Hello, my dear readers! How are you doing today? I’m doing well. I’m getting great feedback from my cheong recipes, so I wanted to share another cheong recipe with you all. So today, I’m very excited to share this blueberry cheong recipe! This was one of the most requested cheong recipes so far, so I had to get into it. There are many recipes you can try with this blueberry cheong, from desserts and drinks to even main dishes.
So with no further ado, let’s dive right in!
Introduction to Blueberry Cheong Recipe
Blueberry Kinds to Use
As you might already know, I live in Norway, and this country is abundant in wild blueberries. So initially, I wanted to make blueberry choeng, and the recipe with these little, plump, and dark wild blueberries (Lowbush blueberries) you can easily forage in Norway.
Then it came to me, that maybe it might not be very convenient for most of my dear readers! Most berries sold around the world are big, cultivated blueberries (Highbush blueberries). One of the beauties of a cheong recipe is making raw syrup and preservatives out of fresh fruits. It is not only a fun experience, but it also preserves a lot of nutrients in fruits, such as vitamin C, by not introducing heat in the cooking process.
So I decided to go with those regular big blueberries you can find in a supermarket. There are still many different kinds of blueberries sold at a store; however, as long as they are sold at a store, they should be good for this recipe!
Ripe And Unripe Blueberries for Blueberry Cheong
I have to be honest; I was narrow-sighted and thought you could only make cheongs with fruits when they are ripe. But no! I love watching Johnny Kyunghwo‘s YouTube videos, and I found out that he made a blueberry cheong with unripe blueberries. He was lucky enough to pick blueberries from his garden (which is something that I would love to do when I get my dream house with a lot of land). I could pick some unripe wild blueberries in the Norwegian forest, though. So maybe that’s something I could do next time. 😊
But for now, we will stick to making the blueberry cheong with ripe blueberries. However, some unripe or less ripe ones should be alright.
Here’s the video I watched of Kyunghwo’s where he makes the blueberry cheong with unripe blueberries!
Blueberry Seasons
Blueberries can be harvested from late spring to the fall, depending on the part of the world you are from and the kind of blueberry. In Oslo, Norway, I can usually go for wild blueberry picking in the forest from August to September.
We can find blueberries at a grocery store all year around, but, the blueberries in season are not only more delicious, they have more nutrients, and they are cheaper! So if you are lucky enough to find fresh local blueberries in season, grab them right now, and let’s get right into making a blueberry cheong.
If you are quite new to cheong, here is a little introduction to cheong.
Introduction to Cheong
Cheong is a Korean preservation method that mixes sugar with fresh fruits, often mashed.
Unlike jam, where you need to cook the fruits, you use fresh fruits to preserve with Cheong. That makes the fruit cheong taste fresher but lasts shorter than a jam. It’s also different from syrup, as you would let the sugar and fruit mix ferment when making Cheong.
We call Cheong a “fruit extract” in Korea.
So are you excited to make some strawberry cheong? I shared how to make strawberry cheong in the recipe below, so keep reading! Other than strawberries, there are several popular cheong varieties in Korea.
How to Make Cheong Syrup | With Any Fruits and Vegetables
Learn how to make cheong syrup, a delicious, healthy, and raw Korean syrup. You can make it with any kind of fruits and vegetables with expert tips! Learn more.
Here are some of the popular cheong varieties in Korea.
Varieties of Cheong
[ Berry Cheong ]
[ Citrus Cheong ]
[ Other Cheong ]
- Maesil Cheong (Korean green plum cheong)
- Cherry Cheong
- Apple Cheong
I have detailed posts about the varieties of cheong below, so check it out 
Usage of Cheong
You can make any cheong with any fruit.
And once you have the kind of cheong you like, you can use it in many recipes. Here are the top four ways to use cheong.
1. Homemade Drinks
First and foremost, the most common way to use cheong is to make homemade soft drinks with it.
It’s so simple. Take a few spoons of liquid from cheong and mix it with either cold or hot water to your liking.
It’s so nice to make cold homemade drinks in the summer and hot homemade drinks in the winter.
2. Homemade Alcohol
As I told you, as cheong is a natural way to preserve fruits, sometimes it becomes alcohol or vinegar…
However, you can decide to make homemade alcohol just as you make cheong!
While making a cheong, you can mix it with pure alcohol. Then you leave it for several months, and there you have it! You have your own homemade alcohol. This is how you make Korean plum wine.
When I move to the big house of my dreams, I want to make my own homemade alcohol using this method.
Blueberry Soju | Korean Soju Recipe with Blueberry Cheong
You can make a blueberry soju with real blueberries at home to enjoy the deep flavor and scents. Read this blog post about the blueberry soju recipe that uses the Korean cheong method.
