Bilberry: traditional uses, how to prepare it, and what to watch for

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Bilberry is the small, dark, wild cousin of the cultivated blueberry, picked from low heathland bushes on acid soils across Europe. Its purple flesh stains fingers and tongue, and its dried fruit and leaves have a long life in kitchen jars and herbal cupboards. Here is what the berry is, what tradition makes of it, and how to use it at home tonight.

A berry with a long paper trail

• In medieval Europe, dried bilberries were a household remedy for loose, upset bowels — a use recorded continuously for centuries.
• Right up to the last century, dried bilberry was a fixture in Western pharmacy shelves and folk remedy books.
• European folk herbalism also credited the berry with helping tired eyes and seeing in dim light, a reputation it still carries in herbal shops.
• North American tribes gathered the closely related blueberries, and early settlers adopted them for the same household purposes.
• In several regions, wild picking is regulated — in France, for example, rules change from year to year and from one district to the next. Check local rules before you fill a bucket.

What it is credited with

• Digestive comfort: traditional European herbalism uses dried bilberries for loose digestion, on account of their tannin content — the same astringency you taste at the back of the mouth.
• Eye comfort and night vision: herbalists have long recommended bilberry preparations to people who strain their eyes in poor light or in front of screens.
• Circulation and heavy legs: naturopathy credits the anthocyanin-rich fruit with supporting the tone of small blood vessels, a use passed on in continental herbal practice.
• Mouth and throat rinses: in old domestic practice, a strong, cooled bilberry decoction was used as a gargle or mouthwash for a sore mouth.
• Antioxidant plant compounds: anthocyanins are antioxidant pigments, which is why bilberry has a reputation as a “protective” fruit in modern naturopathy.
• Appetite and light eating: the berry has a folk reputation as a filling, low-calorie snack that takes the edge off hunger between meals.

These are traditional and naturopathic uses, owned as such. They are not treatments.

How to use it

Dried fruit infusion (the classic)

• Use about a tablespoon of dried bilberries to a generous half-litre of water.
• Bring the water to the boil, pour over the fruit, cover and steep 20 minutes, then strain.
• Drink a small cupful at a time, spaced through the day.
• Taste: dark, faintly winey, drying on the tongue. A little honey rounds it off.
• Traditional use is short-term — a day or two, not a standing habit.

Decoction, for a stronger brew

• Simmer the dried fruit gently in the water for 10 minutes, then leave covered off the heat for another 10.
• Strain, and let it cool completely if you want it as a mouth rinse or gargle.

Fresh fruit

• A small bowlful a day is the everyday amount in continental practice, eaten as they are or stirred into yoghurt and porridge.
• Always rinse well and eat them cooked or well washed rather than straight off the bush (see cautions).

Syrup and cordial

• Crush the fruit, strain the juice through muslin, then heat with an equal weight of sugar until it thickens slightly.
• Bottle hot, keep in the fridge once opened, and use within a few weeks.
• Drizzle over pancakes, crêpes or waffles, or dilute a spoonful in cold water.

In the kitchen

• Pies, tarts and cakes — the traditional home for a short glut.
• Jam, jelly, fruit wine, liqueur, sorbet and ice cream.
• Cooked bilberry sauce cuts through game, duck and strong cheeses.

Frequently Asked Questions

The one thing to remember: a tablespoon of dried bilberries steeped 20 minutes in half a litre of water is the traditional preparation — short-term, and cleared with your doctor if you take medication.

Can I eat bilberries straight off the bush?

It is not recommended. Wild low-growing berries can carry contamination from animals, so wash them thoroughly and preferably cook them before eating. Cooked into a pie, a jam or a syrup, they are perfectly good.

Fresh or dried — which should I use?

Fresh fruit is food: a small bowlful a day, in yoghurt or on porridge. Dried fruit is the herbal form, because drying concentrates the tannins that tradition relies on for digestive comfort. Most herbal uses call for the dried berry.

When is bilberry picked?

Mid to late summer, and the window is narrow — often only a couple of weeks of good fruit. In some regions, including parts of France, wild picking is regulated and the rules change from year to year and district to district, so check locally.

Is bilberry the same as blueberry?

They are close relatives in the same Vaccinium genus, but not the same. Bilberry is smaller, wilder and purple all the way through, while cultivated blueberry has pale flesh. Early settlers in North America used blueberries much as Europeans used bilberries.

Can I drink the infusion every day?

Traditional practice treats it as a short course rather than a daily drink, because the tannins are drying. If you want bilberry in your routine, the fruit itself, or a homemade syrup, is the gentler route — and check with a healthcare professional if you take any medication.

• Read also: how to grow bilberry

This information is provided for general interest and reflects the traditional use of plants. It is not a substitute for medical advice. If you are on medication, pregnant, or in any doubt, ask a healthcare professional.