Strawberries make delicious jam, a famous and wonderfully delicious jam, but the challenge
with making jam from strawberries is that the jam can be difficult to set. Combining
with redcurrants not only adds to the flavour, but solves the setting problem, as redcurrants
naturally contain plenty of pectin that helps the jam to set.
Strawberry and redcurrant jam is made from only three ingredients. The fruit, and in
this recipe I opted for rich and dark soft brown sugar. Well, four ingredients if you
include the water. The proportions of the ingredients are important, but you can scale
the recipe up and down according to how much fruit you have.
I love growing strawberries. They are a hardy plant, the hardest part is keeping the birds
away from them when they start to ripen. I think homegrown strawberries have more flavour,
but if you are buying from the shops, choose strawberries that are not too ripe, as overripe
strawberries don’t set so well.
Redcurrants make an ideal combination with strawberries, as both mature to harvest at
mid year. Redcurrants have a sweet and tart flavour that I love, and they are yummy eaten
straight from the bush. Not many are needed for this recipe, just enough to help the jam
to set.
To prepare the redcurrants I soak them for a few minutes in cold water, before rinsing
through. The thing with redcurrants, that can be annoying to some people, is that they
contain seeds. To get round this, the redcurrants are cooked to extract their juice, and the
first step is removing the redcurrants from their stalks. Switch on the radio to relax
as this can take a little time.
Strawberries are much quicker to prepare. Give them a good wash, before chopping into
thin slices. Discard any old or bruised parts of the strawberries.
Hello! I’m Liam, and this is a short introduction to say this is a recipe from the home coffee
shop collection. You can see the full ingredients and all my other recipes on my website - see
the link below the video.
The recipes are ideal for anyone looking to find enjoyable ways to eat more nutritious
food, whether for yourself or your family.
Step 1 is extracting the juice from the redcurrants. Put the redcurrants in a large pan and pour
in the measured quantity of water. The water is not discarded later. Bring the pan to the
boil over a high heat, stirring to prevent any currants sticking to the base.
After boiling, reduce to a gentle simmer for about 5 minutes, which will result in the
redcurrants softening and the juice bursting through the skin.
Remove the juice and use a sieve to strain into a large jug. There will be plenty of
juice remaining in the pulp, so give this a firm press using the back of a wooden spoon
to force the liquid through the sieve. You will be left with quite a sizeable collection
of seeds in the sieve, which is much better there than in the final jam!
Step 2 is making the jam. Add the redcurrant juice to the pan, followed by the strawberries,
and finally the soft brown sugar. Put the pan over a high heat and stir vigorously to
stop anything sticking, and to help to dissolve the sugar.
The strawberries soften and melt creating a thick syrup like consistency. Turn the heat
down and simmer for 10 minutes. The actual cooking time is difficult to judge, as it
varies according to the ripeness of the fruit. However, the redcurrants in this recipe will
make the jam set much more easily than plain strawberry jam.
To tell if the jam is ready, pour a few drops of the jam onto a cold plate. Wait a few moments,
and then use a spoon to see if the jam has developed a skin. If it has, the jam is ready.
If not, cook for a minute or two more and try again.
You may find a brown froth on top of the cooked jam. This is quick to remove by a spoon.
Jam jars and lids should be sterilised. I bake my jam jars for 20 minutes in an oven
set to 120 °C, and boil the lids in water for 5 minutes or so.
Whilst everything is still piping hot, pour the jam into the jam jars leaving an air gap
of 1.5 cm at the top which helps to form an air tight seal. Wipe away any spills, before
immediately closing the jars with a lid, being careful not to burn your hands.
There's little better than enjoying the jam with homemade bread. Strawberry and redcurrant
jam is a delicious way of preserving summer fruit to eat all year round.
Enjoy.
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