Originally published on April 27, 2015
There is little that is more Canadian than maple syrup. The real stuff, that is. I’m lucky enough to live in the “Maple Syrup Capital of Ontario” and even luckier to know someone that makes their own, which is what I used when making these Maple Marinated Chicken Kabobs. This past weekend saw the annual “Festival of the Maples” event and this Canadian gold was running freely just about everywhere; as was all the information you could ever want about the stuff. Here are the facts about maple syrup I found most interesting:
- The First Nations people in North America were the first to make maple syrup, long before the Europeans brought some over. Legend has it that the discovery of maple syrup came after a bucket had been left under a tree on a Chief’s property one evening. Overnight sap collected in the bucket and, when the Chief’s wife saw it the next day, she thought it was water and used it to boil meat in for supper. The sap turned to syrup and the flavour delighted the Chief so much, maple syrup production begun and hasn’t stopped since.
- The First Nations people also made maple sugar due to the fact that it lasted much longer and was easier to carry when traveling.
- Maple syrup production farms are called “sugarhouses” or “sugarbushes” today. This too, is part of the original sap production that started in North America. When the Native people made maple sugar rather than maple syrup, they did so in an outdoor building that didn’t require refrigeration. These buildings were called “sugarhouses” and the name has stuck.
- Maple syrup and maple sugar are the only two foods that are produced from sap.
- Maple syrup is the first agricultural crop of the calendar year – which means we can start to get excited for all the others that are soon to come!
- Maple syrup is sold in four different colours. In Canada those are: Extra Light (AA), Light (A), Medium (B), Amber, and Dark. The darker the colour, the more flavourful the syrup, although the sugar content remains the same among all types. Early on in the season when the trees first start producing the sap that can be turned to syrup, the maple syrup will be lighter in colour and it will darken as the season continues.
- Maple syrup season is relatively short, lasting only about four to eight weeks. While maple trees will produce sap during the off-season, it’s not sap suitable to be turned into syrup.
- You cannot freeze maple syrup.
- Producing maple syrup is extremely labour-intensive. Maple trees need to be about 30 to 40 years of age to produce the syrup, and one tree will only produce about 5 to 15 gallons of sap per season. Given that it takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup, it could take up to 8 trees to produce 1 gallon in just one season. That means farms need a lot of trees, and each of those need to be tapped before the sap can be collected, then filtered, then boiled. If you want to produce maple syrup, you better be pretty serious about it.
- The “International Maple Syrup Institute” was founded in 1975 and they continually work “to promote and protect pure maple syrup and other maple syrup products”. Their meetings are typically held outdoors and include a very big griddle on which many pancakes are made before being doused with maple syrup.
- But maple syrup is good for more than just pancakes. It can also be used in many recipes, including the one below.
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1″ cubes
1 green pepper, seeds and ribs removed and cut into chunks
1 red pepper, seeds and ribs removed and cut into chunks
1 onion, peeled and cut into chunks
3 tablespoons real maple syrup
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil
Ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
1.) Soak bamboo skewers in water for at least 2 hours, or save yourself the trouble and use stainless steel skewers that won’t burn up on the grill.
2.) About an hour before cooking time, start making the skewers. Skewer first the chicken, then a couple of pepper pieces, then the onion. Repeat with the remaining chicken, pepper, and onion pieces until all the skewers are full and place skewers in a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish.
3.) Place the soy sauce, white wine, water, maple syrup, white vinegar, ginger, and garlic cloves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes before setting aside to cool slightly. Pour this mixture over the chicken skewers and place the casserole dish in the fridge for half an hour.
4.) When ready to start cooking, heat an outdoor grill to medium heat. Remove skewers from fridge and drizzle olive oil over top of each. When grill is hot, place chicken skewers on and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. Throughout cooking time, brush on remaining marinade, turn the skewers, and keep lid closed as much as possible.
5.) Turn grill off, remove skewers, and let rest for about 5 minutes.
6.) Serve and enjoy!