Redcurrant

Ribes rubrum · Berry

40 pairings

The redcurrant is the small, translucent ruby-red berry of Ribes rubrum, a hardy deciduous shrub in the gooseberry family. The fruit hangs in long, pendulous clusters called strigs, each a row of glossy spheres so clear that the tiny seeds show through the skin. Sharply tart with only a faint underlying sweetness, redcurrants are rarely eaten in quantity raw; their high acidity and abundant pectin make them prized for jelly, the classic Cumberland sauce, summer pudding, garnish and glaze.

Picking a good onedrag

Picked pale and hardWeeping, greying, bare

Clear ruby, seeds showingThe keeper of the four. Firm enough to strip off the strig and hold its shape as a garnish or a glaze, with a good fortnight of fridge life in hand.Buy it

Berry colourClear bright red, the seeds showing through

The strigGreen and supple, every berry still on

Berry under the thumbFirm, skin taut, springs back

Smell at the punnetFaint clean currant as you lift the lid

What to look for, from picked pale and hard to weeping, greying, bare.

Preparing