Top tips for jam making

We’re celebrating all things jam on the blog this week. It’s the perfect time to make up a batch, as strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are all ripe for the picking in the UK.

Our chefs have just finishing making strawberry jam for Stein’s Deli, they produced a staggering 5,000 jars and it’s all made to Rick’s secret tried and tested recipe (sorry this is one recipe we dare not share!).

So why do we love this kitchen staple so much? Maybe it’s because it’s so versatile. Use it to make delicious desserts, mix into cocktails, glaze ham with it or even make a savoury chilli jam to kick start your day.

We’d love to hear which fruits you’ve been experimenting with this summer so don’t forget to Tweet, Facebook or Instagram your pictures.

Our thee top tips for jam making:

1. Although you can make jam from practically any fruit, fruits like strawberries and raspberries are low in pectin (vital to make your jam set) which means they will need a help-in-hand, from mixing with pectin rich fruits like gooseberries or apples or use jam sugar.
2. Don’t try to make too much jam in one go. It will take along time to come to the boil and when it does, it won’t boil rapidly enough to produce a good set.
3. Under-cook rather than overcook – runny jam can be cooked up again.

One final thing, what is a scarecrow’s favourite fruit? Straw-berries! Sorry we just couldn’t help ourselves.