Carob Royal Forest Unroasted Carob Powder. Carob - what is it? Drink recipes, tea, chocolate and carob sweets Carob fried benefits and harms

Carob is a powder made from the ripe fruits of the carob tree, which is widely distributed in the Mediterranean countries. The carob tree belongs to the legume family, scientifically called Ceratonia pods, in Russia it was known as Tsaregrad pods, and in European countries it is called John's Breadfruit.

The so-called "raw carob", which is sold in most organic stores, turns out to be lightly roasted for testing.

Carob Tree "John's Bread"

Why "Tsaregradsky" - it's understandable - that's how the Slavs called Istanbul. And Turkey is indeed the best - I know - place to buy or harvest raw carob.

The name "Ceratonia" is due to the Greek word "ceras", meaning "horn". And, by the way, from the same word and from this plant comes the name of the ancient measure of the weight of precious stones - carat.

1 carob seed is equal to 1 carat

The fact is that the seeds of the pods are the fruits of the carob tree, which always have the same mass, equal to about 0.2 grams, and in ancient Rome, a carob seed was used as a weight equal to one carat.

It is also interesting that during the reign of Emperor Constantine, a solidus gold coin weighing 24 such seeds was in use. This may explain another modern meaning of the word "carat" as a measure of the purity (fineness) of a gold alloy.

And the carob tree is called "John's Bread" because, according to the Gospel of Matthew, John the Baptist ate carob fruits and wild honey in the desert. Here, too, there is an interesting, though rather confusing, moment ...

The Gospel says literally: "The food was locusts and wild honey." And the word "locust" (Latin locusta) can be translated both as "carob tree pod" and as "locust". And in connection with the discussion of the menu of the Forerunner, imagine, disputes still do not subside! Errors in numerous translations of ancient texts allow both versions to exist.

In addition, there is an opinion that the common people of medieval Europe under the bread of St. John meant other horns and another John. Namely - ergot horns and John the Theologian, who wrote the Book of Revelation. Knowing about the hallucinogenic properties of ergot, it is not difficult to assume that the terrible mystical images of the Apocalypse described by the Evangelist John could well be the result of poisoning with grain contaminated with ergot.

Be that as it may, if the origin of the names of the carob tree and the diet of the Forerunner can cause a number of doubts and different interpretations, then in describing the beneficial properties of the plant and how to use it, all sources are the same.

Carob: useful properties and use

Since ancient times, carob fruits and flour from them have been a sweet delicacy for poor people and fodder for livestock. Currently, carob is also used both as a food product for humans and as a useful top dressing for animals. At the same time, carob is classified as a functional product - that is, having both nutritional and medicinal value.

Of the most important and interesting properties of carob, in my opinion, I would like to note the high antioxidant effect, the ability to restore liver cells and perfectly cleanse the gastrointestinal tract.

Carob helps reduce appetite

In addition, carob reduces the production of the “hunger hormone” ghrelin, that is, it helps reduce appetite. And this, together with a high content of polysaccharides that swell and fill the stomach, a low fat content and a calming effect, makes carob an indispensable product in the diet.

Plus - a large amount of natural sugars allows you to avoid the use of refined sugar and significantly reduce the amount of other sweeteners.

Most often, carob is used as a healthy substitute for cocoa and chocolate, as it does not contain those harmful substances and compounds that are rich in industrial chocolate. But it must be clarified that a pronounced chocolate flavor appears only in carob, which has previously undergone heat treatment.

How to distinguish between raw and non-raw carob?

In most cases, we are offered to buy lightly fried carob, calling it raw. Even if it says "raw" on the package or it's an offer from a raw food store.

Carob comparison

For clarity, let's conduct an experiment - grind raw dried carob in a coffee grinder, comparing the external and taste characteristics with purchased "raw" carob and with carob, which is sold as fried.

