Strong whiff of prussic acid when making rowan jelly

[boundtothesoil]

I made a batch of Rowan jelly today, including about a third in weight of under-ripe crab apples and noticed a really, really strong and persistent smell of almonds (cyanide) during the initial cooking phase and to a lesser extent during the final boil up. Has anyone else found this with Rowans? I thought it may be due to the crab apple pips, or because the berries were not completely ripe or had not been frosted. However, I did put them in the freezer for 48 hour before cooking.

[Mikey]

Did you try one before cooking BTS?

Rowan berries when cooked are not poisonous, but I like to try them before cooking. I nibble on the end of one and leave the tree alone if its really bitter fruit in preference for the milder ones. You just can't what it will be like unless you take a bite and spit out. I use this same method when picking hawthorn berries, except I don't tend to spit out. Its best not to assume that all fruit trees are identical, some taste better than others.

[boundtothesoil]

Did you try one before cooking BTS?

Rowan berries when cooked are not poisonous,

I didn't taste them before cooking and although the finished jelly looks pretty fine and clear, to be honest I haven't tried it out. Maybe I'll experiment on the dog or test it out on someone in the family. We're only 10 mins from the nearest A & E, although that would be probably be too long anyway