Jam Help....

[River Cottage]

Bonjour, tried making my first ever Jam a few weeks back from Blackberries.

I added berries to a pint of water added sugar and lemon juice and liquid pectin. Bought to a simmer for 20 mins bought to the boil but was still runny.
I thought it might set after it cooled down in the jars.
I checked this morning and they are still runny, can I re-boil or add something to each jar etc to help make them set ??

Merci
Richard

 

[Alix]

Richard, I think you might have to reboil. But I have to be honest here, I don't know how that would affect the final outcome. This is the jam recipe I use for raspberries and blackberries. You will note that it boils for a few minutes. I think that is key to getting the jam to set correctly. Hopefully someone else will have more insight for you. I'm pretty new to canning myself. I love it, but I'm not great at it.

6 cups berries (closely packed)
6 cups white sugar

Put berries in a pot and mash as they heat. Bring to a FULL rolling boil for 2 minutes. Add warmed sugar. Bring again to full boil for 1 minute. Remove and beat with Dover beater (egg beater) for 4 minutes. Pour into clean sterilized jars and seal fingertip tight.

 

[bevjones]

Jam Help

Hi,

I think the problems may be with the water. I've just started jam making myself and I had the opposite problem where there wasn't enough fluid - I had a very black pan on Saturday! All of the recipes i have used so far haven't included water but relied more on the wetness of the fruit. I was talking to a lady at a farmers market the other day and she said if you are using a dryish fruit it won't harm to add a tiny bit of water but keep it minimum. When the fruit is crushed it normally adds a bit of moistire. Another tip I have found helps is using proper jam sugar - it seems to melt very quickly and gives a nice texture. Good luck with it all - it's not easy - it's good fun but it tests my patience at times. Hope this helps.

 

[CharlieD]

Soundsd like you need to cook that jam longer. Bring back to a boil very slowly, and then cook, can't tell for how long. You'd have to test.