1. A truly raw carob is different in both taste and appearance. It is lighter in color, very sweet and has almost no chocolate flavor. Most of all, raw carob resembles the taste of dried pears.
2. In the taste of lightly roasted carob, which is sold as raw, a noticeable sourness appears and not only the color, but also the aroma changes - it becomes more creamy, caramel.
3. Roasted carob is very dark, almost chocolate in color. Taste - with even more pronounced sourness and bitterness.

Although describing the taste, of course, is a thankless task - everyone perceives it very individually. But the different properties of carob can be assessed by looking at how it behaves in combination with water:

Raw carob is different in this case too - it doesn't even come close to chocolate, unlike light roasted and roasted carob.

If you want to eat exclusively raw food products, then the choice of carob should be treated more carefully, or completely eliminated from the diet. If a 100% live diet, then this article will help make your diet even more conscious and varied!

Carob recipes

Moreover, there are a number of recipes for living cuisine, where the use of low-roasted carob adds the necessary “chocolate” and breathtaking taste to desserts.

Recipes using Carob

Here are just a few examples:

Carob: where to buy?

Lightly roasted carob can be purchased at almost all organic online stores. The cost may vary, but on average, it is about 60 rubles per 100 grams.

In retail, you can find carob in the health food section or in stores with products from India.

In addition, the offer of raw carob from the Royal Forest company has now appeared on the market. They offer carob products, including raw carob and carob, large pieces of bean shells that have been de-seed.

In Turkey, dried carob pods can be bought not only in almost any spice shop at a price in rubles from the local currency of about 11 rubles per 100 grams, so to speak, almost for nothing.

How to use raw carob

Dry carob fruits are best stored in pods, and grind in a coffee grinder just before use - this, as you understand, is a guarantee of preserving the maximum amount of useful substances.

You need to break the pod into pieces, load it into a coffee grinder and then sift the powder through a fine sieve. You will get sweet flour.

If you are preparing traditional dishes, this flour can be used as an additive to any dough - bread, pancakes, pancakes, cookies, biscuits, etc. This will reduce not only the amount of sugar, but also flour, since carob is a good thickener. From the seeds of the carob tree, gum is obtained, which is widely used in the food industry in the group of thickeners, stabilizers and emulsifiers (food additive E410).

In raw food cuisine, raw carob is also a great addition to any sweet nut dough. As you remember from the description of the beneficial properties, carob reduces hunger and contains fiber, which helps to cleanse the digestive tract. That is, carob in nut dough will allow you to reduce the number of nuts, improve the absorption of the nut dessert and reduce the amount of additional sweeteners, and in some cases completely abandon them.

Of course, raw carob can also be added to drinks, sauces, cereals, creams - that is, to any dish where a sweet taste is appropriate. Carob is suitable and recommended for any type of diet - in the menu of those suffering from gastrointestinal diseases, diabetics, overweight, for the nutrition of the elderly, children and pregnant women.

For women, the use of carob is useful for improving the condition of hair and skin. Men should be especially interested in the fact that the use of carob helps to increase potency and stimulate spermatogenesis.

Do not forget that raw carob is also a wonderful remedy for home beauty treatments. If freshly ground flour is diluted with water to a mushy state, you get a simple and wonderful face mask with the effect of a light scrub. You can add additional substances to the mask according to the type of skin (for example, lemon juice if the skin is oily or oil if the skin is dry), but the carob mask itself is very good!

That is, carob is another natural natural multivitamin complex that has a positive and systemic effect on health. Therefore, when you are on a trip to the Mediterranean countries - Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Spain, Italy - take the opportunity to buy carob pods for an inexpensive bag and enjoy its taste and benefits.

The benefits and harms of carob have been known to mankind for several millennia. According to historical data, what is carob for nutrition was known even to the contemporaries of John the Baptist and the authors of the Talmuds.

Today, this carob powder is widely used in cooking, dietetics and medicine.

A lot of scientific works have been written about the beneficial properties of the food product. Carob carob tastes like cocoa, so it is a great alternative for those with a sweet tooth who value their figure. To learn more about what carob is and where it is used, the article below will help.