Blueberry Latte Recipe | With Blueberry Cheong and Syrup
You can make blueberry latté with blueberry cheong and syrup. Or you can make some blueberry paste to make some delicious blueberry latté! Learn more.
3. Homemade Latte
There are many lattes in Korea. And one of the most popular lattes is a strawberry latte, which has strawberry cheong as the ingredient.
Strawberry cheong is the star ingredient of the strawberry latte. I shared my strawberry latte recipe inspired by the Starbucks menu, which you can make with this strawberry cheong.
You mix cheong with some plant milk. Pour it into a cup filled with ice, and there is your luxurious homemade Korean latte!
Ninja Creami Recipe Vanilla Ice Cream | Can Be Made Vegan!
This classic vanilla ice cream made with a Ninja Creami ice cream machine is so incredibly soft, decadent, and delicious. Plus, it can be made vegan! Read more.
4. A Topping for Yogurt and Ice Cream
Last but not least, you can use cheong as a topping for yogurt or ice cream!
Both the fruit pulp and the syrup can be used.
You can also mix blueberry cheongs or blueberry syrup with plain yogurt or ice cream, and then you have your blueberry yogurt or blueberry ice cream!
Health Benefits of Blueberry Cheong
1. Vitamin C Content
One of the best health benefits you can expect from cheong is the vitamin C content from the fruits.
You make cheong with fresh fruits without using heat; therefore, you get to preserve vitamin C as well as other antioxidants!
Vitamin C maintains skin elasticity and reduces skin damage caused by ultraviolet rays. It is also effective in reducing freckles and blemishes. It has excellent antioxidant properties and helps prevent cell aging.
2. Health Benefits of Blueberries
We have all heard of blueberries as “superfoods.” So what kind of health benefits do blueberries have? Let’s find out!
- Anti-Aging, Anti-Cancer: Blueberries have one of the highest antioxidant levels of all common fruits and vegetables. This incredible amount of antioxidants in blueberries keeps us young and helps protect us from DNA damage and cancer development.
- Brain Health: Berries were known to improve brain functions. There has been a 6-year study of over 16,000 people who found the links between berry consumption and delaying cognitive decline by up to 2.5 years!
- Muscle Recovery: A small study has found that eating blueberries may have played a role in faster muscle recovery.
There are many more health benefits of blueberries, but these were the top ones I found very interesting! Let’s get into making blueberry cheongs, then, shall we? 🫐
One Note
If you don’t ferment the cheong for a long time, then the sugar won’t ferment, and the cheong will have a high sugar content. Therefore, please eat the cheong in moderation if you are eating some fresh cheong.
I’m guilty of eating lots of fresh cheong myself!
Blueberry Cheong Recipe | How to Make Korean Blueberry Syrup
Blueberry Cheong Recipe | Korean Raw Syrup
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- In a washing bowl, put the blueberries. Sprinkle the baking soda on top of the blueberries.
- Add cold water to the bowl until the blueberries submerge. Then add vinegar. Mix.
- Lightly rub the blueberries in the water. Then take them out and rinse them thoroughly with running water.
- In a pot, add water again. Take the glass jar you want to put your blueberry cheong in and put it upside down.
- Slowly bring the water to a boil. Let the glass jar be disinfected with boiling water. Once the water starts to boil, turn down the heat to medium-high. Let it boil for about 5 minutes.
- Take out the glass jar and let it completely dry.
- Dab the water out of the blueberries. Let them dry completely.
- Put all the blueberries into the disinfected glass jar. Pour the sugar and salt inside. With a dry wooden spoon, mix the sugar and blueberries.
- Then start mashing the blueberries with the spoon so the blueberry juices ooze out and the sugar is well mixed.
- Optionally, you can add a tablespoon of lemon juice. It helps with preservation and enhances the flavor.
- Then pour the syrup on top. The syrup will drip down to the bottom naturally. Close the jar. Your blueberry cheong is ready to ferment!
- Leave the jar in a cool, dark place for several days. Check your blueberry cheong and mix thoroughly every day until the sugar dissolves.
- Store the syrup in a separate jar or bottle. Store it in the fridge for up to 3 months. It can naturally ferment as time passes. Enjoy!
A Key Ingredient for Cheong
Of course, fresh and nice fruits are the key ingredients for making a cheong.
But aside from that, the next key ingredient is sugar!
1. Sugar
Using high-quality organic sugar like this will determine the final result of the cheong. Great sugar can not only preserve and ferment better but also taste better!
