Ethakka Wine Recipe / Ripe Plantain Wine Recipe

It’s been a long time since I have posted a new wine recipe. Today’s wine is with Kerala Ethakka / plantain and it is a sweet wine. I have used one orange and two grapefruits in this recipe. If you cannot find grapefruit, you can substitute it with oranges. Please make sure to go through my earlier post “Tips on making Kerala Homemade Wine” before you attempt making wine at home, which will help clear lot of doubts and save your time and my time spent on clarifications!

Ethakka Wine / Ripe Plantain Wine

Ingredients:

Ripe Ethakka / Plantain - 3
Orange -1
Grapefruit -2
Raisins - ¾ cup
Water – 6 cups
Yeast – ¾
Sugar – 500 gms

Method:

• Cut Ethakka / Plantain in small pieces. Put ethakka pieces in a large pan and 6 cups water and bring this to the boil and simmer for approximately 15 minutes. Strain and pour the mixture into a clean large pan, while the mixture is hot making sure not to squeeze the ethakka / plantain pieces. Discard the ethakka pieces.
• Wash orange and grapefruit and wipe it with a kitchen tissue or clean cloth. Take out the zest from one grapefruit and orange with a citrus peeler or vegetable peeler. Add orange & grapefruit zest along with orange and grapefruit segments making sure not to add white pith or seeds, raisins and sugar to the hot boiled ethakka / plantain water.
• In a small bowl, mix ½ cup lukewarm water, ¾ tsp yeast and ¾ tsp sugar and keep aside for 10 minutes. When the mixture becomes frothy add it to the cooled mixture and mix everything well.
• Transfer the mixture to a sterilized glass bottle / bharani, cover it and leave for 21 days stirring daily. After 21 days, strain the mixture through a cheese/muslin cloth in to a clean dry bottle. Keep this again for 14 days untouched. After14 days strain the wine again, pour it in to clean dry bottles and use.