The uniqueness of the composition

The chemical composition of carob is worthy of respect.
The pulp of the pods and seeds of the plant contains a huge amount of nutrients, including:

• vitamins of group B, vitamin A, E and others;
• micro and macro elements (calcium and zinc, magnesium, potassium, as well as manganese, phosphorus and the like);
• complex sugars;
• essential amino acids, in particular arginine;
• phenolic compounds with antioxidant properties;
• natural hepatoprotector pinitol;
• tannins that bind toxins and work as antidotes to heavy metals;
• galactomannans that remove toxins.

There is practically no fat in carob pods. BJU carob looks like a ratio of 12% / 3% / 85%.

Both powder and seeds are low-calorie foods.

The calorie content of carob is approximately 230 kcal per 100 g of raw material.

Beneficial features

How useful is carob?
This natural cocoa substitute is famous for the following beneficial properties:

You will learn all the details about the benefits of carob from the video:

The advantages of powder from carob pods include its hypoallergenicity. Carob will not harm when breastfeeding and during pregnancy. On the contrary, it will allow the body of a young mother to be enriched with valuable substances that she can pass on to her baby with milk.

In addition, the low hypoglycemic index of carob makes it possible to introduce this product (preferably in fried form) into the diet of people prone to hyperglycemia or impaired glucose tolerance, as well as patients with diagnosed forms of diabetes mellitus.

Fried carob is better than unfried in this case, since the former contains many times less sugar than the raw product.

Are side effects possible?

When discussing the benefits and harms of carob for health, it would not be superfluous to mention the negative effect of carob pods on the human body. Like any other food product, carob cocoa substitute has its own side effects, although they are extremely rare in exceptional cases.

It is no secret that some people may have a congenital intolerance to one or more components of the powder or carob seeds. Such hypersensitivity is an absolute contraindication to carob, since sooner or later it can provoke the development of life-threatening allergy variants.
Carob can cause allergic reactions

Other contraindications to the use of this food product are not known to modern science, so people with various diseases of internal organs and constitutional features can safely eat it.

carob in cooking

What is carob in cooking? In modern culinary art, carob is used as a natural sweetener, which, moreover, contains a huge amount of vitamins and nutrients. At the moment, there are many recipes for making carob, among which the most popular are brewing the powder and using it as the basis for desserts.

People who prefer a healthy lifestyle speak positively about a carob drink with milk and flaxseed porridge with carob and sesame seeds, which allow you to charge the body with energy, enrich it with valuable substances and do not provoke the development of ailments.

pods

It is most convenient to store carob with dry pods. Before preparing a drink from carob, the pods of the plant should be broken and ground in a coffee grinder, after which a tasty and healthy decoction can be brewed from the resulting powder. You can also buy ready-made carob powder. It is also important to know how to brew carob correctly so that it retains the maximum of vitamins and amino acids. It is better to prepare a healing drink in a Turk like coffee, so it will acquire a rich taste and bring many benefits to the body.
You can also make a milk-based carob drink.
You will learn a detailed recipe from the video:

Syrup

In cooking, carob syrup is also widely used. Before using carob in syrup, you need to make sure that a person does not have fructose intolerance, which is rich in carob. In addition, the syrup can slightly increase the level of glucose in the blood, which should be taken into account when using it for people suffering from complex variants of diabetes mellitus.

Sweets

Many people know how to drink carob, but do not even suspect that it can be consumed in the form of sweets, which in moderation practically do not harm the figure. Carob candy is the most popular dessert based on carob powder.

They taste like sweet cocoa products, so they are a great alternative to unhealthy chocolate.

How to make chocolate from carob? Raw carob chocolate is made by mixing ground nuts, dried fruits, coconut flakes with carob powder. From the finished composition, balls with a diameter of about 2 cm are formed, which collapse in sesame seeds, chia seeds and the like. In any case, before you cook carob or make sweets out of it, you should look for recipes on the Internet or ask culinary experts about them.

You will learn one of the recipes for making carob chocolate from the video:

Where can I buy?

