Strawberry Jam via @FoodWishes

I would like to say that deciding to start making strawberry jam at 7AM was my idea, but I owe it all to Chef John. Yes, the wonderful youtube videos of Food Wishes! Chef John posts instructional food videos and recipes on his channel and site of the same. I watch his videos all the time and I credit him for having the very best twice baked potatoes. I'll meet him one day and apologize for ripping off his recipe, well I was trying to follow it exactly, yet I always break the rules. Feel free to watch the greater version of a recipe for making strawberry jam, but for now, all you have is what my amateur skills came up with. 

If you read last week's post on Food Prep you'd know that I had lots of strawberries and this was the logical choice. Here is the recipe with only slight variations. This is more of a recipe approval than it is an actual recipe of my own. I like to show how your own tweaks can still provide similar results. 

Ingredients

1 large red apple

1 large green apple

1 medium lime

5 cups frozen strawberries

1 cup of sugar

2 cups of water

 

Directions

1. Cut apples and lime into large chunks. In a large covered pot with a cup of water, bring apples and lime to a boil then reduce to a simmer stirring occasionally. Add more water as needed until the mixture becomes mushy. *Once everything falls apart and you can no longer see any big pieces of apple it is time to cut off the heat. 

2. Pour the entire apple mixture into a sieve and push it through with a spoon or spatula. The flesh of the fruit will pass through leaving behind the skin. It should look like applesauce! 

3. In that same large pot (once you've washed it out of course), bring 5 cups of strawberries and 1 cup of water to a boil. I pulsed my strawberries a few times in food processor to help the breakdown while cooking. If you used fresh strawberries, hull them and a rough chop will do. 

4. When the strawberries start to boil reduce your heat to a medium/simmer then add in the sugar and strained apple/lime sauce. Stir the mixture until all the sugar has dissolved. 

5. Now we play the waiting game. Stirring frequently for 45 minutes to an hour until the mixture reduces by a third. Then taste to gauge sweetness. *Add in 1/4 cup of sugar if you think it needs it. Don't forget to skim the foam off the top as well.

6. The jam should look similar to a very thick apple sauce by the time it has reduced down. Take a metal spoon and stick it inside the jam, if the jam coats the spoon evenly and has the consistency of a loose tomato sauce then you are ready to jar it up. *If it looks like it could be jam then it is now jam. You can also use Chef John's method of identifying when your jam is ready included in his video. 

7. Cool and Spread!

Tips and Combinations

Let me clear up a few things in this one. First, if you've never made jam go with Chef John's version right away. It is very detailed and easy to follow. However, if you've made a jam or two or even a compote in your day my frozen fruit method is the way to go. I am not saying fresh fruit wouldn't work just as well but in my experiences, fresh frozen fruits cook down far better. I noticed that if you use frozen it will keep the fruit more intact throughout the cooking process. I also tried this same recipe using blueberries, blackberries, cherries, and combinations of the three. I've also made orange marmalade before, so I know what fresh fruit will do if taken to it's cooking limits. 

If you want to go even healthier, just ditch the sugar all together. The cooking time will take a bit longer in order to make up for the lack of sugars, but the results will be the same. Lastly, I know what everyone is saying, "why are there apples in a strawberry jam?" Well, kids it's all about pectin to help gel (jelly) our jam. Lots of fruits have natural pectin, strawberries have really small amounts while fruits like apples and oranges have larger amounts. You can use oranges instead of limes if you like! I just felt like showing you guys how easy Chef John made jam, and how easy it is to make your own version. 

Cook.Discuss.Reflect

For more tips, tricks, recipes, and tutorials check out the  Food section weekly. If you have an amazing recipe or tip that you want to share, send it to verbaldangerofficial@gmail.com and it may be featured in a future post. Follow @VERBALDANGER on Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat.