Jams

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide 8-quart / 7.5-litre heavy stainless-steel preserving pan
• •Digital kitchen scale
• •Digital candy or preserving thermometer
• •Two small saucers for testing the set
• •Eight half-pint / 240 ml canning jars with lids and bands
• •Deep boiling-water canner or stockpot fitted with a rack
• •Jar lifter and wide-mouth canning funnel
• •Clean pastry brush

Instructions

1. 1

   Weigh the fruit

   Use one kind of fruit for each batch so its pectin, acidity, and cooking time remain predictable. Trim it before weighing: top and tail gooseberries, strip blackcurrants from their stems, or pit tart plums and cut them into small even pieces. Lightly crush thick-skinned berries to release a little juice, but leave enough fruit intact to give the confiture character. Weigh the prepared fruit accurately, then measure an equal weight of sugar. The scale governs this recipe; the cup measure is only a convenience.

2. 2

   Prepare jars and tests

   Wash eight half-pint or 240 ml canning jars, lids, and bands. Keep the jars hot in barely simmering water while you cook, and prepare the lids as their maker directs. Set two small saucers in the freezer for testing the set, then bring a deep canning pot fitted with a rack to a covered simmer. This arrangement replaces the preserving room and its extra hands: everything is ready before the fruit reaches its narrow finishing window.

3. 3

   Dissolve the sugar

   Combine the fruit and sugar in a wide, heavy stainless-steel pan with at least an 8-quart or 7.5-litre capacity. Leave them together for 30 minutes, until the sugar looks damp and the fruit begins giving up its juice. Warm over low heat, stirring gently, until the syrup is completely clear and no grit remains beneath the spoon. Do not begin the hard boil while crystals remain. If sugar collects on the pan wall, brush it down with a clean damp pastry brush; neglected crystals can seed the whole batch later.

4. 4

   Boil to the set

   Raise the heat and bring the confiture to a broad, rolling boil that does not disappear when stirred. Cook briskly, stirring across the pan floor often enough to prevent catching but without beating air into the fruit. Begin testing after 10 minutes. The thermometer will usually read 219 to 221°F (104 to 105°C) near sea level, but the cold-saucer test has the final word: place a teaspoon on a frozen saucer, wait 30 seconds, then push it with one finger. It is ready when the surface wrinkles softly and the track does not immediately flood closed. If it runs, boil for 2 minutes and test again. If it has become stiff or ropes from the spoon, take the pan off the heat and stir in boiling water 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 15 g) at a time, then return it briefly to a full boil and test again. Ça se rattrape.

5. 5

   Settle and skim

   Remove the pan from the heat as soon as the set is right. Let the confiture stand for 2 minutes so the boil subsides and the fruit distributes itself through the syrup, then skim away any persistent foam with a shallow spoon. Do not keep cooking merely to chase every bubble; the extra evaporation costs more flavour than a little harmless foam ever could. If the pan has caught on the bottom, do not scrape it. Ladle the unburnt confiture into a clean pan and taste it before continuing.

6. 6

   Fill the jars

   Lift one hot jar at a time from the water and fill it through a wide funnel, leaving 1/4 inch (6 mm) headspace. Slide a clean non-metallic utensil around the inside to release trapped bubbles, adjust the level if necessary, and wipe the rim scrupulously clean. Centre the lid and tighten the band only to fingertip firmness. Work steadily while the confiture remains fluid, but keep the other jars hot until their turn.

7. 7

   Process and cool

   Lower the filled jars upright onto the rack in the boiling-water canner, making certain the water covers them by at least 1 inch (2.5 cm). Cover, return the water to a full boil, and process for 10 minutes, adjusting the time according to locally approved guidance if you are above 1,000 feet (305 metres). Lift the jars out without tilting and leave them untouched for 12 to 24 hours. Check every seal before removing the bands; refrigerate any jar that failed to seal. The confiture finishes settling as it rests, so give it a full day before judging its final texture.

   Never taste a jar with a bulging lid, leakage, mould, fizzing, or a fermented smell. That is spoilage, not a loose set, and it must be discarded rather than rescued.

Chef Tips

• •This equal-weight formula is for genuinely tart fruit with useful natural pectin, especially gooseberries, blackcurrants, and tart plums. A very sweet, low-pectin fruit needs its own tested proportion; simply cutting the sugar here changes the set, cooking time, and keeping quality together.
• •Use plain white granulated sugar. Its clean flavour lets the fruit speak, and its predictable concentration makes the set easier to judge. Sugar is structure and preservation here, not decoration.
• •A copper bassine conducts heat beautifully, but it is not required. A wide stainless-steel pan gives rapid evaporation without risking a reaction between acidic fruit and bare copper before the sugar dissolves. Wide matters more than grand.
• •The thermometer tells you when to begin paying close attention. The frozen saucer tells you when to stop. At altitude, water boils at a lower temperature, so a rigid temperature target can push the fruit too far.
• •If the cooled confiture remains loose but the jars are sound, open them within 24 hours, return the contents to a clean pan, and boil briefly until the saucer test holds. Refill clean hot jars and process them again. Never apologize at your own table. A soft confiture is also splendid spooned over fromage blanc.

Advance Preparation

• •The fruit and sugar may be combined, covered, and refrigerated for 2 to 8 hours before cooking. The longer rest draws out more juice, helping the sugar dissolve without adding water.
• •Wash and inspect the jars earlier in the day, but heat them shortly before filling so hot confiture never meets cold glass.
• •Properly sealed jars keep their best colour and flavour for about 1 year in a cool, dark cupboard. Refrigerate after opening and use within 1 month.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 295g)