Making cordials

I was hoping to make some cordials with our glut of fruit

The basics seem to be:
- boil some fruits, strain, then add sugar (optional: citric acid), and bottle

Other option (as sold by a juice-extractor manufacturer)
- get a steam juice extractor, use, bottle results!

Any reasons I can't use a 'juicer' to do the mashing and juice extraction, then heat up and add sugar? I already have a juicer, I don't have (nor do I want to buy) a steam extractor.

Any good cordial recipes to share? I've done raspberry and redcurrant so far! Good flavors that could go with rhubarb?

Yes, definitely use a juicer if you have it.  I think the only thing is to make sure the cordial is boiled and bottles are all sterilsed so there's no risk of fermentation.  

I personally prefer fermentation, so I can't really help with recipes :)  Another option is to make a "shrub" which doesn't necessarily require cooking, though it should be consumed within a few days, as it will go alcoholic.  Oh, and vinegar too, which actually can be a refreshing drink when homemade.  I have some cider vinegar from last year which is very useful in recipes and even diluted with water for drinking (it's not sweet, of course, but fruity).

Good luck.

How do you stop cordial going mouldy?

I made raspberry & blackcurrant cordial, stored in either glass or plastic bottles that were steralised with baby sterilizing fluid first. Whilst the bottles are sealed all is well. When I open the bottles, even if stored in the fridge, they start growing mould within a day or two- and I drink the cordial slower than this!

My recipe was:
1tsp citric acid
raspberry and redcurrant juice- 3 litre
sugar- 1.5kg

Got the juice out of the fruit by putting the fruit through the juicer-machine, then heated up until it started to boil. Turn the heat off, added sugar and citric acid- a good stir so the sugar dissolved then into bottles.

Charli Wilson wrote:How do you stop cordial going mouldy?

I made raspberry & blackcurrant cordial, stored in either glass or plastic bottles that were steralised with baby sterilizing fluid first. Whilst the bottles are sealed all is well. When I open the bottles, even if stored in the fridge, they start growing mould within a day or two- and I drink the cordial slower than this!

My recipe was:
1tsp citric acid
raspberry and redcurrant juice- 3 litre
sugar- 1.5kg

Got the juice out of the fruit by putting the fruit through the juicer-machine, then heated up until it started to boil. Turn the heat off, added sugar and citric acid- a good stir so the sugar dissolved then into bottles.

I cannot say what would help it last longer but I will say the juicer may have been the problem. When I was trying to research how to make green juice in mass I read over and over again that most juicers spin so much air into the juice that it begins going bad almost immediately. So perhaps that's the issue. I don't know.

Maybe put it in smaller bottles or jars next time?  It does seem a little odd that it would be moldy so quickly.  Maybe try boiling the bottles to sterilise them rather than fluid--I use the fluid for sterilising my cider bottles, but I boil my jars when I make jam or other fruit preserves.  

Also, for this batch, as soon as you open a bottle could you reboil what's left and rebottle in a newly sterlised container?  

I've made a simple, raw shrub with blackberries. 1 part each of mashed fruit, raw apple cider vinegar and sugar. Though I try to reduce the sugar a bit, and it still works with the vinegar. I let it stand in a jar for a week or two or three, according to memory, strain, add about 2-3 tsp citric acid per roughly 3/4 litre. No sterilising, no boiling, no mould, no alcohol. It is very concentrated and you could probably dissolve a penny in it. To drink, I use about 1cm of cordial in a tumbler and fill up with water. It is still fine at least four months after bottling. When I say bottling, I mean chuck it in a bottle and put the cap on. It would probably work just as well with other berries, but not sure about more pulpy fruit, as not tried yet.