Strawberry Jam

I love making jams and confitures at home! When Strawberries are in season, I make a small patch of strawberry jam, everyone in my family enjoys on toasted bread or with plain butter biscuits.

I read and watched many recipes but did not try them. They were similar in concept and simplicity to my recipe. The only difference is that I do not use lemon juice and stick with only two ingredients, the sugar and the fruit. The acidity in lemon juice helps in “setting” the jam. Still, I have never found a problem in getting the right jam texture without lemon acidity, and that is probably because strawberries I pick to make jam are a bit underripe hence rich in ascorbic acid.

Ingredients:

1 kg slightly underripe strawberries
1 kg granulated sugar

Method:

Wash the strawberries, allow to dry then cut the stem.
Put the strawberries in a pan and gently toss through the sugar over low heat.
When the sugar is completely dissolved, turn up the heat a little bit and bring the mixture to boil.
Stir the mixture every now and then.
Using a spoon, skim any scum-like forming on the surface of the jam and discard it.
Transfer the strawberry from the pan to a bowl so you can cook the liquid without affecting the strawberry shape.
Resume boiling till the liquid gets the sugar syrup viscosity.
Repeat step 4 as needed. Usually, I remove the scum three times.
Return the strawberries to the pan and cook further till you get the wanted jam texture. I always aim to a “conserve” style more than super firm.
Turn the heat off, then leave the jam to settle and cool down.
When the jam cools, transfer to a clean and dry jam jar
Store at room temperature if you are consuming it within short period of time or in the fridge for a longer shelf life.