Jams,chutneys and the other preserves-anybody still doing it?

purpleybat · 12 July 2019 at 6:39AM

i like making many types of preserves... i just don't like eating that many and really don't have a sweet tooth. mostly i give jam away as gifts or trade them with friends for things i do like.
this year i've made about 20 small jars of strawberry jam, 8 of strawberry/gooseberry jam, 5 jars chilli/tomato relish and a rather dodgy batch of mango chutney (first time making it)

my sisters often give me lists of relishes they want, as long as they're happy to wait until i can get the ingredients cheaply i'm happy to make them.

piccalilli is a must every year, as are chilli pickled onions, but usually i just get asked for an ingredient and left to find a recipe in one of my many books.

once ive got all the strawberries out of the freezer the next things on my list are:-
lime and lemon curds (both to be mde this week for my sisters visit on the 20th)
dried apricot jam
apple and blackberry jam
celery relish
red pepper relish
a nicer mango chutney
quince jelly and membrillo (if the local polish shop stock them this year)
tomato ketchup
sweetcorn relish (if i can find the recipe my family like)

ohhhhhhh, the list is endless

i'd better start scrounging jars!

Gem-gem · 12 July 2019 at 7:10AM

purpleybat wrote: »

i like making many types of preserves... i just don't like eating that many and really don't have a sweet tooth. mostly i give jam away as gifts or trade them with friends for things i do like.
this year i've made about 20 small jars of strawberry jam, 8 of strawberry/gooseberry jam, 5 jars chilli/tomato relish and a rather dodgy batch of mango chutney (first time making it)

my sisters often give me lists of relishes they want, as long as they're happy to wait until i can get the ingredients cheaply i'm happy to make them.

piccalilli is a must every year, as are chilli pickled onions, but usually i just get asked for an ingredient and left to find a recipe in one of my many books.

once ive got all the strawberries out of the freezer the next things on my list are:-
lime and lemon curds (both to be mde this week for my sisters visit on the 20th)
dried apricot jam
apple and blackberry jam
celery relish
red pepper relish
a nicer mango chutney
quince jelly and membrillo (if the local polish shop stock them this year)
tomato ketchup
sweetcorn relish (if i can find the recipe my family like)

ohhhhhhh, the list is endless i'd better start scrounging jars!

My neighbours collect jars for me. I then pass them any excess vegetables that I grow, that I cannot eat, freeze etc.
Last year I was supplying six neighbours with tomatoes, runner beans and courgettes. I made tomato ketchup, bbq sauce, soups, pasta sauces and froze enough whole tomatoes that I filled 80% of a freezer with whole tomatoes alone. At the peak, I was picking 3kg of tomatoes a day.
I have not grown any runner beans this year as we have enough for another year.

The year before, I swapped with my neighbours strawberry plants for old plant pots. That meant that I didn't have to buy any pots to start my vegetable off in before I put them into the ground.

I like the sound of your gooseberry and strawberry jam. I gave my Mum 2.5kg of gooseberries this year. She will be giving me lots of apples in return.

madlyn · 12 July 2019 at 2:31PM

Going to give pickled onions a try for the 1st time ever.
Any recipes for a beginner?

PipneyJane · 12 July 2019 at 3:32PM

Hello.

One of my favourite recipes is this one, for making Hot Crab Apple Jelly and Crab Apple Chilli Cheese. I make both every year. I also make Sloe gin and Sloe Gin Truffles, following the recipes on www.sloe.biz.

I'm a relative newby too, to making preserves and I have nobody near me who does it. After a disasterous year, I sought advice here and there's a thread around somewhere, where I asked for advice because my jam wouldn't set. It gave me one of the best pieces of advice ever - boil your jam for 10 minutes before you test for set. Now my jams and jellies set beautifully.

My primary reference for recipes and techniques is Marguerite Patton's Jams, Preserves & Chutneys book. It's also useful for bottling and for making chutneys.

HTH

- Pip

PipneyJane · 12 July 2019 at 3:35PM

madlyn wrote: »

Going to give pickled onions a try for the 1st time ever.
Any recipes for a beginner?

Ooohhhh..... Now you've got me wondering where my dad's handwritten instructions are. He used to make delicious pickled onions when I was a kid. If I find them, I'll share.

- Pip

Wraithlady · 12 July 2019 at 7:14PM

I'm also one of the jam-making brigade - usually damson jam and crabapple jelly. Not sure about the damsons this year, the tree has got the 'bent banana' disease quite badly so don't know if I will have enough to make jam (though we still have quite a lot of 2018 jam left, so we won't starve).

I made crabapple 'cheese' last year as an experiment - not as thick and paste-like as I wanted, but omg it's gorgeous with pork chops or goats cheese - will have to make more as my friends are dropping hints already.

CRANKY40 · 12 July 2019 at 7:25PM

Hello all,

I made apple and blackberry jam last year which we're just coming to the end of (half of it went to the person who gave me the blackberries). I 've made rhubarb and ginger jam so far which I shared with some people from work, one of whom gave me a jar of her gooseberry jam in return. My raspberries are just getting going as I only planted them last year due to a house move.

I'm hoping for more blackberries this year....also I have quince jelly and raspberry jam from mys son's school as the school has a farm and the students make the jam to sell at the school fair. It's worth paying the 50p entrance fee to be able to buy it as home made jam tastes so completely different from shop bought doesn't it?

paddy's_mum · 13 July 2019 at 6:32AM

Gem-gem wrote: »

Last year I was supplying six neighbours with...courgettes

I make Courgette Relish - and already have friends asking when I can let them have another jar.

Can't do those clever link thingies but Georgina Hartley's recipe is the one I use.

You know people's admiration is genuine when they offer to buy it from you.

Gem-gem · 13 July 2019 at 8:03PM

Thank you, but I only seem to like courgettes when they are small and fresh. My SIL made courgette relish and I didn't like it. My ended up giving it to my neighbour rather than throwing it. Away (I didn't want to waste it).

thriftwizard · 13 July 2019 at 8:08PM

5 jars of Strawberry & Raspberry jam made today; 2 punnets of strawbs & 1 of rasps for £2 at the local market! All very ripe, but not gone over. I did it low-sugar (35%) and light-set so that it can easily be stirred into yogurt or porridge, which also really brings out the flavour of the fruit. Needs to be kept in the fridge once opened, but it's a real blast of summery goodness.

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Jams,chutneys and the other preserves-anybody still doing it?

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