I didn’t even need to bookmark this idea from the Food 52 website to remember it this strawberry season…
With 12 or so pounds of extremely ripe and slightly misshapen strawberries from the farmers’ market, I had plenty of strawberry hulls to work with this season, so I played around with amounts (which the Food 52 folk didn’t provide). The rule of thumb that worked best for me was to fill a container (any size) one-third full with strawberry hulls, top it off with water, then let stand in a cool place (or the fridge) two hours—max four—before straining. (I left one batch in the fridge overnight, but the taste ended up more funky than fresh, even if the color was deeper.) More hulls per water didn’t really make a huge difference in flavor. More infusing time tended to make the hulls a little slimy and soft. Since strawberry hulling often means strawberry trimming to remove soft spots and overripe tops, be sure these don’t go into your infused water pile. And since strawberries are number one on the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list of fruits and vegetables that have the highest levels of pesticide residues, it goes without saying that you should steer clear of anything but organic or untreated strawberries.
Once strained, the strawberry water will keep three days in the fridge…if it lasts that long.
So refreshing and the price is right!
I know! And it doesn’t taste like dish soap the way some of the expensive infused waters do!