Cooking poppy for baking. The composition and properties of poppy, its harm and benefits to the body

For some time now, having heard the word poppy, most people have negative associations. We categorically disagree with such a biased attitude. Now the merits of this charming plant are undeservedly forgotten. But even our grandmothers knew recipes that help with many diseases.

So, today the topic of our article: poppy seeds - benefits and harms. We will not delve into Chekhov's medical notes. It's just about the seeds.

Benefits of poppy seeds

Fully mature poppy seeds have many health benefits. The most famous of them is a strong hypnotic effect. We will not give exact recipes and dosages here, we will simply tell what has long been known to traditional medicine. So, poppy seeds:

1. Used as a sedative. By the way, poppy decoction was given drop by drop even to very young children. At the same time, be sure to observe the norm so as not to harm.
2. Not bad soothe the naughty nervous system during strong shocks or experiences.
3. They quickly relieve attacks of uncontrollable cough in various broncho-pulmonary diseases. This is especially true before bedtime, when cough symptoms increase dramatically.
4. It has been scientifically proven that regular consumption of ripe poppy seeds significantly contributes to the body's resistance to cancer cells of various etiologies. By the way, it has been scientifically proven that regular consumption of poppy seeds in food significantly slows down the growth of metastases and existing tumors.
5. Small black grains contain a huge amount of easily digestible calcium. This helps to strengthen the skeleton. Therefore, earlier children suffering from rickets were often spoiled with poppy seed buns. Or even just mixed the seeds with good honey and let them eat. By the way, a treat.
6. They quickly stop attacks of diarrhea and significantly speed up the process of recovery from dysentery.
7. Raise the level of hemoglobin in the blood. At the same time, it is enough to eat only 45 g of seeds once a day to maintain normal hemoglobin.
8. It is used in the form of a decoction as an anesthetic. It helps especially well if you have otitis media or a toothache rages.

As you can see, the benefits of poppy seeds are simply invaluable. Naturally, you don’t have to immediately run to the pharmacy or pastry shop for the treasured bag. We recommend that you first consult with your family doctor. Because the abuse of seeds can go sideways. So let's move on to the topic.

In general, any delicacy can become poison. Especially if it is used without measure. So poppy seeds can cause irreparable damage to the body, because:

1. For people suffering from chronic constipation, the situation can be greatly exacerbated.
2. Allergic reactions have not been canceled.
3. There are a number of contraindications. These include liver disease, bronchial asthma, cholelithiasis, emphysema.
4. Pastes and decoctions based on poppy seeds are absolutely incompatible with alcohol.
5. Do not get involved in elderly and very young children (over 50 and under 3 years old) with a decoction of poppy seeds, as a sleeping pill.
6. For pregnant women and nursing mothers, any poppy-based preparations are categorically contraindicated.
7. Poppy seeds contain a large amount of fat (about 40-60%). Therefore, excessive consumption of them in food can indirectly affect weight gain.

By the way, do not rely on folk recipes that are passed down from generation to generation. After all, everyone’s organisms are different, the state of health, age and weight category are the same. Therefore, we strongly do not recommend that you self-medicate thoughtlessly, just because “my neighbor’s grandmother did this during the war, it helped her.” First, be sure to consult your doctor or other competent specialist.

Interesting fact. Due to their high fat content, poppy seeds have a very short shelf life. And very quickly rancid under the influence of high temperatures and sunlight. Therefore, for personal needs, we recommend purchasing grains only in opaque packaging. And be sure to pay attention to the expiration date. At home, tidy up the bag in some dark, cool place. Otherwise, you risk getting sticky bitter lumps.

More usefulness

Poppy seeds have properties that some people don't even know about. For example, if there are little fidgets in your house, then for sure broken knees, abrasions and cuts on delicate baby skin are not uncommon for you. Did you know that finely crushed powder from mature poppy seeds stops bleeding much faster than psyllium juice and the legendary iodine? In addition, such poppy dust has a slight analgesic effect, unlike the same iodine, which stings mercilessly.

Interesting fact. If you have been diagnosed with a lack of copper, calcium and magnesium in the body, then feel free to eat poppy seeds. Naturally, without fanaticism. It's just that the content of these elements in them is indecently high.

For people suffering from a long-term sleep disorder, doctors prescribe drugs based on poppy seed extract. Of course, in a dosage that is not addictive. But the uncontrolled independent intake of decoction as a sleeping pill can cause some dependence. So don't even think about it! Naturally, if you yourself are not a graduate.

