unsweetened jams

[k15n1]

What about canning jams that are made without a lot of sugar? Are there food safety issues?

 

[raro]

I've made jams with low/no sugar. There's a special pectin that you have to use, though, and I haven't seen it in awhile. Regular pectin is sour, which is why so much sugar is added. I never had any problems with spoilage. At least with jam, you can see pretty clearly when it's going bad.

 

[Hinotori]

I only make low sugar jams and jellies. I found that no sugar is to sour and doesnt taste as much like the fruit. Just adding a bit (I use 3/4 cup per 4 cups fruit) makes it taste much better. I've also used grape juice I made as a sweetener. The grape jelly never needs sugar. Some fruits need the added lemon juice to have enough acid to jell. It also brightens the color.

The low/no sugar pectin should be easy to find. They have it all over here. Even the Walmart has it. I get mine at the hardware store in the canning section since they are the cheapest place here.

 

[moolie]

I use Pomona's brand pectin and you can use as little or as much sugar as you like, as this kind of pectin sets up with calcium water (mix is in the package) rather than sugar. You can use concentrated fruit juice, honey, maple syrup--whatever you like. I've been using it for a couple of years now and have had no spoilage problems, plus the jams and jellies taste way more like real fruit

 

[Hinotori]

I will never go back to full sugar jams. I don't really care for them. I like my jams on the tart side but screaming what type of fruit they are. Mom also just does sugar to her taste. She says she's had issues with her jams jelling fully, but I think her cooking time is off. She's decided she prefers them runny, as she only uses them in milk, on ice cream or pie, or in yogurt.

I'm curious how the hawthorn jam will set. I've been told they don't need any pectin. I can't wait for the things to ripen.

 

[k15n1]

I put up a few jars of strawberry and some more of peach. I've made low-sugar jams before but have since heard that the sugar is part of the process. I like to have ingredients on hand and fruit purees are really handy. But if they're too sweet, it makes them less versatile.

 

[Britesea]

I have done both kinds of jams, and I prefer the low sugar types (I use Stevia in them for sweetening). I have noticed that they have a slightly shorter shelf life than the full sugar jams, since sugar is a preservative, but if you are careful to use your jam up fairly quickly rather than let it sit in the back of the refrigerator for months, there should be no problem.

Oh, by the way- if you for some reason don't have enough room in your fridge, full-sugar jams can sit on your counter for a few days with no problems (unless it's really hot indoors); you can't really get away with that on low or no-sugar jams.

 

[moolie]

Britesea, are these freezer/fridge jams or canned jams that you are finding have a shorter shelf life?

Back in the 70s my Mom used to can batches of fruit (peaches, pears, apricots, apples, cherries) in just water because she wasn't into all the sugar for herself when she ate canned fruit (she canned the rest in a pretty light syrup for the rest of the family). We had jars of that fruit that lasted just fine for up to 3-4 years in a few cases. My Mom stopped canning certain local fruits when we left the Okanagan in 1979 and I opened a jar of apricots in 1981 after we moved to a new community (the moves and locations are how I know the dates) by accident (didn't notice the "no sugar" note on the lid) and knew immediately when I tasted it that it was one of the just water batches. Colour, texture, taste (if you like bland water canned fruit) was still just fine and my Mom enjoyed the rest of the jar.

I've got several varieties of Pomona's pectin jam, some with very little sweetener (honey and maple syrup primarily) and some with no extra sweetener that are lalbelled 2011, we just opened a jar last week and it's still lovely

 

[moolie]

Oh, and full sugar jams can actually sit out without refrigeration for months. Our English friends never refrigerate their jams (nor most of their condiments like ketchup or mustard, although they are careful to keep the mayo and salad cream in the fridge!) and never have any problems--pretty typical over there.

 

[k15n1]

Oh, and full sugar jams can actually sit out without refrigeration for months. Our English friends never refrigerate their jams (nor most of their condiments like ketchup or mustard, although they are careful to keep the mayo and salad cream in the fridge!) and never have any problems--pretty typical over there.

I've heard this before, about the jams stored at room temp. Makes sense but DW is practically in a panic to refrigerate things and I don't care enough to lobby for a new policy. I suspect that part of the room-temp-jam success is based on using it in a reasonable period of time.

What's salad cream?