Plum jam is a sweet fruit preserve made with whole plums and sugar. It can be used as a spread or topping and comes in various colors. It is made by boiling plums with sugar and can be canned for up to a year if handled properly.
Plum jam is a fruit preserve made with whole plum fruits. Plum jam is typically very sweet, both because plums are sweet and because sugar is usually added to jam as a preservative. It can be used as a spread for breads, muffins and other baked goods, and some people also like to use plum jam as a layer in cakes, or as a topping to complement roasted meats, vegetables and other foods.
Depending on the plums used, plum jam can be red, purple, yellow, or even green in color. Some markets carry plum jam, especially if they contain an assortment of fruit preserves. Plum jam is also available from companies and stores that specialize in making fruit preserves, in which case several styles of plum jam may be available, along with other types of plum preserves. Cooks can also make plum jams at home, assuming they’re comfortable with the sterile canning process.
Like other jams, plum jam is made from chopped or cut whole fruit. The only part of a plum not used in jam is the pit, because the pit is inedible. Depending on the cook’s taste, the plums can be pitted and cooked whole or they can be pitted and mashed or cut. The bigger the pieces of fruit you start with, the thicker the final jam will be.
To make plum jam, boil plums boiled in water with added sugar until the fruit starts to fall apart, then pour the jam into sterilized jars for canning. As the fruit cooks and breaks down, it releases pectin, the substance that causes jam to firm up. Some cooks like to make their jam smoother by running it through a food processor, ricer, or oil mill, while others prefer heavier jams, deliberately leaving the fruit whole and loose. Ingredients such as lemon peel, ginger and other spices can be added as desired to vary the flavor of the jam.
Like other fruit preserves, plum jam is very perishable. If handled properly and canned in sterile jars, it can last up to a year unopened, but as soon as the seal is broken, the clock starts ticking. Plum jam should be refrigerated after opening and ideally used within a month, before it has a chance to develop mold or bacterial infestation. If the lid of a jar opens, it’s a sign that the jar has become contaminated with harmful bacteria and should be discarded, even if the contents look fine.
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