Are you curious to learn more to make strawberry jam? Let us take a look at a typical strawberry jam recipe in order to fully appreciate the jam making process. You will be pleasantly surprised to know that the process is actually quite simple if you follow a handful of clear steps.
Initial Preparatory Steps When Making Jam
For this recipe, we will be using one pound of strawberries. After cleaning the fruit, slice them up into quarters and remove any stems that might still remain. Then, add in approximately two cups of sugar (brown or white depending upon your preferences). It is very important that this mixture is thoroughly blended. Most experts recommend using a standard potato masher until a uniform consistency has been reached. The main intention of mixing the two ingredients is to ensure that all of the juices contained within the berries are released.
Cooking the Jam
The main portion of any strawberry jam recipe involves the boiling process. Place the mixture atop a low flame and all it to boil for approximately 20 minutes. Knowing how to make strawberry jam also involves appreciating when the mixture should be cooled down. The size of the bubbles will normally provide a solid indicator. When the jam first begins to boil, the resulting bubbles will be quite large. As the mixture homogenises, their circumference shrinks. This generally signals that the process is nearly complete.
When is the Jam Making Process Finished?
Let us assume that you have boiled the strawberry-sugar mixture for 20 minutes. If you believe that it is complete, remove the pot from the burner. Place a sample of the jam on a clean spoon. Run the tip of your finger through the coating on the spoon. If a clear path is created and if the jam does not fill in the gap that was just created, the jam should be finished.
How to Make Strawberry Jam: Bottling and Storage
Most of those who are interested in making jam will wish to store it for later consumption. This is why utilising a quality jam jar is important. Not only will the jar ensure that the flavour of the jam is intact, but it can also help to prevent the sugar from fermenting when stored for longer periods of time due to an airtight seal.
Keep in mind that this strawberry jam recipe does not include pectin (a natural type of thickener). If you wish to enjoy a thicker and more robust jam, you will need to add pectin into the mixture before it is brought to a boil. Either way, there is no doubt that you will love the end results.
Feel free to refer back to this strawberry jam recipe for further inspiration or guidance. In fact, similar fruits such as blackberries and cherries can be used as substitutes if desired. It is now clear to see that creating jam from scratch is actually very straightforward.
About the author : Rob James