Where is carob sold? A similar question interests many people who have decided to replace chocolate and sugar in their lives with a more healthy sweetener.
Those who do not yet know where to buy carob should inquire about the availability of this food product in the following places:

• tea trading places and stalls in the market with oriental spices;
• health food and sports nutrition stores;
• specialized trading places for vegetarians and raw foodists;
• diet departments of large trading floors, hypermarkets and the like;
• online stores selling spices, spices, healthy food.

Naturally, it is better to buy carob from a trusted and reliable distributor who can provide the necessary certificates of quality and authenticity of their products, as well as prove their suitability for use in food.

At the moment, the price of carob per 1 kg can hardly be called cheap, but still it remains affordable for most of our fellow citizens.

The most expensive is the raw carob powder, which costs about one thousand rubles per kilogram of raw materials. At the same time, the same amount of roasted carob powder can be bought for 25-30% cheaper. The same price awaits those wishing to purchase the dry pods of the plant or its raw fruits.

Similar content

Carob is an overseas miracle product that has long been loved by zealots of healthy eating and fans of culinary experiments. Why is carob useful and how can it be used to improve familiar dishes?

Sweet gift of nature

Outwardly, carob is a flat long pod with brown beans inside. These are the fruits of the carob tree, which grows in the Mediterranean countries. Raw seeds are absolutely unsuitable for food. How is carob used? The beans are gently dried in the sun and ground into a powder. At first glance, it practically does not differ from dry cocoa, except that it has a lighter brown tint. But the taste of carob is much sweeter. It is only this natural sweetness that makes the product so useful. It is enough to compare the calorie content of carob and cocoa. 100 g of carob contains 222 kcal, while cocoa contains as much as 374 kcal.

Use pantry

The chemical composition of carob impresses with an abundance of useful elements. It contains a fair amount of potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper and manganese. It is rich in vitamins A, group B and D. The protein present in carob reduces cholesterol intake. Slow carbohydrates provide the body with energy for a long time. Tannins bind and remove toxins. The beneficial properties of carob include the fact that it is devoid of caffeine. This means that high blood pressure, depletion of nerve cells and addiction do not threaten you, even with frequent use. Unlike chocolate, there are no harmful substances in carob that cause acne and allergies.

Not an ounce of harm

How is carob used in cooking? Mainly as a sugar substitute in homemade cakes and desserts. Mix 100 g of wheat and oatmeal, 2 tbsp. l. rye flour and 1 tsp. baking powder. Here we pour 2 tbsp. l. carob, ½ tsp. cinnamon and turmeric, ¼ tsp each crushed cloves and cardamom. Pour into the dry mixture 100 ml of boiled water and 3 tbsp. l. vegetable oil, 200 g medium chopped nuts of your choice. We knead the dough, form the same gingerbread and send it to the oven preheated to 180 ° C for 20-25 minutes. Let them cool and brush with honey. This simple but delicious dessert can be enjoyed even with diabetes. Carob makes it useful and completely harmless.

tropical vortex

How to cook a treat with, any pastry chef will tell you. With it, they make delicious icing, for example, for cupcakes. Puree with a blender a mixture of 200 g of pitted dates, a ripe banana and 100 ml of orange juice. Pour 130 ml of coconut or any other vegetable oil into it. Pour out 250 g of flour with 1 tsp. soda, a pinch of vanilla and knead the dough. Pour into muffin tins and bake for 30 minutes at 180°C. Meanwhile, rub ½ banana with 2 tbsp. l. coconut oil and 1 tbsp. l. carob. Lubricate the tops of cupcakes with this icing and decorate with berries. If there are vegetarians in your family, they will be the first to approve this dessert.

Pleasant trifles

There is also a great way to prepare carob for those who are crazy about gourmet sweets. Melt 10 g of butter over low heat. Pour in 1 tbsp. l. cream and honey, pour 4 tbsp. l. carob and continue cooking. Scald with boiling water 70 g of prunes, dry and finely chop. We send it to a saucepan with coffee icing, flavor it with 1 tsp. cinnamon and a pinch of ginger, mix well. We send it to the refrigerator for 2 hours. We make round sweets from the chilled mass, sprinkle with fine almond crumbs and send to the refrigerator overnight. You will get a wonderful dessert for a friendly party.

