Golden Rules Of Making Jam

Food editor Taylor Ann Spencer shares 7 golden rules for making jam.

Transcript

00:00Here are my golden rules for making jam.

00:02Rule number one, decide if you want to cook it or not.

00:05There are actually two types of jam.

00:07Regular cooked jam, which we'll be talking more about today,

00:09and freezer jam, in which the fruit is barely cooked at all.

00:13Rule number two, let's talk about pectin.

00:16Pectin is a naturally occurring thickener in fruits.

00:19Berries, however, are low in pectin, so you'll need to get this, commercial pectin.

00:24Rule number three, find your ideal fruit to sugar ratio.

00:27Sugar is key to helping jam set.

00:30In general, the less sugar you use, the less set your jam will be.

00:34If you're using commercial pectin,

00:36most boxes will have a ratio of sugar to fruit on them that you need to follow.

00:41If you're not using commercial pectin, play around a little bit.

00:45Rule number four, add acid.

00:47A small amount of acid, usually lemon juice, is used to help the jam set.

00:52Rule number five, skim off the foam or leave it be.

00:56The foam is aerated, so it'll have a slightly different texture and taste, but it's still good.

01:02Rule number six, and this one's pretty important.

01:05Use the cold plate test to determine when your jam is finished cooking.

01:09Put a plate in the freezer while you're making your jam.

01:11When you're ready to test it, take the plate out,

01:14put a little spoonful of jam right on the plate, and then push it with your finger.

01:18If it wrinkles and moves across the plate as one blob,

01:22your jam is done, and you can take it off the heat.

01:24Rule number seven, can if you want, or freeze.

01:28If you're freezing your jam, just make sure you leave room at the top of the jar

01:32for the jam to expand as it freezes.

01:35Follow these golden rules, and you'll be able to keep summer going all year round.

01:39Video number five, okay, good job.

01:51Okay, gorgeous.