General
There are zillions of books about preserving. My favourite was published in 1970 and is called Let’s Preserve It by Beryl Wood. It has 579 recipies for preserving fruit and vegetables and is in alphabetical order by fruit and vegetable. The ISBN number is 285.50277.8 but it is long out of print.
To make jam, you put equal weights of fruit and sugar in a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar is completely melted (or else the jam will chrystallise in the jars). You then boil it until it’s “thick enough” and there are lots of methods for testing this. The easiest thing to do is to buy a sugar thermometer and wait until the jam reaches 220 degrees F. Once it does, take it off the heat and add a knob of butter to it and stir it around – this gets rid of foam and ensures the fruit and the liquid are evenly distributed so you don’t get some jars full of fruit and some jars full of syrup! Pour into sterilised jars (do them in the dishwasher just before you make the jam so they are all hot and clean) and put the lids on tightly.
A woman named Olga Gomes from Portugal offers this amazing tip:
“Right after filling the sterilized jars, when they’re still hot, close the lid well and turn the jars upside down, for about 20 minutes – this will create vacuum and help preserve the jams until they’re opened. It’s usually a little harder to open the jars, I have to knock a few times with a spoon or knife handle on the side of the lid before opening but I’m leaving you with this tip in case it interests you.”
Making pickle, chutney, jelly, etc really requires a recipe so you get the proportions right. There are lots of books out there. Delia Smith is always an excellent source of never fail recipes.
That’s it. I am going to run a couple of jam making classes during the year so watch this space and keep reading to find specific recipes.
Make more jam!
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