Saturday, June 11, 2011

52 Week Food Storage - Week #23

Week # 23: 10 lbs or 20 Cups of Jams or Fruit Preserves




Fruit Preserves
Fruit preserves refers to fruits or vegetables that have been prepared and canned for long term storage. The preparation of fruit preserves traditionally involves the use of pectin as a gelling agent, although sugar or honey may be used as well. There are various types of fruit preserves made globally, and they can be made from sweet or savory ingredients.

Preserves
The term Preserves is usually interchangeable with Jam. Some cookbooks define Preserves as cooked and gelled whole fruit (or vegetable), which includes a significant portion of the fruit.

Jam
Jam contains both fruit juice and pieces of the fruit’s (or vegetable’s) flesh,[12] however some cookbooks define Jam as cooked and gelled fruit (or vegetable) purees.[13]
Properly, the term jam refers to a product made with whole fruit, cut into pieces or crushed. The fruit is heated with water and sugar to activate the pectin in the fruit. The mixture is then put into containers. The following extract from a US cookbook describes the process.

Uncooked or minimally cooked (less than 5 minutes) jams, are called freezer jam, because they are stored frozen.

Jelly
The term jelly refers to a type of clear fruit spread consisting of firmed fruit (or vegetable) juice made with pectin. Jelly can be made from sweet, savory or hot ingredients. Jelly is made by a similar process to jam, with the additional step of filtering out the fruit pulp after the initial heating. A cloth “jelly bag” is traditionally used as a filter.
“Good jelly is clear and sparkling and has a fresh flavor of the fruit from which it is made. It is tender enough to quiver when moved, but holds angles when cut.


Marmalade
American-style marmalade is sweet, not bitter. In English-speaking usage “marmalade” almost always refers to a preserve derived from a citrus fruit, most commonly oranges. The recipe includes sliced or chopped fruit peel, which is simmered in fruit juice and water until soft; indeed marmalade is sometimes described as jam with fruit peel (although many companies now also manufacture peel-free marmalade). Such marmalade is most often consumed on toasted bread for breakfast.

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