How and in what to cook jam so that it does not burn? Tips for making jam. Utensils for making jam

Jam is 70% sugar and only 30% water, - says Professor of the Research Institute of Nutrition and MMA. Sechenov Boris Sukhanov. - In terms of calories, it is not inferior to chocolate desserts. Vitamins in it remain no more than 10-30%. Heat treatment destroys vitamin C by 80%. The finished jam contains 2-3 times less carotenoids and B vitamins and 4-5 times less nicotinic acid than the original product.

How to save nutrients

• Make a five-minute jam or cold jam.
• Five-minute jam preserves vitamins by 70%, cold jam - by 95%.
• Cook in several steps.
• Hold the jam on the fire after boiling for 3-5 minutes, then cool (6-8 hours). Repeat the procedure 3-4 times.
• Send the right fruits for processing.
  
  Best of all, when cooking, vitamins are preserved in currants (red and black) and sea buckthorn.

sweet medicine

Raspberries- has anti-inflammatory and antipyretic action.

Dogwood- treats colds, indigestion, urolithiasis.

Nut- improves heart function, normalizes blood circulation, recommended for thyroid diseases. It is used to prevent atherosclerosis.

Black currant- helps with beriberi, diseases of the heart and blood vessels, laryngitis, bronchitis. Improves hematopoiesis, relieves putrefactive and fermentative processes in the intestines.

Cranberry- due to the high content of tannin, it absorbs pathogenic bacteria in the body and brings them out.

Barberry- multivitamin, antipyretic and anti-inflammatory agent.

Sea ​​buckthorn- natural biostimulant, improves digestion, reduces liver dystrophy in hepatitis, lowers cholesterol.

Which is better - homemade or store-bought?

Homemade, - convinced the candidate of medical sciences, nutritionist Irina Gushchina. - When preparing jam on an industrial scale, preservatives, artificial pectins and flavors are necessarily used.

Do you take out the bones?

It is desirable, - Irina Gushchina believes. - The seeds of some fruits and berries contain hydrocyanic acid - a dangerous poison, which eventually begins to penetrate into the jam. True, in order to get serious poisoning, you need to eat at least a three-liter jar of expired jam with seeds.

Is it possible to cook from spoiled fruits?

No, - says Elena Tereshina. - Frotten fruits contain mycotoxins that are not destroyed by heating. These microorganisms accumulate in the body and over time can provoke serious diseases, including cancer.

What is the best pot to cook in?

In a wide, with low edges - moisture evaporates faster in it, the cooking process is reduced, which means that vitamins are better preserved, - says Elena Tereshina, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Head of the Laboratory of the Research Institute of Gerontology of Roszdrav. - For making jam, bowls or pans with a capacity of 2 to 6 liters made of non-oxidizing metals - enameled or stainless steel are best suited. But it is better not to use copper basins. Copper ions destroy ascorbic acid. Aluminum dishes are also not suitable: fruit acids destroy the oxide film on the surface of aluminum.

Why does it deteriorate

Jam can be stored up to 3 years, - says Elena Tereshina. - If it deteriorated during the first winter, then the rules for its preparation or storage were violated.

• Poor quality raw materials
  
  Jam made from spoiled berries is stored for no more than a month.
• Non-compliance with the recipe
  
  A low sugar content in jam (less than 65%) can cause sourness, mold and fermentation, and an excess can cause sugaring.
• Incorrect handling of dishes
  
  Jars for jam need to be sterilized - calcined in the oven or poured over with boiling water.
• Incorrect storage conditions
  
  Only classic and syrupy jam can be stored at room temperature. Cold jam and five-minute jam should be stored in the refrigerator.

By the way

According to the Public Opinion Foundation, 73% of Russians make homemade jam.

Recipes

1. Classic recipe

How to cook: processed berries or fruits are placed in a bowl, covered with sugar (usually in a ratio of 1:1) and put on fire. Stirring occasionally, bring to a boil and cook over low heat until tender, until a drop of syrup applied to a saucer spreads. The "correct" jam retains the color of fresh fruits. If the finished jam has a brownish tint, it is overcooked.

Pros:

Can be stored at room temperature.

Minuses:

The most detrimental method of preparation for vitamins.

2. Berries in syrup

How to cook: first make syrup: pour the right amount of granulated sugar into a saucepan or basin, pour water (from ½ to 2 glasses of water per 1.5 kg of sugar) and put on fire. Stirring, bring to a boil, strain. Then berries or fruits are put into the syrup and boiled until tender.

Pros:

Well kept.

Minuses:

laborious way

With any deviation from the recipe, the jam loses its presentation

Candied quickly.

3. Five-minute jam

How to cook: the berries are covered with sand or poured with syrup, brought to a boil, kept on fire for 5 minutes. The finished jam is rolled up with lids.

Pros:

Preserves vitamins, original taste and color of fruits

Low-calorie: less sugar is taken - 500-700 g per 1 kg of berries.

Minuses:

Stored in the refrigerator

Laborious preparation.

4. Cold jam, or pureed jam

How to cook: sugar (1.5 kg of sand per 1 kg of berries) is poured into a bowl with berries and ground with a wooden pestle until smooth. A layer of sugar 1 cm thick is poured into jars on top of the jam.

Pros:

Retains all vitamins and minerals.

Minuses

The most popular fruits used to make jam

2. Blackcurrant

3. Strawberry

According to companies - producers of jam.

Jam in Ancient Rus' was called sweets made by boiling berries, fruits, nuts, some vegetables (carrots, pumpkins, zucchini, green tomatoes, turnips) and flowers (rose petals, rose hips, dandelion flowers, etc.) in a sweet environment (honey , molasses, sugar syrup). Abroad, the term "preserve" refers only to Russian national methods of candling. In France, jams are prepared, in England, fruits and berries are processed into jams, in the Middle East - into delicious figs, in Ukraine jams have always been prepared, and in Central Asia such delicacies are called "kiem". However, whole books can be written about jam. In this article you will find detailed information on cooking delicious homemade jam just like our ancestors always did.

What are the features of Russian jam? And how does it stand out among the whole variety of sweet homemade preparations. The syrup of Russian jam should be thick, certainly transparent, the color of fruits and berries does not change during cooking. The berries are evenly distributed over the syrup - they should not sink to the bottom, not float. Unfortunately, not everyone manages to get such high-quality jam at home. Many housewives do not know anything about the rules making jam, or combine different cooking techniques for this sweet dish - they get something like a "hybrid" of jam and jam or jam and compote, etc. This leads to a product with the wrong consistency, bad taste, a product that is easily spoiled - souring jam, candied, rancidity or mold.

Making jam at home:

At the first stage raw materials are being prepared. The correct jam is always prepared from a whole uncrushed berry or fruit (fruit), and in the case of chopping, cutting is carried out in large slices (or halves) - this distinguishes Russian jam from jams, marmalade, marmalade, etc. Berries or fruits for jam are best taken not full maturity. Overripe fruits are very easy to boil. Too unripe - will not give a bright taste and aroma. The fruits should be almost the same size and similar ripeness.

For most berries and fruits, in addition to simple cleaning of dirt, greens and cuttings, careful pre-treatment is required: they are washed in several cold waters, blanched, pricked, and pitted. All these operations are carried out to preserve the shape of the berry or fruit, its color, to prevent overcooking, better impregnation with sugar syrup and to minimize the formation of foam during cooking.

How and how much to cook jam

Next stage making homemade jam - cooking itself. Jam must be boiled first on high heat, and then on low heat, with the obligatory removal of foam. Why is it so important to remove foam? Foam is formed as a result of the folding of proteins. Due to its properties, the foam easily absorbs all contaminants, which is why it needs to be removed from the jam - we want it to be stored for a long time. You don't need to stir the jam! only slight shaking of the basin or pan is allowed just before the end of cooking.