And poppy milk has long been used for cosmetic purposes. No, not that milk from green stems that a certain category of people hunts for. Another, which is prepared by grinding ripe grains in a mortar with the addition of the most ordinary clean water. The resulting mass is applied to the inflamed eyelids. You know, it helps a lot.

By the way, this milk very quickly and almost without a trace removes swelling and bags under the eyes.

Interesting fact. If you are in a bad mood, apathy, or suddenly tired, then just eat a bun or roll stuffed with poppy seeds. Surprisingly, the method works! The mood quickly jumps up, fatigue passes, there is no trace of apathy. And if the pastries are still covered with a thin layer of chocolate icing, then you will definitely feel like you are in seventh heaven.

Another category of people appreciates poppy milk and paste from ripe seeds. They are vegetarians and vegans. The fact is that the content of protein and vitamins in poppy is very high. Hence the nutritional value, which is so necessary for people who limit themselves in food.

By the way, now not every house has a special bowl for grinding poppy seeds. It's called makitra. But do not worry about such a trifle. With this task in our age of high technology, the simplest electric coffee grinder does an excellent job. Just do not forget to wash it from fat after the process, so as not to get a rancid smell from the bowl after a while.

So we figured out the topic: poppy seeds - the benefits and harms. After all, the main thing in this matter is moderation and caution. Do not be ill!

Video: the benefits and harms of poppy

Today we will tell you how to cook poppy seeds for baking. The choice of this topic is due to the fact that most housewives mistakenly believe that during the preparation of flour products, dry poppy seeds are simply added to the dough or used in the same form as a filling. But it's not like that. After all, before using the product we are considering for baking any products, it is carefully processed. How exactly, we will tell right now.

How to prepare poppy seeds for baking?

Poppy seeds are a fairly common product that is very often used during the preparation of both homemade and store baked goods. They give the products not only a pleasant taste and aroma, but also a beautiful appearance.

Poppy for baking is processed in different ways. We decided to present you the most simple and popular.

So, before you prepare poppy seeds for baking, you must purchase the following components in advance:

• dry poppy seeds - 2 full glasses;
• whole fat milk - 1 cup;
• high-quality butter - approximately 120 g;
• white sugar sand - 1 cup;
• raw egg - 2 pcs.;
• table salt - ½ teaspoon.

Foundation preparation process

How to cook poppy seeds for baking? To do this, take 2 full glasses of confectionery grains and grind them in a coffee grinder. If you do not have this device, then you can try to grind the product in a conventional blender with knife attachments. After that, a quality one is placed in a deep metal bowl and then it is slowly melted. At the same time, carefully monitor that the cooking oil does not burn. Then white is poured into it and whole fat milk is poured in. All ingredients are thoroughly mixed, making sure that the sweet bulk product is completely dissolved.

Filling preparation

After all the described actions, raw chicken eggs, previously beaten with a whisk, are slowly introduced into the milk. In the future, the products are boiled until a thick mass is obtained. It is constantly stirred with a whisk so that it does not burn.

At the very last turn, previously ground poppy seeds are poured into the dishes. They are thoroughly mixed and boiled for about 3-5 minutes. Then the bowl is removed from the stove, tightly closed with a lid and wrapped in a terry towel. In this form, the ingredients are kept warm for half an hour. During this time, poppy gruel should swell and thicken well.

How is it used?

After the baking is completely cooked and aged in a bowl, it is immediately used for its intended purpose. To do this, a thick dark gruel is smeared over a rolled out layer of dough, and then wrapped in a roll and cut into pieces. The resulting semi-finished products are baked in the oven and get excellent buns.

By the way, if the poppy seed filling has not been completely used by you, then it is placed in a container with a lid and stored in the refrigerator for no more than one week.

An easy way to steam poppy seeds for baking

As mentioned above, there is more than one way to prepare poppy seeds for baking delicious flour products. The most popular option was presented above. Now we will describe a simpler method that does not require a large set of ingredients.

So how to steam poppy seeds for baking? For this we need:

• thick fat cream - about 350 ml;
• powdered sugar - about ½ cup;
• confectionery poppy seeds - 2 cups;
• fresh liquid honey - 5 large spoons.

Cooking process

Before you prepare poppy seeds for baking, you can grind it with a coffee grinder. But if you want to get more beautiful, then it is best to use confectionery grains in their entirety. By the way, it is not necessary to pre-wash them, since poppy seeds for baking are sold already processed and prepared.

