Jam making help for first timer

Penelope_Penguin

RHYSDAD wrote: »

I've got some damsons still left in the freezer from last year. Will they be okay to make Jam from??? I worry that they will have spolied or something.....

also, can i use my pressure cooker as the 'heavy' saucepan most of the recipes state?

Yep, use the damsons I use my pressure cooker pan for making jam

Penny. x

RHYSDAD

Penelope_Penguin wrote: »

Yep, use the damsons I use my pressure cooker pan for making jam

Penny. x

Thanks Penny....

Katy_M_2

Hi All

This is my first time posting on this section of the forum so I hope I'm not going over old ground here!

I'm going to embark on a new project of jam making! Never tried it before so was just wondering if there's any handy hints you can offer me?

I've looked up a recipe for blackberry jam and am going to go balckberry picking this week!

From what I can gather I need to add either apples or some special jam making sugar for the pectin to help it set, and I've found the tip about keeping a cold saucer to test when the jam will set properly.

I'm mainly confused about the jar really and sealing it.

If I save up some jars from things like cooking sauces and so on....will I have to buy special lids/equipment to seal them? Or will a piece of cloth and lacky band suffice?

Any other tips will be greatfully appreciated - I need all the help I can get!

Thanks in advance
Katy xx

helyg

I personally buy jars from Lakeland (I do reuse them though), but then I also buy the pretty labels to stick on the front of the jars which sin't strictly necessary either...

My mum always used old coffee jars, as long as they are sterilised and you seal them with a wax disc (either bought or you can make them from old cereal packets according to another thread I saw on here) then they should be OK.

thriftlady_2

As long as you save the lids that came with the jars you won't need anything else;) The lids should have a plastic lining and that's the kind you need.

Simply wash the jars and lids well. Then dry the jars in a 100c oven for about 10 mins. That will sterilise them as well.

Pour your jam into them while they are hot trying to get them as full as possible. Then screw on the lids.

You can put a wax paper disc on the top of the jam first, but that is only really necessary if you don't have lids.

If you don't have lids you need a circle of cellophane as well as the wax disc plus a lacky band;) A piece of cloth isn't good enough. These are usually put on over the cellophane for decoration only.

Zazen999

I use old jamjars and pesto jars......

Some fruits naturally have pectin in them and some don't.....so adding apples adds this to the mix.

Try making a small batch for one jam jar and then once you have tried that, expand to larger batch. The main thing is to get the setting right, it can go slightly too far if you leave it on a rolling boil too far and you end up with strawberry toffee!

I prefer making jellies rather than jams as they are clear and you don't end up breaking teeth on the pips.

thriftlady_2

Zazen999 wrote: »

I prefer making jellies rather than jams as they are clear and you don't end up breaking teeth on the pips.

Me too, especially as you often don't need to do so much preparation to the fruit beyond washing it. You can boil up the cores and stocks and then it all gets strained away;)

Blackberries are not particularly high in pectin, but nor are they particularly low. Using some under-ripe berries will increase the pectin.

Katy_M_2

Thanks all

The jars I will be saving should have lids so I should be ok just with those then.

Although I do like the idea of using gingham print cloths with lacky bands and nice sticky labels too! Although as helyg said...this isn't really neccessary and will start costing money and therefore rendering the idea pointless lol (although it would look very pretty and country cottagey !)

Thanks Zazen, I will defo just make one jars worth at first.....I pictured myself stirring up a whole couldron full but I guess it would make more sense to do a taster first!


So I don't need to pick really ripe blackberries then Thriftlady? I was worrying that it might not taste as nice if I don't use the ripest possible berries.

Would you suggest that I use the sugar then to make it sweeter, or the apples for the extra pectin...or both?

Thanks for all your help so far! Tis very exciting! Tom & Barbara Good here I come! :rotfl:

Zazen999

I have a particularly lovely jelly in the fridge at the moment; home grown red gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries and some rhubarb; all chucked in to boil for an hour then strained overnight and reboiled with the same volume of sugar the next day and bottled up. Lush and the rhubarb makes it just a bit tart. Heaven.

Collecting loads of fruit from the garden and the hedgerows at the moment and freezing; for a late summer mixed fruit jelly; bring it on!!!! Christmas pressies all round.

helyg

I'm giving quite a lot of this year's jams and chutneys away as presents, that way I can justify the little labels and gingham hats lol

You'll have to have sugar, but if the fruit has enough pectin in it you can just use ordinary granulated rather than jam sugar, which is more expensive. You can either add apples or lemon juice (1 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice per 900g of blackberries according to a recipe I have) to increase the pectin. Some fruit doesn't need it though, I made blackcurrant jam this morning using ordinary sugar and nothing else and it reached setting point after just 5 mins of boiling.