Cheerful morning without caffeine

Delicious fruit smoothie. We soak a handful of raw almonds in water overnight, and in the morning we clean them from the skin. So the drink will taste better and be absorbed much better. We put a ripe banana, cut into circles, a cup of frozen raspberries and peeled almonds in a blender bowl. Add here 150 ml of coconut milk, 3 tbsp. l. carob and beat the ingredients into a homogeneous airy mass. Pour the smoothie into glasses, sprinkle with crushed hazelnuts. Such a hearty cocktail will be a great start to the day and charge the body with fresh energy.

We hope that your acquaintance with carob was not in vain for you. If so, it's time to move from theory to practice. And if you have long discovered this wonderful product, share interesting recipes with his participation.

Carob powder is used to make delicious chocolate and milkshakes. If you watch your food and want to eat food without chemicals and preservatives with dyes, prepare drinks with healthy carob.

Used to produce sweet powder and fruit syrup.

Cooking features

Raw or fried…

• Raw carob is great for making milkshakes and fruit smoothies. Will be to the liking of the sweethearts.
• Lightly fried - has a darker shade and a high sugar content (40%), has a slight sourness and a light caramel taste.
• Fans of "chocolate" drinks are better off taking fried carob with a bitter aftertaste characteristic of dark chocolate.

How to brew

It will be useful for hostesses to know that:

• To improve the quality of the final product, before cooking, it is desirable to sift the powder, similarly to flour, to remove lumps.
• The powder dissolves quickly in a glass of hot water or milk at a temperature of 90 degrees.
• By itself, carob tastes sweet, so it does not need the addition of sugar or honey.
• The drink can be supplemented with milk, carob does not affect the absorption of milk fats.
• Also, if desired, add a little vanilla or cinnamon.
• Carob powder and syrup pair perfectly with cottage cheese, coconut and fruit.

I have compiled a selection of healthy and delicious drinks that can be prepared from carob. These recipes are quite suitable for diets aimed at weight loss.

carob cocoa

Cocoa with milk is the most popular and everyone's favorite drink. Alternative cocoa from carob is no less tasty and healthy.

Carob powder has a number of advantages over cocoa powder, namely:

• does not contain psychotropic and toxic substances (caffeine, phenylethylamine, oxalic acid);
• has a natural sweetness due to the presence of fructose and sucrose;
• contains three times more calcium and ten times less fat than the competitor.

It is worth emphasizing that carob packaged in packs does not contain any chemical impurities, which manufacturers of cocoa powder, chocolate and other confectionery products often sin.

To prepare fragrant and very tasty cocoa from carob, you will need:

• A glass of milk with a low percentage of fat (1.6% is fine) - 250m
• A glass of ordinary drinking water - 200 ml
• Carob powder not fried or fried (to taste) - 1.5 tbsp. spoons
• Natural honey or sugar - 1 tablespoon

Cooking method

1. In a small saucepan or saucepan, combine milk, water and immediately add carob. This will avoid lumps from the powder and improve the taste of the drink.
2. Put the mixture on medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring thoroughly with a spoon.
3. When the mixture begins to boil, add sugar or add honey to taste.
4. Then carefully remove the dishes from the stove, as the finished drink may suddenly “escape” from the pan.
5. To the table, alternative cocoa is served hot or slightly cooled.

carob coffee

Carob can also fully replace coffee. Coffee from carob powder is the best fit for avid coffee lovers who are switching to a healthy lifestyle.

Just like cocoa powder, the caffeine- and theobromine-free carob is superior to coffee in terms of health benefits.

Unlike coffee, this drink, of course, will not invigorate, but it will fill the body with energy and vitamins.

But such a dizzying aroma, like from a cup of high-quality natural coffee, unfortunately, cannot be achieved from it.

Recipe

Carob coffee also needs to be brewed in a narrow vessel or Turk. An electric Turk will do.

