Strawberry Jam

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide, heavy 8-quart stainless-steel preserving pan
• •Digital sugar or candy thermometer
• •Large spider or slotted spoon
• •Heatproof bowl
• •Metal testing spoon
• •Canning funnel and jar lifter
• •Boiling-water canner or deep stockpot with rack
• •8 half-pint preserving jars with new two-piece lids

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare fruit and jars

   Prepare the hot jars, lids, and boiling-water canner according to The Cooking, Potting, and Sealing of Jams (No. 2955). Sort the strawberries ruthlessly: discard any berry showing mould, fermentation, or deep bruising rather than trying to trim it. Hull the sound fruit and leave it whole. If grit makes washing necessary, rinse the berries briefly before hulling and dry them thoroughly; excess water weakens the syrup.

   Choose small or medium berries of similar size. Very large fruit cooks unevenly, while overripe fruit collapses before the syrup reaches nappe.
2. 2

   Reach large ball

   Put the sugar and water into a wide, heavy 8-quart preserving pan. Warm gently, stirring only until every dry pocket of sugar dissolves. Once the syrup boils, stop stirring, skim any grey froth, and wash crystals from the pan wall with a pastry brush dipped in water. Cook according to The Cooking of Sugar (No. 2344) until the syrup reaches the large-ball stage, 248°F (120°C). Use a thermometer instead of putting fingers near boiling sugar. If crystals begin forming at the rim, lower the heat and cover the pan for two minutes so the trapped moisture washes them down. Ça se rattrape.

   The temperature climbs quickly once the syrup passes thread stage. Stay beside the pan and remove it from the heat the instant it reaches 248°F (120°C).
3. 3

   Loosen with berries

   Take the pan off the fierce heat. Slide in the strawberries carefully with a long spoon, keeping your hands and face away from any splash. Set the pan over the lowest burner for 7 to 8 minutes, moving the berries once or twice without crushing them. Their moisture will loosen the concentrated sugar into a flowing ruby syrup.

4. 4

   Boil fruit rapidly

   Return the pan to high heat and boil rapidly for 10 to 12 minutes. Skim the pale froth as it gathers and draw a heatproof spatula gently across the pan floor from time to time, especially near the end. The berries should darken slightly and become tender while remaining recognizably whole. A fierce boil preserves colour through speed, but a scorched pan cannot be rescued, so reduce the heat slightly if the syrup catches at the bottom.

5. 5

   Lift the berries

   Lift the strawberries into a heatproof bowl with a spider or large slotted spoon, letting their syrup drain back into the pan. Work gently and leave the accumulated juice in the bowl until the last berry is removed, then pour that juice into the pan. This pause protects the fruit while the syrup receives the concentration it still needs.

6. 6

   Reduce to nappe

   Boil the syrup alone, rapidly and uncovered. Test it often with a cool metal spoon: at nappe, the syrup gathers toward the spoon's lower edge and falls slowly in a broad sheet rather than scattering in quick drops. A thermometer may read around 222°F (106°C) at sea level, but the spoon gives the final judgment. If the syrup still runs like juice, keep boiling. If it ropes heavily and threatens to set hard, remove the pan, wait for the bubbling to subside, then stir in boiling water one tablespoon at a time until it sheets again. Ça se rattrape.

7. 7

   Reunite for five minutes

   Return the drained strawberries and any juice they have released to the syrup. Boil for exactly 5 minutes, folding the fruit through once or twice without mashing it. The finished confiture should hold whole berries in a clear, glossy garnet syrup that coats the spoon. Remove the pan immediately and skim the last froth.

8. 8

   Fill in stages

   Let the confiture stand off the heat for 5 minutes, then fill the hot jars little by little according to The Cooking, Potting, and Sealing of Jams (No. 2955). Divide one shallow ladleful among all the jars before beginning the next round; this distributes the berries through the syrup instead of letting them rise together at the top. Leave ¼ inch (6 mm) headspace, wipe the rims, apply the lids, and process in boiling water for 10 minutes, increasing the time for altitude according to current local preserving guidance. Cool undisturbed and check every seal before storage. Any jar that fails to seal goes into the refrigerator. À table!

Chef Tips

• •This confiture truly needs fresh, just-ripe berries. Frozen strawberries release too much liquid and lose the whole-fruit structure the method is designed to preserve; use them for a different jam.
• •Do not double the batch. A deeper mass evaporates slowly, leaving the fruit overcooked before the syrup reaches nappe. Two separate batches are quicker than one enormous, disappointing pan.
• •Expect a supple whole-fruit preserve, not a stiff commercial gel. No pectin is added, and none belongs here; the large-ball syrup and the final nappe provide the body.
• •Calibrate the thermometer in boiling water before beginning and account for your altitude. Sugar moves through its final stages quickly, so the spoon test and the thermometer should support each other.
• •Once opened, keep the confiture refrigerated and use it within a month. Discard any jar with a bulging lid, leakage, an unnatural odour, or visible growth. Never taste a suspect preserve.

Advance Preparation

• •Wash the jars and assemble the canning equipment before cooking the sugar. Once the syrup approaches large ball, the recipe requires uninterrupted attention.
• •Leave the processed jars undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours before checking the seals. The syrup thickens further as it rests, so do not judge the final consistency while it is warm.
• •Properly sealed jars can be kept in a cool, dark, dry cupboard for up to a year. Label the batch and refrigerate after opening.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 20g)