So, before you steam the grains, you need to prepare a special milk filling. To do this, pour heavy heavy cream into a deep bowl and slowly bring it to a boil. Then powdered sugar is poured into them and fresh liquid honey is spread. All ingredients continue to be heated until they are completely dissolved and form a homogeneous liquid and sweet mass.

Having prepared the filling, they immediately begin to steam the confectionery poppy seeds. To do this, the dry product is placed in a deep bowl, and then poured with a sweet milk mixture. After thoroughly mixing the components, they are quickly and tightly closed with a lid. If desired, the dishes are additionally wrapped in a blanket. In this state, the poppy is kept for 1.8-2 hours. During this time, it will not only swell and take on a mushy consistency, but also cool completely. In the future, it is used to make various buns, pies, pies and other desserts.

Summing up

Using the described methods for preparing poppy seed filling, you can make very tasty and fragrant pastries. By the way, for impatient people there is an accelerated way to prepare such a product. To do this, mix 250 ml of 2 cups of confectionery poppy seeds and a full glass of granulated sugar in a deep bowl. Then the products are put on low heat and brought to a boil very slowly. After poppy seeds are boiled for 6-7 minutes. At the same time, they are regularly stirred with a large spoon so that they do not burn.

After the specified time, you should get a fairly thick and dark slurry from the liquid mixture. It is removed from the stove, partially cooled, and then crushed in a blender. After that, poppy filling is used for its intended purpose.

Nature has given man a lot of useful products, you just need to know how to use them correctly. In fact, almost all the plants that surround us can have a healing or even therapeutic effect on the body. This is the case with the common poppy, which is often cultivated for ornamental purposes. The seeds of this plant are actively used in cooking, but few people know about their unique qualities. Today we will talk about what useful poppy can give us, or rather poppy seeds. Let us clarify what harm and health benefits seeds can have, as well as in what form they are used.

What are the benefits of poppy seeds?

Poppy seeds are actually characterized by a real healing composition. They are a source of a significant amount of tocopherol - vitamin E, as well as vitamin PP. The latter has a particularly beneficial effect on blood circulation, helps to cope with allergic diseases, diarrhea, skin ailments and even dementia. In addition, such a product is a source of potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, copper and iron. Poppy seeds saturate the body with useful fatty acids. So, oleic acid in their composition prevents the formation of cholesterol plaques on the surface of the walls of blood vessels.

Ripe poppy seeds have a positive effect on the state of the central nervous system. They will help readers of Popular Health to calm down and sleep well, help eliminate insomnia and other disturbances of night rest (for example, frequent awakenings, restless sleep, etc.). To achieve the desired effect, you just need to combine the crushed seeds with honey and eat in the evening.

The benefits of seeds are known to be able to eliminate fatigue and improve mood.

The benefits of poppy seeds are also in the ability of seeds to become a good medicine for colds, more precisely, for broncho-pulmonary ailments. Based on them, you can easily prepare drinks that will help eliminate convulsive cough and unpleasant painful symptoms.

Periodic consumption of poppy seeds effectively activates the immune system. Such a product helps the body resist not only infections, but also prevents the growth and reproduction of pathological cells (oncological diseases).

Eating poppy seeds will help saturate the body with the calcium, copper and magnesium it needs. Therefore, the periodic inclusion of such a product in the diet will help strengthen bone tissue and increase hemoglobin levels.

For health, the benefits of seeds are that they contain quite a lot of carbohydrates, which makes them useful for saturating the body with energy, which it actively consumes when performing physical and mental work.

This herbal remedy is used by many cosmetologists. Milk is extracted from poppy seeds, which can reduce circles under the eyes and eliminate the inflammatory process of the eyelids.

Other health benefits of poppy?

Such a plant is useful not only for its seeds. Healers prepare on its basis various medicines for many diseases. So, a decoction based on poppy roots helps to cope with headaches and eliminate the inflammatory lesion of the sciatic nerve. The leaves of such a plant are able to tone up with a fever, and with a strong cough - have a calming effect. Preparations based on them are used in the treatment of dysentery and diarrhea, they treat inflammation of the bladder and excessive sweating.

Milky poppy juice is also valuable for human health. It is used for the preparation of potent drugs that have a hypnotic, antitussive, antispasmodic, and analgesic effect. Such a substance is extracted by pharmacists from poppy boxes and then prepared, turning into real medicines that can be purchased at a pharmacy - most often by prescription.

