EAT IN ASIA / Destinations / Other destinations / Europe / Montenegro
Montenegrin organic honey
Montenegrin cuisine is not only meat, cheese and alcohol, but there is also much more!
Think about all local, homemade delicious sweets, jams, juices, marmalades, and fresh herbs. There is plenty of them, even though you do not see them at the first glance.
While the Montenegrin gastronomy is oriented on health, naturality and simpleness, there is a lot of products that you should try before leaving the country.
Why is Montenegrin honey so unique?
Organic cheese and other dairy products are just one example, another one, that is worth trying is honey. And what is really important, is the fact that Montenegrin bees are neither fed with antibiotics nor get any additional chemical supplements. This honey tastes wonderfully. It has its natural sweetness, bitterness in some varieties and a great silky texture. It has a natural fruity or flower smell and beautiful colours. Depending on the plant, herbs, or flowers that bees used for the honey production, the colour of it may vary from a pale yellow one to a dark, brown one.
Honey varieties in Montenegro
The honey production has an extremely long tradition in Montenegro. It is due not only to their love of naturality but also to the landscape that varies from region to region. Not only climate zones but also different plants and flowers across the whole country, make Montenegro an ideal place for keeping bees. This variety makes honeys taste in a different way from place to place. For example, the meadow honey is the most popular one. It can be found both in the northern and the southern part of Montenegro. However, honey form these two areas will slightly vary in its taste. That is due to the fact that different climate zones and the regional landscape that is not the same in both areas, favorise different plants. Apart from that, you will get other unique honeys like a black locust honey, a chestnut or a wormwood honey, or a herbal one – a sage honey. Finally, you will find an aromatic forest honey that has a perfect smell of saps and pines.
Each of them, apart from the different colour, smell and aroma, will also have a different health benefit. Starting with a regular inflammatory prevention, thorough cardio-vascular disorders and finishing on longevity promotion.
Which Montenegrin honey shall I buy?
As the honey production is very popular in Montenegro, you will not have problems with buying a good quality honey around the country. Choose honey varieties that are typical for that exact region and climate zone. Also try some local honey specialities that include nuts, seeds, and dried fruits.
Especially worth trying are honeys with dried figs and chestnuts. The sweetness of the honey and sun-dried figs mixes well with bitterness of chestnuts. The natural honey taste, its delicateness and clarity are nicely paired with local, organic nuts and dried fruits. Many local producers add to their final products pumpkin or sunflower seeds, natural raisins, hazelnuts, or pistachios. This tradition is also in other countries like for example Turkey. These lovely honey jars not only look greatly, but also taste wonderfully! Just imagine a slice of bread with some butter and honey. That is something you cannot miss. Try it at least once, and you will feel as if you were living years ago. You will be able to distinguish different flavours and textures thanks to added fruits or nuts. But remember, never use it for cooking, boiling, or baking, as all honey’s health benefits are killed. The heating process, actually heating honey over 40°C, destroys all nutritive values and just gives you taste.
While these beautiful honeys cost usually much more that these regular, you could somehow cut costs and do it on your own. To skip paying extra money, you can just buy an organic honey, nuts, seeds and dried fruits and try to do it at home. The most important thing is to have good quality base products, so select only natural ingredients as only thanks to that your body will benefit the most.
How to make a home-made honey with nuts?
It is really easy. If you have a nice jar, use it. If not, just buy one or take a regular one. Although the shape and the size of the honey jar makes a difference if you are going to offer it to someone, it does not make any if you just keep it for yourself. Well, of course, I would always recommend using nicely looking jars and a small piece of cloth and natural decorations, but it is up to you. You know, it is always nice to have something that is cute and beautiful.
The first step is to select dried fruits, nuts, and seeds. Use only one kind of them or mix them. As always, it is up to you. My favourite honey is with chestnuts. It is because chestnuts are a little bit bitter and pair ideally with an aromatic honey taste. However, if you prefer to make it look nicer, mix as many dried fruits and nuts as you can. Dried figs, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, walnuts, pistachios, and chestnuts placed in the jar with honey look like little gems.
When you have your fruits, seeds and nuts selected, mix them well and start putting to the jar. While nuts look the best when they are whole, if it is about dried figs, I would recommend cutting them into slices or at least into quarters. Thanks to that, little seeds will be visible from outside and make the jar look even better.
When the jar is full of it (leave at least one centimetre till the top), start adding honey. The honey should be liquidous, but, as mentioned above, do not overheat it! If it is solid, just keep it in a warm place and let it melt. When it gets its liquid form, start pouring it to the jar with nuts and dried fruits. Do it slowly and let it get till the bottom of the jar. You will probably need a couple of hours to make your honey jar, so in case you want to offer it to your friends, keep extra days for the production process. Do not be in hurry. Just slowly, step by step with some pauses.
While the honey has its unique texture it does not fall directly till the bottom of the jar. It stays on nuts, fruits, and seeds and needs hours to get down, so to get the full jar of the stuffed honey, you will need to refill it a couple of time.
And when it is ready, just sit on a sofa, have a cup of tea or coffee, put this lovely and delicious honey on an aromatic bread of bun and enjoy your relaxing morning!