1. Pour 200 ml of boiled water into the Turk and put it on the stove.
2. Then add 3-4 teaspoons of carob, and stir well, bring to a boil.
3. The boiling process is accompanied by foam rising to the top of the Turks. It is necessary to control the foam very carefully: as soon as it reaches the maximum, quickly remove the bowl from the stove.
4. The foam has fallen - the Turk is returning to the fire. Such manipulations need to be carried out one or two more times.
5. The cooking process will take about 5 minutes.
6. Ready coffee can be flavored with cinnamon, milk or carob syrup.

carob with milk

This is not about cow's milk, but about exotic types of milk, on the basis of which, using carob, delicious unusual drinks are obtained.

Main ingredients for 1 drink

1. A glass of coconut milk - 250 ml
2. Carob powder, not roasted or roasted (to taste) - 2 heaping teaspoons
3. Chicory Powder - 1 heaping teaspoon
4. Spices (vanilla, cardamom) - literally on the tip of a knife
5. Sugar or natural honey (to taste)

Cooking method

1. Pour coconut milk into a Turk or any other deep vessel and put on fire.
2. Immediately add carob, chicory and spices to it.
3. Heat the mixture over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, but do not bring to a boil.
4. Next, remove the drink from the stove and let it cool.
5. It remains to pour carob into cups, sweeten it with sugar or honey and enjoy the delicious taste of the drink in a pleasant company.

Carob powder tea

Cooking method

1. We take a porcelain or clay tea pot, pour boiling water over it.
2. Then add a few tablespoons of carob powder there and pour the product from a boiling kettle.
3. Mix everything quickly with a spoon, tightly close the teapot with a lid and leave for 15 minutes.
4. After a quarter of an hour, boldly pour tea into cups and enjoy its aroma and delicious taste.

This recipe can be modified by adding carob to black or green tea. This will make the tea ceremony brighter and healthier, and will certainly please all guests.

Smoothie with carob and dates
(based on banana)

Incredibly, all the vitamin potential of vegetables and fruits can be concentrated in a glass of smoothie.

Smoothies are an extremely healthy liquid that moisturizes and nourishes the human body with the help of vitamins and minerals, and also creates a reliable barrier against infection.

Smoothies with carob are even tastier and healthier, and also help to eliminate problems with the intestines.

Key Ingredients Per Serving

1. Chilled glass of milk - 200 ml
2. Large fleshy dates - 3 pieces
3. Large ripe banana - 1 piece
4. Carob powder, roasted or not roasted (to taste) - 0.5 tablespoon
5. Cinnamon - 0.5 teaspoon
6. Vanilla to taste

Cooking method

1. My fruit.
2. Remove the peel from the banana and cut it into pieces.
3. We free the dates from the pits.
4. Place all ingredients in a blender and mix at medium speed until smooth.
5. Pour the finished smoothie into glasses and treat guests with pleasure.

Cocktail with banana and carob

Carob drinks based on hot milk are very pleasant and resemble cocoa.

But the taste of cold milkshakes with the addition of carob takes on a new shade, becomes much brighter and richer.

At the same time, all the above beneficial properties of the carob powder are preserved. So why deny yourself the pleasure and not taste this wonderful drink?

Key ingredients for two servings

• Chilled milk - 400 ml
• Large ripe banana - 2 pieces
• Carob powder, roasted or not roasted (to taste) - 1 dessert spoon
• Vanilla sugar - 1 dessert spoon
• Natural honey - 1 dessert spoon

Cooking method:

1. My bananas, remove the peel and cut them into slices.
2. Pour milk into the blender bowl, send bananas, carob, vanilla sugar and honey there.
3. Mix everything until you get a fluffy homogeneous mass.
4. Pour the drink into glasses, decorate with a straw and enjoy its pleasant taste.

In conclusion, I would like to emphasize that in no case should you treat carob as a panacea. Everything is good in moderation. But at the same time, the regular use of this exotic product in food can significantly improve the health and well-being of people who are not indifferent to chocolate and coffee.