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Food Court General Food Talk, Recipes and Healthy Eating. |
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07-09-2014, 10:02 AM | #1 | ||
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When I was a nipper our farming household had what they called an ale plant. It was of a semi-gelatinous consistency, somewhat friable, pale in colour and rather wispy around the edges (like cotton wool filaments embedded in a thick gelatinous matrix). It was kept in an old "sweetie jar" (one of those glass jars with 4 sides and a black bakelite-type screw-on cap) and floated in a starter-mixture of sugar and molasses with some flavourings added (such as ginger or lemon, or both). When I say floated, it actually sank to the bottom when first added, at the point where the molasses-sugar mix was replenished, but slowly floated upwards as small bubbles gathered around it. The bubbles would slowly get bigger, eventually coalescing into larger bubbles; when one or more of the bubbles lost their grip on the "blob" they would gurgle up to the top and the "blob" would then sink part way down the jar until, when more bubbles formed, it was floated upwards to the surface again. The 'ale' was poured off every few days (5 - 10 or more depending on ambient temperatures, summer, winter etc) and the fluid then replenished with fresh starter mixture again. The gelatinous blob would slowly grow bigger over time (and sometimes small pieces broke off) and parts were also deliberately broken off and either given away to others (neighbours, cousins, aunts etc) or discarded. The drink was looked on as a health drink. Alcohol content was probably very low and it was judged ready to drink when the sweetness of the liquor was almost non-detectable. Can you please tell me if you know where I could possibly find this "ale plant" nowadays. The one my family had, was gifted from a friend of the family who lived in Co Fermanagh (NI) many, many years ago With thanks, Bill Kirk |
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07-09-2014, 01:03 PM | #2 | ||
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Grand Magnate
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Welcome snipe816.
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07-09-2014, 03:51 PM | #3 | ||
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Legendary
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Hi Bill,
welcome to the NeuroTalk Support Groups. I've no idea where you could get one really, but you could perhaps grow your own. What exactly did it taste like, do you remember? Some bakers make their own yeast 'plants'. I came across one who used potatoes, raisins, salt and sugar. There's also kombucha, but you didn't mention tea as an ingredient. Only thing I'd be worried about these days is consuming some sort of icky contamination. I didn't think about that as much when I was a child. |
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"Thanks for this!" says: | Koala77 (07-10-2014) |
07-10-2014, 01:31 AM | #4 | |||
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Legendary
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Your recipe does sound different to the Ginger Ale/Beer I was after Bill, although the concept sounds much the same. Maybe you could start your own plant.
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"Thanks for this!" says: | Lara (07-10-2014) |
07-25-2014, 07:08 PM | #5 | ||
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My father used to drain off the very light brown coloured water which he called "ale plant". The sweetie jar was then replenished with sugar and a few spoons of treacle, which may have been mixed in warm water prior to adding. The jar then was topped up with cold water, leaving at least an inch below the lid. It was a really refreshing drink. I have been attempting on and off for almost 20 years to locate anyone with ale plant who could give me a few "seeds" (as the pieces dropping off the fungus were called) without any sucess. I have tried a BBC Ulster radio show where it was mentioned on air and also tried "Ireland's Own" magazine to no avail. Is there anyone out there who can make an old man happy and allow me to revive a family tradition and pass it on to my family to preserve for future generations? |
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"Thanks for this!" says: | Koala77 (07-28-2014) |
07-25-2014, 07:55 PM | #6 | ||
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Grand Magnate
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Welcome RunningRed1.
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