To make jam properly, it is necessary to remember the importance of balancing the processes of penetration of the syrup into the berry and the release of berry juice into the syrup. Jam should not be overheated, as in this case the juice inside the fruit will boil, and the penetration of sugar syrup into the fruit will become impossible. This can lead to an incorrect jam consistency - the fruits are not soaked in syrup and float, and are not distributed over the syrup, as we would like for our homemade jam. If the juice from the fruits comes out too quickly, they do not have time to soak in the syrup and are deformed and wrinkled. It is in order to avoid imbalance in the mutual diffusion of fruit juice and sugar syrup that fruits are sometimes blanched, chopped, peeled, multi-stage cooking is used, which means heating the jam for 10-15 minutes, then cooling for 2-3 hours and subsequent cooking. The recommended total cooking time should be no more than 30 minutes.

Overcooked jam darkens, loses its taste, and, in fact, it is during cooking jam so they strive to preserve the taste and aroma of the raw materials. To reduce the cooking time, sometimes the fruits are not boiled at all - they are simply poured with hot sugar syrup. If the fruits are well saturated with syrup, there is no particular need for repeated boiling - they are boiled in one go, no more than 40 minutes. In some recipes, the berries are pre-aged in sugar for up to 8 hours. To make jam, an enameled basin with low walls is used. It is not recommended to process more than 2 kg of fruits or berries at a time.

In the season of ripening berries and fruits, many housewives begin to engage in conservation. However, not every woman knows in which dishes it is better to cook jam. After reading this article, you will learn a lot of interesting things on this issue.

Saucepan or basin?

For many young housewives who first decide to do homework, the question often arises: "In which dishes is it better to cook jam?". As a rule, pans or basins are used for these purposes. Each of these options has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, the pan is more convenient to use. In addition, it takes up much less space on the hob or work surface.

The advantage of the pelvis lies in its maximum open surface, which provides better evaporation of excess liquid. Thanks to this feature, the jam cooked in it will be thicker. Moreover, the berries or fruits themselves will remain intact.

Preferred container sizes

For those who do not know in which dish it is better to cook jam, it will certainly be interesting that it is advisable to do this in a shallow bowl with a flat wide bottom. Moreover, its volume can vary from two to six liters. It is not recommended to cook jam in bulky basins, since many types of berries, including raspberries and strawberries, can wrinkle under their own weight. As a result, you will get an unaesthetic boiled mass.

In addition, too large a container will heat up for a long time, as a result of which there will be an increase in cooking time and a deterioration in the quality of the final product. Since many varieties of jam require repeated boiling, the pan used for this purpose must have a lid. It will provide additional protection against dust and insects.

Materials used for the manufacture of such pans

In modern stores, a fairly wide range of different containers is presented. Therefore, those who do not know in which dishes it is better to purchase not quite what they need by mistake. To avoid such troubles, you should first familiarize yourself with the features of a particular material.

Many fruits and berries contain a large amount of organic acids, which serve as a catalyst for corrosion processes. Therefore, special requirements are imposed on the containers used for their preparation. For those who do not know in which dishes it is better to cook berry jam, we can recommend buying a hygienic enameled one or True, the first option has a relatively short service life. Noticing that even a small crack appeared on the surface of the enamel, it is advisable to get rid of such a container.

It is considered the most suitable material. Basins made from it can be recommended to everyone who cannot decide in which dishes it is better to cook. Such containers are resistant to acids contained in almost all berries and fruits.

What basins and pans are unsuitable for making jam?

Copper containers, which have long been considered the best utensils for homemade preparations, are not entirely suitable for these purposes. As mentioned above, fruits contain an increased concentration of acids. Recent studies have shown that they are able to dissolve the patina that forms on the surface of the pots. Therefore, those who have not yet decided in which dishes it is better to cook jam should not do it in copper basins.

Aluminum containers are categorically unsuitable for these purposes. Fruit acid contributes to the destruction of the oxide film formed on the walls of the vessel. As a result of a complex chemical process, aluminum molecules are released, which subsequently enter the finished product.

At the end of the preparation of fruit or berry jam, it is necessary to thoroughly wash the pan, pour over it with hot water and dry it thoroughly. If you plan to prepare several batches of a product from one type of raw material during the day, then washing the dishes is not necessary.

The enameled container must not be cleaned using aggressive chemicals. Pour soda into it, pour water and boil. After that, it is removed from the stove and left until the morning.

