Jam-making - a sugar question.

noonesperfect

This ain't gonna be much help as I can't remember which sugar it is, but my friend is always telling me that a certain make of sugar is made with sugar beet not cane sugar - and therefore no good for jam-making. Apparently the jam won't set if it's beet sugar.

Maybe someone else will know. I think it's Silver Spoon that's beet sugar.

champys

noonesperfect wrote: »

This ain't gonna be much help as I can't remember which sugar it is, but my friend is always telling me that a certain make of sugar is made with sugar beet not cane sugar - and therefore no good for jam-making. Apparently the jam won't set if it's beet sugar.

Maybe someone else will know. I think it's Silver Spoon that's beet sugar.

Here in France we can only get beet sugar, but my strawberry jam is absolutely fine. Just like previous posters I only use plain sugar and add some lemon juice - there is no problem with setting. The sugar we buy is the cheapest from Lidl's, we always have stock because OH uses this to feed the bees when they need it. What I do use though, is a sugar thermometer to check if I have the right temperature for a set. The method of checking with a drop of jam on a cold saucer never really works for me. I also warm the sugar first before adding it (in the Remoska) so you won't have to boil the mixture for too long.

stationaryace

my mum's made jam for EVER and just uses caster sugar. she was once given preserving sugar but i think its still in the cupboard many years later maybe its waiting for an emergency

moanymoany

[quote=champys;11960973] What I do use though, is a sugar thermometer to check if I have the right temperature for a set. The method of checking with a drop of jam on a cold saucer never really works for me. I also warm the sugar first before adding it (in the Remoska) so you won't have to boil the mixture for too long.[/quote]


I made some strawberry jam using old recipe that added a tablespoon of lemon juice to 1lb of fruit. Boy has it set! I boiled it for 15 minutes and it is very stiff.

I thought about a sugar thermometer as the cold saucer method isn't one I can get to grips with.

How do you go about using the thermometer, do you dip it into the jam every 5 minutes or so?

Thanks.

p.s. just used ordinary granulated sugar.

Mrs_Flittersnoop

oh thank goodness moanymoany I thought it was just me!! :rotfl: I made strawberry jam for the very first time about two weeks ago and it's set like concrete!! Is there anything I can do about this, or am I condemning my family to breaking their teeth on their jam sandwiches??

Mrs F x

moanymoany

As I read your post Mrs. F I remembered my jam making at school. It was plum jam and it boiled and boiled but the teacher couldn't get it to reach setting point. She put it on saucers, dropped it in water - no luck.

In the end we had to put it in the jars. I took it home. A few days later we got the first jar - in those days people ate a lot of jam - it was so hard the knife wouldn't even go in the jam. It was impossible to eat and in the end was thrown away jars and all.

What a disaster!

horsechestnut

You don't have to use fresh lemons, Jiff-type juice does just as well!

champys

moanymoany wrote: »

[quote=champys;11960973] What I do use though, is a sugar thermometer to check if I have the right temperature for a set. The method of checking with a drop of jam on a cold saucer never really works for me. I also warm the sugar first before adding it (in the Remoska) so you won't have to boil the mixture for too long.

II thought about a sugar thermometer as the cold saucer method isn't one I can get to grips with.

How do you go about using the thermometer, do you dip it into the jam every 5 minutes or so?
[/quote]

Yes - well, sort of: once the sugar has dissolved, I boil the mixture hard for 10 minutes, and then dip the thermometer in. The one I have is a metal one, with a line showing the liquid level (i.e. how far to dip it in), and then it has lines up the scale which are labeled 'sterilising', 'soft ball', 'hard ball', 'caramel' etc. If the thermometer liquid does not yet reach the 'jam' level first time, I continue to boil and try again a few minutes later. As soon as it reaches the 'jam' line (about 105°C I think), it is done. Note that with strawberries I let the fruit simmer for a little while first to reduce, before I add the sugar. It is best not to have to boil it for too long once the sugar is in.

Note I would never have thought of buying a sugar thermometer, but OH had it in his beekeeping equipment and one day I realised I could use it!

Mrs_Flittersnoop

moanymoany wrote: »

As I read your post Mrs. F I remembered my jam making at school. It was plum jam and it boiled and boiled but the teacher couldn't get it to reach setting point. She put it on saucers, dropped it in water - no luck.

In the end we had to put it in the jars. I took it home. A few days later we got the first jar - in those days people ate a lot of jam - it was so hard the knife wouldn't even go in the jam. It was impossible to eat and in the end was thrown away jars and all.

What a disaster!

Oh no! I really don't want to have to chuck this if I can get away with it, the strawberries were horribly expensive

I was wondering whether to chisel it all out of the jars again and reboil it with some extra fruit in, or is that just a silly idea?

Mrs F x

torbrex

Mrs_Flittersnoop wrote: »

oh thank goodness moanymoany I thought it was just me!! :rotfl: I made strawberry jam for the very first time about two weeks ago and it's set like concrete!! Is there anything I can do about this, or am I condemning my family to breaking their teeth on their jam sandwiches??

Mrs F x

I did that once and on questioning my mum, she told me to scoop about a tablespoon out of the jar then put into the jar a tablespoon of pure water (not tap) and put jar into microwave for 90 seconds stirring every 30 seconds. Let jar cool and check to see if it is still solid, repeat if necesary.
Add more water at start if really hard set as you do not want to keep cooking it too much.

A good tip if your Strawberry jam wont set and you are reluctant to keep boiling is to add some jelly cubes during the cooling process, they will melt into the jam and help with the final set.