Redcurrant jelly

Jam diaries #6: Redcurrant

Nextdoor, a neighbourhood online hub, can be very annoying when neighbours decide to use it for marketing purposes or to voice their anguish during covid lockdown as if it was their personal diary. 

For the first time in a year, it has actually been very useful. A neighbour advertised he had a surplus of black and redcurrants and was offering them for free to anyone interested in collecting them. 

Well... not being one to refuse free food, I quickly had a look in Lynda Brown's 'The preserving book' and discovered blackcurrants can be used for jam making and redcurrants for jelly making. 
They can be eaten raw but I find that they are not as sweet as the other berries and the blackcurrants can be very tart so I prefer not to.

I wasn't quick enough for the blackcurrants but I got 1kg of redcurrants so it was immediately decided that redcurrant jelly it was!

According to Lynda Brown, redcurrant jelly is the best jam of all and it goes well with roast lamb.

Serves: 820g.

Ingredients:

• 950g redcurrants, stalks removed
• 600ml water
• 375g sugar

Method:

1. Add the redcurrants and the water to a stainless-steel pan and bring to the boil over a medium heat.
   
   
   
   
2. Turn the heat down and cook for about 10 min or until the currants are soft.
   
3. Mash the currants to a pulp with a masher.
   
4. Tip the pulp into a fine sieve or a clean jelly bag set over a large clean bowl and leave to strain for several hours or overnight until all the juice has dripped through. I left it overnight and used a sieve lined with a muslin cloth.
   
   
   
   
5. Not being one to waste anything, I pressed the pulp in the muslin bag until I got every little bit of juice out. The downside is that you'll get a cloudy jelly instead of a crystal-clear one so if you want transparency, don't press the pulp!
   
6. Measure the strained juice and calculate the quantity of sugar: allow 225g sugar per 600ml of juice. I had 1000ml of juice so I added 375g sugar.
7. Pour the juice into a clean stainless-steel pan, add the sugar, and stir gently until all the sugar has dissolved.
   
8. Bring to the boil and cook on a rolling boil for 10-20 min or until the setting point is reached. It actually took me almost 30-40 min to set it! I also realised that another downside of pressing the pulp is that it adds scum to the mixture. Unlike the strawberry jam, I wasn't able to stir the scum away and ended up having to remove it. I couldn't remove it all and some bits were left behind. Oh well, taste was good so I will not complain!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. Fill into sterilised jars, and cover with tightly fitting lids. I do not use silicone or paper discs so I fill the jars all the way to the top. The less air inside, the less chances of mold developing. 
10. Store in a cool, dark place. 
    
    
    
    

How to sterilise jars and lids?

Jars: heat them in a 180°C oven for 10 min. Let them cool.

Lids: boil them in water for 10 min. Let them air dry upside down. If you are tight for time, let them dry on the door of the open oven once you've sterilised the jars and the oven if off.

What is a setting point?

Literature tells us that the jam setting point is reached at 105°C. I bought a sugar thermometer specially for this. I really cannot get my jams to get to 105°C so I quit on the thermometer!

There is an easier way, the wrinkle method, which involves a cold plate. Check this link out: https://www.cookingwithnanaling.com/how-to-tell-when-jam-is-set/

In time you won't need any of these methods. Experience of looking on how the jam sets on your stirring spoon will tell you when it's ready.

How long will the jam last for?

Literature tells you jams will last for 6 months and the more sugar you add to them the longer they will last as sugar is a preservative. Jams usually have a 1:1 fruit to sugar ratio to make them last longer.

Personally, that is not my experience. I usually use half the amount of sugar so a 1:½ fruit to sugar ratio. Some years we are eating jams 1 year later and they are still absolutely fine.

Perhaps the jam has developed a bit of mold on the top when you open it. Do not throw it away!!! Just scoop the mold out and continue eating. If you are a fast eater like my partner, you can store the jam in the cupboard. If you are not, store it in the fridge.