Stainless steel pots are scratch resistant. Therefore, powdered products can be used to wash them. For example, they are perfectly cleaned with ordinary salt. It is poured into a soiled bowl, poured with water, boiled and left for several hours. Then the contaminated areas are treated with a metal brush or hard washcloth.

You can remove the remnants of burnt jam with the help of the husk. To do this, in the dishes you need to boil a whole unpeeled onion. The unpleasant smell that appears during this procedure disappears very quickly.

To keep the maximum benefit, the jam is boiled in 2-3 doses for a minute of cooking, leaving between cooking to cool completely. This is a vitamin-sparing method of cooking, although it can be cooked in 1 step - as a rule, from 10 minutes to the moment until it is quite dense. If a drop of boiled jam syrup does not spread in a spoon, but retains its shape, the jam is cooked.

How to make jam

General principle
Berries or fruits are peeled, washed and cut as you like, and then boiled with sugar. Sugar is a strong preservative, so any jam is stored for a long time, and if you follow the rules of hygiene, then the jam will stand all winter.

1. The proportions of fruits and sugar when making jam.
As a rule, 1 kilogram of sugar is taken for 1 kilogram of berries.

2. How to cook jam?
Jam is boiled in brass or steel utensils - ideally wide enough basins so that the lower layers of the fruit do not soften under the weight of the upper ones.

3. Storage of jam.
Jam must be poured into prepared jars: washed in hot water with the addition of soda and heated to complete dryness in the oven (at a temperature of 60 degrees for 10 minutes). Store jam at a temperature of 5-25 degrees in a dark place, at least occasionally ventilated.

4. On what fire to cook jam?
Jam must be boiled over low heat so that it does not burn and all useful substances are not boiled out.

5. When is the jam ready?
Jam is cooked when a drop of syrup becomes very tight.

6. Do you skim the foam from the jam?
Skim the foam when cooking jam.

7. What should I do if the jam does not thicken?
It is recommended to bring the jam to a boil again. Or add a little gelling component. You can use lemon juice - it will release the natural gelatin it contains. Another option is to use dry powder.

8. How to cook jam without cooking? :)
For one jar of fruits, take 1 jar of sugar (or for 1 kilogram of fruits - 2 kilograms of sugar), grind with a mixer. Store the ground mass in the refrigerator.

9. How to organize the storage of jam?
To store jam, you can print labels with the name of the blanks and the date. Or just write on the bank with a marker.

Utensils for cooking jam

Jam is boiled in saucepan or bowl. The basin is good because the large open surface provides enhanced evaporation of the liquid - the jam will be thick, but the fruits or berries will not be digested. The saucepan is more convenient to use, it takes up less space on the stove or on the table between the stages of cooking jam.

Can be used:
Enamelware - it is suitable for cooking jam. But it is worth considering that even a small chip of enamel makes it impossible to use a basin or pan.

Stainless steel utensils are suitable for cooking jam, but sometimes the finished product acquires a "metallic" aftertaste.

Can not use:
Copper basins, although they are traditionally considered the best utensils for making jam. Modern research convinces the opposite - copper is not suitable for making jam. Fruits and berries contain an acid that can dissolve copper oxides that appear in the form of a patina (dark coating) on ​​the surface of dishes. Even if the basin is torn off to a shine, it is still not worth using it for cooking - copper ions destroy ascorbic acid, depriving the jam of even the minimum amount of vitamin C.

aluminum utensils categorically can not be used for cooking jam. Fruit acid destroys the oxide film on the walls of the pan or basin and aluminum molecules enter the product.

It is better to pour jam into jars with a small ladle, because. the necks of the jars are usually narrow - there is a risk of spilling the jam.

About sugar in jam

- Sugar when cooking jam acts as a sweetener, thickener and preservative. When cooking jam, sugar is divided into fructose and glucose, which contributes to its rapid absorption by the body.

When cooking jam, sugar obtained from sugar varieties of beets and cane is most often used. Exotic types of sugar: maple, palm, sorghum are rare in Russia and are not used for making jam, as well as brown unrefined raw cane sugar.