Such drugs successfully treat ulcerative lesions of the digestive tract, high blood pressure, and angina pectoris. Many people have no idea what they are made of ... But the presence of such medicines 100% confirms that there is a benefit from poppy! They are also used in the treatment of heart attack, renal or hepatic colic, to effectively eliminate the pain that occurs after surgery, on the background of cancer and other serious ailments.

Can a poppy harm a person??

Poppy damage is possible if the seeds are not ripe enough. In addition, doctors strongly do not recommend the use of folk remedies with poppy for the treatment of children, pregnant and lactating women. Seeds can harm people suffering from cholelithiasis, emphysema, respiratory depression and bronchial asthma. It is also better to abandon poppy seeds and medicines with such a plant for those who suffer from liver ailments and chronic constipation.

Of course, such plant materials can harm both with individual intolerance (allergies) and with excessive consumption. There is evidence that maca may harm the health of those people who abuse alcoholic beverages.

If you use poppy seeds in cooking and take them in moderation, they will only benefit the body - provided there are no contraindications.

Dry poppy seeds, which are sold in many grocery stores, supermarkets, markets, are not very tasty on their own, although they are often sprinkled on various pastries, including buns, dryers, pretzels and bagels before baking in the oven. Much tastier poppy filling, steamed, with sugar and raisins. Such pies are eaten in the evening, they are very tasty. By the way, steamed poppy seeds can be added to pancake, yeast and biscuit dough before baking. But it is even tastier to brew poppy seeds correctly so that the poppy seed filling becomes even tastier.

How to cook poppy seeds for stuffing

How to cook poppy seeds for the filling rolls, pies, pies, buns and other bakery products?

Dry poppy must first be poured with boiling water and allowed to swell, then drained and boiled in a small amount of water or milk. If desired, sugar, a little butter can be added to the boiled poppy. Honey can be added, but later, since honey loses all its beneficial properties when boiled. Also, poppy must be ground in a mortar or some deep bowl with sugar, but it is better to do this through a special device, since it is very difficult to do this in a bowl. Grinding poppy extracts, as it were, more strongly its special taste and aroma.

How much to cook poppy seeds for the filling: over very low heat for about 40 minutes.

For faster preparation of poppy, you can first grind it while still dry in a coffee grinder, in a stone or wooden mortar, in makitra using a makogon wooden pestle. You can also grind the swollen poppy seeds before boiling in a meat grinder.

Grinding poppy in a stone mortar or wooden makitra, as our ancestors did, will preserve the excellent aroma of poppy.

Steamed raisins or dried apricots can be added to ready-made poppy seeds, which will improve the taste of the poppy seed filling and make your pastries simply insanely tasty and beautiful.

These are tips collected on the Internet, but here are recommendations for eating poppy seeds on the label: rinse poppy seeds under running water, pour boiling water and boil for 15-20 minutes, or leave for 1.5-2 hours, then put in a colander and dry. Dried poppy should be mixed with sugar and grind.

1. Pour dry poppy into a deep container. Some housewives pre-grind dry grains with a coffee grinder before steaming. So the further cooking process will be faster.

2. Pour boiling water over the poppy seeds in a ratio of 1:2. Cover the dishes with a lid so that the grains steam well and leave them until the liquid cools completely. During this time, the poppy will absorb some of the liquid.

3. After this time, the water will become cloudy white.

4. Carefully drain it so that the poppy remains in the container. Do a similar procedure three times: steam with fresh boiling water, close the lid and leave to cool. After each steaming, poppy seeds will increase in volume. As a result, the original volume of poppy will increase three times.

5. After the last steaming, drain the water and add sugar to the poppy seeds. It can be used in half with honey. But then add honey to poppy seeds at the very end of cooking.

6. Take a blender and interrupt the poppy as thoroughly as possible.

7. The grains will grind with sugar and gradually begin to release poppy milk, from which the mass will acquire a blue tint. As you see such a characteristic color, it means that the poppy is ready for further use. At this point, you can put honey in the mass and scroll a few more times with a blender. To taste, you can add butter, steamed raisins, dried apricots, citrus zest, dried fruits, and beaten egg white to the poppy seed filling. Experiment!

Note: to grind poppy, you can use a coffee grinder, or use the grandmother's method - twist the grains through a meat grinder or grind with a rolling pin in a mortar.