minutes to steep. Pour it all through a fine sieve. Press the pulp firmly against the mesh.
4. Line the sieve with muslin for a clearer juice. Add the sugar or honey to the warm juice.
5. Stir until it dissolves completely. Add a good pinch of salt as well. Taste it and add more sweetener as needed. It should still taste distinctly tart.
6. Add honey only once the juice has cooled. Sugar can go in while it is still warm.
7. Pour it out into clean bottles. Let it cool and then refrigerate it. It keeps about a week refrigerated. Warm it gently rather than boiling it. Some households dry it and grind it.

Technique

• Sea buckthorn is exceptionally high in vitamin C and is unusual in carrying oil in the fruit pulp rather than only in the seed.
• The bushes are covered in sharp thorns, so berries are often harvested by shaking frozen branches over a sheet.
• Large-scale planting across Mongolia’s river valleys was promoted from the socialist era onward.

Substitutions

• Frozen sea buckthorn berries are widely sold and work exactly as well as fresh.
• Bottled sea buckthorn puree can be diluted and sweetened in the same way.

Variations

• Some households add apple or orange peel to soften the sourness.
• A hot version drunk like tea is common in winter.
• Sea buckthorn is also made into jam, syrup and a pressed oil.

History

Sea buckthorn is farmed across Mongolia’s river valleys and promoted since the socialist era as a national health drink.

Frequently asked questions

What is Chatsargana Juice?

Chatsargana Juice is a drink from Mongolia: tart orange sea-buckthorn juice, usually sweetened; drunk for vitamin C. Sea buckthorn is farmed across Mongolia’s river valleys and promoted since the socialist era as a national health drink.

How long does Chatsargana Juice take to make?

Chatsargana Juice takes 20 minutes of preparation and 15 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes about 1 litre. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Chatsargana Juice?

Yes, within limits. Frozen sea buckthorn berries are widely sold and work exactly as well as fresh. Bottled sea buckthorn puree can be diluted and sweetened in the same way.

What is the most important thing to get right in Chatsargana Juice?

Rinse fresh berries in cold water. Pick out any leaves and stems. Do not thaw them out beforehand. Put the berries in a saucepan. Add the litre of water to them. Bring it slowly up to a simmer. Never let it boil hard at any point.