Sunday, August 02, 2009

Yellow plum jam


These little yellow plums grow like crazy in France during the summer. Perfect for foraging and jamming!

yellow plums
sugar with pectin added
jars and lids

Sterilizing jars: Wash jars and lids well. Place in a sink filled with cold water and 4 Tbsps bleach. Soak ten minutes, then air dry on a clean rack.

Making the jam



Cut a circular sliced around each plum, then place them in a large, heavy saucapen with high sides. Cook on med-high, stirring often, until the liquid cooks out of the fruit.



Let cool a few minutes, then pour the plums into a large colander sitting in a larger bowl. Using a wooden spoon, stirring in a circular motion, work the plums throught he colander - leaving just the peels, pits and fibers behind.



Pour the plum pulp back into the saucepan. Add 1/2 cup sugar with pectin for each 1 cup plum pulp. Over medium-high heat, stir the mixture until it begins to boil. Boil, stirring and scraping the bottom well, for seven minutes.

Pour jam into jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. If needed, wipe the rim with a clean towel. Twist the lid on, then turn the jar upside-down for five minutes to sterilize the lid. Flip the jars back over to cool completely. Once cooled, the lid should be tight and flat, which means it is properly sealed.



Store in refrigerator.

3 comments:

Sheila said...

Thank you for sharing! I got what I believe are yellow plums in yesterday's CSA (although mine are much larger), so I'm scouring for recipes. Can't wait to try this.

Unknown said...

Thanks for this idea for all the little plums on our tree. They taste pretty good fresh but we're all sick of eating them and there are still buckets left over (just from one tree!).

I have one problem with your recipe: I don't know where you are writing from, but I don't believe we have any commercial standard for "sugar with pectin added" where I live. We have sugar, of course, and we have various kinds of pectin, some sugar free, some with sugar, some for "no-cook" jams.

So, what is the ratio of sugar to pectin to make this plum jam?

Thanks, Eric

Senegal Daily said...

Hi Eric

I'm afraid I may not be much help on this one.

I live in France and we can buy 'Gelsuc' which is a sugar-pectin combo. It's also available in the US (and Hungary, I happen to know), but I'm not sure under which brand names.

I've read that plums have a lot of pectin and many recipes don't call for adding any - but I've never tested those myself.

Best of luck in your jam-making! If you're looking for plum ideas, my friend Kendra's cobbler is the best. (The recipe is on here.)