If you reduce the rate of sugar bookmarking, the jam will be less high-calorie. But there is a risk at the exit to get the consistency of compote, not jam. Sugar can be replaced with food additives based on pectin. These are jams that improve the consistency of Confiturka, Kvittin, Zhelfix and the like.

Methods for making jam

1 way to cook jam - classic

1. Pour sugar into the dishes.
2. Pour sugar with cold water.
3. Put the dishes on the fire.
4. Stir the sugar until completely dissolved.
5. Bring the syrup to a boil.
6. Boil the syrup for 2 minutes and turn off the heat.
7. Add berries.
8. Cool the jam for 5 hours.
9. Put on fire, bring to a boil again and cook for 10 minutes, stirring gently and removing the foam.
10. Cool again.
11. Bring to a boil for the last time and cook for 3 minutes.
12. Cool and pour jam into jars.

2 way jam cooking - fast

1. Wash and dry the fruits.
2. Put the fruits in a bowl.
3. Pour in sugar and stir.
4. Leave for 5 hours.
5. Put the basin on the fire.
6. Bring to a boil, stirring regularly.
7. Cook for 5 minutes.

Jars for jam

Glass jars are used to store jam. They close the cans with tin lids using a seaming machine or twist the "twist" lids - they come in different diameters, you need to choose the right size jars for the neck.
The finished jam is laid out in clean, dry jars. If the product is packaged in a jar where drops of water remain, then the jam will not be stored - it will become moldy or ferment. Banks are washed with hot water and soda. It is necessary to rinse the jar inside and out with water, pour a teaspoon of soda on the sponge and carefully wipe first the inner and then the outer surfaces of the jars. Then rinse the jar thoroughly with water. The fact that the jar is well washed is indicated by a characteristic creak when you run your finger over its surface. Do not use household chemicals (dishwashing detergents). These products have a strong odor that lingers on the dishes and can ruin the aroma of the jam itself. Wash the lids thoroughly with baking soda.
Clean jars in which jam is planned to be stored must be sterilized. For this:
1. Pour water into the pan, install a special holder for cans and put on medium heat.
2. When the water boils, place the jar on the holder with the bottom up (the neck enters the hole in the holder). Steam the jar for 5 minutes.
3. Remove the jar from the holder (using a towel or potholders) and place the neck down on a clean towel. After five minutes, put the jar on its side - so the wet steam will come out, and the hot walls of the jar will dry the inner surface. After 5 minutes, a clean, dry jar can be used for its intended purpose.
4. The lids also need to be sterilized: place in a pot of boiling water and boil for 5 minutes. Remove (pry with a fork) and lay to dry on a clean towel.
More ways to sterilize jars:
- Pour 5-5 centimeters of water into a wide saucepan, install a microwave grate and put the jars upside down. When the water boils, the steam will sterilize the jars. So it is necessary to sterilize them for 15 minutes.
- strengthen the jar on the spout of a boiling kettle;
- pour boiling water over the jar and let stand for 10 minutes under the lid;
- in the microwave: pour a little (about 1 centimeter from the bottom) water into the jar. Put in the microwave, power 700 W, processing time 2 minutes;
- in the oven: put wet jars on a baking sheet. Turn on the oven. The heating temperature is not more than 130 degrees, the processing time is about 5 minutes (until the cans dry inside and out);
- in a slow cooker: pour 2 cups of water into the bowl of the appliance, place the jars in the steaming grid. "Baking" or "Steaming" modes. Processing time 5 minutes after boiling water. This method is good for small jars.
Attention! In case of overheating or temperature difference (for example, cold water gets into a hot jar), the jar may burst. Be careful!

fruit jams

Berry jam

Other jams

All about making jam

What do we cook?

• blanks
  • Jam

Summer is the time to stock up on fragrant northern berries so that in case of a cold or a bad mood, put a jar of raspberry jam or lingonberry jam on the table. We figured out how to cook jam so that it turns out delicious. At the end of the text - three simple recipes.

How to choose dishes for cooking jam?