Not only that, using organic sugar is a great way to save our planet. There are a lot of pesticides used in growing regular sugar crops.
Let’s get some great organic cane sugar for taste, preservation, and the planet.
2. Allulose Fiber Syrup
My Normal Keto Allulose 17.1 Fl Oz – Allulose, Monk Fruit and Stevia Blend
Allulose syrup is used in Korean kitchens a lot. It adds sweetness to food with fewer calories, and it has fiber, which slows down the blood sugar spikes and hinders the sugar from being absorbed into our bodies.
When used in making cheongs, allulose syrup helps to accelerate the process. If you use only sugar, it takes longer to dissolve sugar (sometimes it doesn’t dissolve at all!) and the syrup can have a high amount of sugar.
Pouring allulose syrup can also help the cheong to ferment well instead of being spoiled, as the liquid prevents the virus from entering the cheong.
Tips for a Great Blueberry Cheong Recipe
1. Use Fresh Blueberries
I love using frozen fruits and vegetables but save your frozen blueberries for something else, and let’s use fresh blueberries for cheong. Frozen fruits and vegetables are great at preserving nutrients, except vitamin C. So make blueberry cheong with fresh blueberries to intake vitamin C as well.
Moreover, it’s more fun to get fresh local blueberries in season and make the blueberry cheong!
2. Store In Fridge
This blueberry cheong recipe doesn’t have lots of sugar or salt, and you don’t boil it to have less water content as you would with making jam. So please be a little more careful when storing this beautiful blueberry cheong!
3. Store Somewhere Dark and Chill
If you don’t have space in your fridge to store your blueberry cheong, you can also store it somewhere dark and chill. Exposing blueberry cheongs to light and heat will not only make the cheongs go bad or ferment too soon but also destroy the vitamin C in the cheongs.
4. Make Blueberry Syrup Cover the Top
My goodness, this was the first mistake I made when I was making a cheong!
If you want your blueberry cheong to last a long time, make sure to cover the blueberry syrup from the cheong to the top. It means the liquid should cover the top. This ensures no bacteria in the air gets into the cheong and spoils.
I didn’t know that at first, so my grape cheong started to grow fungus on top of the grape pulp. Yikes!
Summary of Blueberry Cheong Recipe
I hope you enjoyed this blueberry cheong recipe! I love eating fresh blueberries. They are like the best natural snacks to munch on. But if you want to try something new and exciting with blueberries, then this is it! The blueberry cheong is so versatile and can make you blueberry syrup and blueberry jam (the pulp from the cheong.)
Happy cooking, and I will be back with a delicious post soon!
Other Cheong Recipes
Maesil Cheong | Raw Korean Plum Extract | Syrup Recipe & Uses
Maesil cheong is a delicious, fragrant, tart, fresh, and sweet raw Korean syrup made with a Korean plum called maesil. Learn the recipe and what to use it for.
Maesil cheong can ferment, become lightly sour like vinegar, or develop into alcohol!
Lemon Cheong Recipe | How to Make Korean Raw Lemon Syrup
This zesty, citrusy, and vibrant lemon cheong recipe can be used in so many Korean cuisines! Learn how to make Korean raw lemon syrup packed with vitamin C.
Tangerine Cheong Recipe | How to Make Korean Tangerine Syrup
Try this Korean tangerine cheong recipe. You can get both the zesty, sweet tangerine syrup and the marmalade in one recipe! Learn more.
Strawberry Cheong Recipe | For Korean Desserts and Drinks
Strawberry cheong is a great way to preserve fresh strawberries. It’s a versatile dish that can be used to make lots of desserts and drinks! Read more here.
Raw Black Cherry Syrup Recipe | All About Cherry Cheong
Learn how to make an easy, raw, homemade cherry syrup that is packed with flavors and nutrients! Using the Korean Cheong method, this is a healthy syrup.
Apple Cheong Recipe | How to Make Apple Syrup
Apple cheong is a Korean raw apple syrup that is packed with sweet and tart flavors. Make apple cheong with any kind of apple with this recipe. Learn more.
Raspberry Cheong | How to Make Korean Raw Raspberry Syrup
Raspberry cheong is a raw Korean syrup. It is packed with fresh raspberry flavors, scents, colors, and nutrients! Learn this versatile raspberry cheong recipe.
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Mugwort is a very popular herb in Korea. There is a latte made with this herb, and it is green and very fragrant.
Best Raspberry Sorbet Recipe with Lemon | With Ninja Creami
Try this best raspberry sorbet recipe using a Ninja Creami Ice Cream Machine. So delicious, smooth, and refreshing! This dark ruby-red sorbet is perfect for summer.
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