Jam making help for first timer

Penny35_2

Thats great will have a go

Hardup_Hester

The Seville oranges will be out soon if you want to try marmalade

Primrose

Home made marmalade is so much nicer than shop bought. If you're thinking of having a go, start now to acquire some empty jam jars with metal lids. The first time I decided to have a go I was so keen and bought all the ingredients only to find that I'd overlooked getting a store of suitable jars to store it in once it was made. You can also make small quantities of jam & marmalade quite easily in a microwave as follows:


MICROWAVE MARMALADE & JAM

A LARGE TALL SIDED bowl or casserole two or three times as large as the volume of jam /marmalade should be used and small quantities made at a time. Remember that when you add the sugar to the boiled fruit, the bulk will double. Recipes made in the microwave require less attention than ordinary methods and will not burn the bottom of the container. NEVER USE A SUGAR THERMOTER IN THE MICROWAVE OVEN.

Sterilising Jars
Kilner jars are not necessary. Empty commercial jars of jam or marmalade with screw-type metal lids are fine. Simply wash jar and lid in warm soapy water, rinse under warm tap, and put the jars (not lids) in warm oven for ten minutes to sterilise. Fill the jars whilst still warm, add lids lightly and screw down when product is cold.

THREE FRUIT MARMALADE

1 medium orange (ordinary or Seville)
1 medium grapefruit
2 medium lemons
850 ml (1 ½ pints) water
1 ½ kg (3lb) sugar (granulated is OK)

1. Thinly peel the rind off the fruit, cut into desired thickness. Halve fruit, squeeze juice and remove pips. Cut fruit residue into pieces. Tie fruit pieces into clean piece of muslin (or large cotton handkerchief) with pips. (The pips add extra pectin, which is a setting agent)
2. Place rind, juice & water into large bowl suitable for microwave use.. Add muslin bag with contents. Cover bowl with cling film. Don’t pierce film. Cook on HIGH for 18-20 mins until rind is soft. Remove muslin bag.
3. Sir in sugar. Heat on HIGH until sugar has dissolved, stirring regularly. Bring to boil.
4. Cook on HIGH for 35-45 mins until setting point is reached. (To check this, put a plate in fridge for a 10 minutes to cool. Pour a small blob of the liquid onto plate & return to fridge for a couple of minutes.. If liquid starts to crinkle, setting point has been reached).
5. Allow to cool slightly before potting into washed warm dry jars.
6. Makes approx 5 lb.

GRAPEFRUIT MARMALADE
Use 2 grapefruit, 2 lemons , and proceed with recipe as above.


ORANGE MARMALADE (Seville oranges or Ordinary oranges)
Use 3 oranges, 1 lemon & proceed with recipe as above.


LEMON MARMALADE
4 medium lemons
850 ml (1 ½ pints) water
1 ½ kg (3 lb) Sugar

Proceed as for 3 fruit marmalade.

STRAWBERRY OR RASPERRY JAM (or combination of soft fruit such as BLACKBERRY, BLACKCURRENT, REDCURRANT, GOOSEBERRY ETC.)

1 lb soft fruit.
1 tablespoon lemon juice
12 oz sugar

1. Hull strawberries. Wash other fruit & put into 5 pint mixing bowl with lemon juice.
2. Cook on HIGH for 4 –5 minutes or until fruit is soft. Add sugar & stir well.
3. Cook on HIGH 11 – 12 mins or until setting point is reached
4. Cool slightly before putting into clean warm jars.
5. Makes approx 1 lb.

PLUM JAM

2 lb of stoned plums
½ pint water
tablespoon Lemon Juice
2 lbs castor sugar (granulated is OK)

1. Place plums & water in large bowl. Cook on HIGH for 9 – 10 mins or until fruit is soft.
2. Add lemon juice & sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to boil and cook on HIGH until setting point is reach, 20 – 25 mins.
3. Allow to cool slightly before putting in clean warm jars
4. Makes approx 3 lb.

Penny35_2

Wow Primrose that is brilliant thank you so much

smeeinnit

thriftlady wrote: »

Best tip is to make jam when suitable fruit is in season-cheap and local if poss. Raspberries, strawberries etc are pricey but they will be less so in the summer months. Better still pick free blackberries and damsons or blag free fruit from friends and relatives with gardens.

For info on what you can be doing now look at this thread

The Preserver's Year

I'll second that,I picked a few kilos of blackberries and sloes this autumn, and my dad got some damsons for me, all made wonderful jams and jellies and it felt great knowing that all it would cost me is sugar, bit of electricity and a little time...blackberry jam was the simplest I have ever made, second only to blackberry and apple and some random berries I found in the freezer - really delicious - blackberry recipe as follows, can be scaled up or down - I didn't have any fresh lemons handy so just used lemon juice from a bottle and it worked a treat. Reached setting point in about 5-10 minutes, really quick.

yield 10 lb
6 lb. blackberries
1/4 pint water
Rind and juice of 2 lemons
6 lb. sugar

method

1. Put the cleaned fruit, the water and lemon rind and juice in the pan.

2. Simmer until the fruit is soft.

3. Stir in the sugar and boil rapidly until setting point is reached.

4. Remove from the heat, skim, pot, cover, and label.

When I made blackberry, apple and randomberry jam I used roughly a third each of blackberries, bramleys and berries in weight and equalled the total with sugar, added a little lemon juice but not a lot as apple has plenty of pectin anyway. I also blitzed the cooked mixture with a hand blender, before adding sugar, and although blackberry pips were left whole (which are tiny and I did not mind) it was lovely and smooth, glossy and dark.

HTH xx

**Upsy_Daisy**

You can make jam in the microwave and save tons of energy - I picked wild blackeberries last autumn and I am just finishng off the last of it.
The microwave recipe was on the side of the packet of sugar and took about 1/4 (or less) time than the trad method
I think it was tate and lyle sugar - excellent recipe, fantastic jam
Check out the suger packets next time you're in the supermarket

UD

ceebeeby

Wow - some more fab tips to subscribe too - thanks!

turkolina

Do you think it would be possible to use frozen fruit to make the jam?? I have about a sack of blackberries that DH decided to pick in the summer and also raspberries and blue berries and even frozen figs etc???? Would certainly get them out of my freezer and get eaten..

Thanks ..

beautiful_ravens

^I'm glad you said that - I was going to ask about making apple jam using the frozen apples pieces I have tons of in the freezer...if you let them defrost, they have quite a lot of liquid, so I dont know about liquid quantities...or sugar quantities..or anything. Last time I made jam, my mum came round and rescued it from certain death.

thriftlady_2

Yes you can make jam from frozen fruit. i've done it with blackberries and those bags of mixed summer berries. you can also make mamrmalade from frozen Seville oranges;)