It is advisable to choose a copper pan or basin. Copper is ideal for making jam because it distributes heat evenly. But if there is no such pan, then any with a thick bottom will do. It is better to choose something large in volume so that the berries do not run away during the cooking process. You may also need a wooden spoon for stirring and jars into which you will pour the jam.

How to store jam?

It is best to store jam in small glass jars with a screw-on lid (the lids must be new each time). 250 grams is the ideal size, the jam will last for a week or two and it will not have time to deteriorate.

To prevent jam from turning into wine, be sure to sterilize jars and lids. It will take you 30 minutes, but you will be sure that nothing will go bad. The procedure is actually not very complicated, especially if you have a dishwasher. Put the jars with lids in the dishwasher on the highest temperature cycle, but without detergent. Or put still wet jars and lids in a preheated oven for 15 minutes. If you prefer traditional methods, then boil the jars and lids in a large saucepan. Remove sterilized jars and lids with tongs and dry on a clean towel.

How to choose berries and sugar for jam?

Very often I go to jam overripe berries and fruits, but this is not the right choice. Strong berries contain the most pectin, a natural thickener. If you want the jam to be thicker, then choose just such berries and fruits. Least of all pectin in strawberries and peaches, most of all - in currants, apples and plums.

Sugar is the main preservative for jam, and you can choose absolutely any sand. Traditional recipes call for taking a kilogram of sugar per kilogram of refined product, and then as you like. For example, in a recipe for raspberry jam, this is how it should be done, but in blueberry jam, it is better to add a kilogram of sugar to two kilograms of berries. At the very end of cooking, you can add one or two tablespoons of lemon juice to activate the pectin and preserve the taste of fruits and berries.

How to make jam: basic steps

Jam, jam, jam, marmalade, jelly - all these are different ways of preserving fruits and berries, vegetables, nuts and even flowers. When simmering jam, the ingredients tend to hold their shape; jam or confiture - boil soft. Marmalade is a jam made from citrus fruits, most commonly oranges. Jam - mashed potatoes boiled with sugar. There is also raw jam - in it the ingredients are ground with sugar. And also jelly - for example, from red currant berries.

Once you have decided what you want (jam or jam), start cooking:

• For jam, it is better to first boil the sugar syrup in a ratio of one to one, and for jam, pour the feedstock with sugar for 20 minutes, and even better overnight (it will be faster).
• After boiling, you need to cook the resulting substance for 40-50 minutes over high heat, so that the water evaporates faster and the pectin starts working.
• At the end of cooking, do not forget to remove the foam - someone does this all the time, but in general it is enough once, at the end of cooking. The foam must be removed so that the jam remains transparent.
• Pour the hot jam or jam into the jars without adding one centimeter to the top of the jar. Tighten the lids, but not completely, so that the jars do not burst.

How to cook jam? Three recipes for Karelia

Raspberry jam

Sort the raspberries and pour them into glasses in a basin, sprinkling with sugar. To one glass of berries - one glass of sugar. After that, leave the berries for 2-3 hours. Then put on a slow fire for 40 minutes, until the juice from the berries soaks all the sugar. Increase the heat to medium, bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until all the sugar has dissolved. Don't forget to stir and skim. Jam is considered ready when the foam ceases to stand out.

Red currant jelly

For this recipe, you will need a juicer or some patience. Red currant berries must be thoroughly washed, sorted and squeezed out of them juice. The easiest way to do this is with a juicer, but if it is not there, then you can grind it with a sieve or crush it in gauze. We still have juice and "cake" from the berries (by the way, it can be used for compote). Add sugar to the currant juice in proportions of 1: 1 and cook for about 15-20 minutes. Do not forget to constantly stir and remove the foam.

Gooseberry and orange jam

Rinse thoroughly and sort through all the berries, it is advisable to cut the “tails” of the gooseberries. You will need about 900 grams of gooseberries, 1.2 kg of sugar and two oranges. Remove the pits from the orange, twist together with the zest and gooseberries in a blender or pass through a meat grinder. Then stir this mass with sugar, put on fire, boil for 7-10 minutes. Leave the jam for 5-6 hours in a cool place, and then boil again for 7-10 minutes. After that, you can pour the jam into jars.