Strawberry sauce with the Thermomix® is ready in 15 minutes and fills 2 jars of 200 ml each. The key: pulverise the vanilla and sugar first at speed 10, then add the strawberries. This way the vanilla blends directly with the sugar instead of floating loose in the finished sauce.
We have been making this sauce for years as a batch for summer desserts. It goes on vanilla ice cream made in the Thermomix®, into yoghurt, on pancakes or as a topping for Panna Cotta. One jar is enough for about 6 dessert servings.
Strawberry Sauce with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 4 ✓
- 100 g sugar
- 1 vanilla pod
- 400 g strawberries
- 1/2 lemon
Instructions 0 / 3
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1
Pulverise the sugar.
Place the sugar and vanilla pod in the mixing bowl and pulverise for 20 sec / speed 10.
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2
Cook the strawberries.
Wash and hull the strawberries and add them to the mixing bowl. Squeeze the lemon into the mixing bowl and cook for 8 min / 100°C / speed 1.
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3
Bottle the sauce.
Fill the strawberry sauce into a sterilised bottle, seal it and leave it upside down for 5 minutes.
Note: Stored in the fridge, the strawberry sauce keeps for approximately 2 months.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Our sauce vs. the cold sieve method: why cooking is worth it
The standard Vorwerk sauce on Cookidoo skips cooking: mix the strawberries and sugar and leave them for 30 minutes, blend for 20 sec at speed 10, then pass through a sieve. Done in 35 minutes. It tastes fresher but keeps for only 3 to 4 days and gives a thinner consistency.
Our cooked version (8 minutes at 100°C) takes 5 minutes longer but keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge and 6 months in the freezer. On top of that, cooking thickens the sauce slightly so it clings to the ice cream instead of running off. For a spontaneous Sunday dessert the cold method is fine; for batch cooking and gifts the cooked version is better.
Dissolve the vanilla in the sugar first, not later
The classic beginner mistake: adding the vanilla to the finished sauce. It does not work. The essential oils in the vanilla pod need fat or sugar as a carrier. We pulverise the whole pod (including the skin) together with the 100 g of sugar for 20 seconds at speed 10. This creates a homemade vanilla sugar that breaks down the pod completely.
If you do not have a vanilla pod, you can use 1 tsp of homemade vanilla paste. That goes in at the end, however, because pulverising it with the sugar would add nothing. A sachet of vanilla sugar from a packet is the emergency option, but the flavour is noticeably flatter.
400 g strawberries: fresh or frozen
Fresh strawberries give the most intense flavour but only during the season (May to August in Germany). Outside the season we use frozen ones from the freezer aisle. They are harvested ripe, flash-frozen and taste better than the watery Spanish imports in winter.
With frozen strawberries, tip them straight from the bag into the mixing bowl without thawing. The cooking time increases by 2 minutes (so 10 instead of 8 minutes at 100°C, speed 1). The volume shrinks by about 30 per cent during cooking as the water evaporates.
Half a lemon is essential, not optional
Half a lemon (about 15 g juice) makes the difference between flat and brilliant. Strawberries are low in acid (pH 3.5) and lemon brings the acidity needed to make the flavour shine. Without lemon the sauce tastes sweet; with lemon it tastes fruity and vibrant.
We squeeze the lemon directly into the mixing bowl rather than into a bowl first. That way no pips fall in. You can also add 1 tsp of grated zest, which boosts the fresh note even further.
Maceration: leave for 30 minutes for deeper flavour
A pro trick from Italian patisserie: before cooking, mix the hulled strawberries with the sugar and leave them for 30 minutes. The sugar draws out the juice from the berries (osmosis), which is called maceration. The sauce gains a more intense depth of flavour and more even sweetness.
This works with both fresh and frozen strawberries. If you are short of time, skip it. The difference is subtle. For dinner guests or as a gift it is worth doing.
Strawberry sauce without sugar: with agave syrup or honey
For a lower-sugar version, replace the 100 g of sugar with 60 g of agave syrup or honey. These sweeteners are more intense so you need less. Warning: the sauce will be slightly thinner because the liquid syrup adds extra water. Cook for 2 minutes longer and the consistency will be right.
The recipe does not work completely without sweetener. Strawberries need the sugar to retain their sweetness in the sauce. A sugar-free version tastes like cooked berries, not a dessert sauce. For completely sugar-free ice cream, there are dedicated recipes available.
Chunky or smooth: two consistencies
By default we cook the sauce without blending, so it stays semi-chunky. For a perfect topping without any pieces, blend after cooking for 10 seconds at speed 10. This gives a silky consistency, great for chocolate mousse or as a mirror on the plate.
For the very smooth version (without any berry seeds): after blending, press through a fine sieve. This halves the quantity but gives a commercial consistency similar to a shop-bought jar. We only do this for dinner-party desserts; otherwise too much effort.
Strawberry sauce: 2 weeks chilled or 6 months frozen
Bottling hot into sterilised bottles and leaving them upside down for 5 minutes creates a vacuum that extends shelf life to 2 weeks in the fridge. Once opened, it keeps for 5 days. Without sterilising, 3 to 4 days in the fridge.
For longer storage: freeze the sauce in ice-cube trays. 30 g per cube is enough for one dessert serving. Keeps for 6 months in the freezer. To thaw, place directly on warm pancakes or in a water bath at 60°C.
Goes well with: pancakes and cheesecake.
