Dry jam is often called Kiev. And this is no coincidence. The fact is that the city of Kiev is the birthplace of this sweet treat. It was from here that jam in the 14th century fell on the wedding table of the Lithuanian prince Jagailo, which was enshrined in historical chronicles.
The concept of "dry jam" has several definitions. This candied fruit, and marmalade, and classic jam, where the berries are dried in the oven after heat treatment. The purpose of making such a jam is to preserve the shape of the berries as much as possible. You can cook it at home. All the secrets of making dry jam and the best recipes are presented in our article.
The secrets of making delicious dry jam
The following secrets will help you prepare delicious dry jam from any berries, fruits, and even vegetables:
- Ripe or unripe fruits are suitable for dry jam. Fruits and berries with various damages, with rot for such a workpiece are not recommended, as well as too soft, overripe fruits that immediately lose their shape during heat treatment.
- For juicy berries and fruits, preliminary cooking of fruits before drying is allowed. Meanwhile, cooking jam should be slow and short so that the sugar has time to penetrate the fruits, as a result of which they will retain their shape.
- Dry apple jam, like any other, is dried in room conditions or in electric dryers, at a temperature of no higher than 50 degrees. Properly cooked fruits have a crust on the surface, but remain soft inside.
- Dry jam prepared for the winter is stored in layers in wooden boxes. For this, candied fruits are spread on parchment paper and sprinkled with sugar. Then on a layer of berries again put paper, berries and sugar.
Classic Dry Jam Recipe
The classic recipe for dry jam involves the sequential implementation of the following actions:
- Prepared pieces of fruit or berries are dipped in boiling syrup and boiled in it for 5 minutes. After this, the pan is removed from the heat, the jam cools and infused for several hours.
- The procedure described above is repeated several more times (from two to four) depending on the type of feedstock.
- After the jam has been infused for the last time, it is thrown back onto a sieve to stack all the syrup. Fruit or berry fruits are laid out on a baking sheet with parchment and sent to dry in the oven.
- Dry apple jam in the oven is dried with an open door or at a temperature not exceeding 40 degrees, or at room temperature. The syrup remaining after cooking is not poured, but is used for the preparation of jelly, marmalade, candies, etc.
- Ready jam is stored in glass jars or special wooden boxes.
Tasty dry apple jam in the oven
Dry jam prepared according to this recipe is both marmalade and candied fruit in one product. You can forget about little useful candy. Dry apple jam in the oven is so delicious that it is enjoyed with pleasure by both children and adults. Prepare it in small batches, so that all apple slices immediately fit on a baking sheet. In general, for 1 kg of apples, you need to take 300 g of sugar, as well as a teaspoon of cinnamon and citric acid.
First, they wash the apples, cut the core and cut into small slices. After that, they are laid out on a baking sheet covered with baking paper in one layer. Now sugar and cinnamon are mixed in a separate bowl. Then, apples spread on a baking sheet are sprinkled with the mixture and the mold is sent to the oven for 20-30 minutes (200 degrees). The baking time of fruits depends on their variety and the size of the sliced slices. Hard apples will take longer to cook.
Cool the prepared jam dry at room temperature. Then the slices need to be laid out on parchment, sprinkled with powder, and dried at room temperature for another two days. An electric dryer or oven with fan is also available. Then the jam preparation time will be reduced to a few hours. Keep the jam in plastic trays or glass jars at room temperature.
Dry strawberry jam
This is not a classic dry jam, but rather baked. But it turns out to be very thick, so much that it does not drain even from a spoon. To prepare it, each strawberry (1 kg) is cut in half and stacked on a baking sheet. Pour 1/3 cup sugar there, add 3 tbsp. tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and vanilla pod seeds . After this, the strawberries in a baking sheet should let the juice go and after 15 minutes the form can be put in the oven for 2 hours.
So that the jam does not burn, dry it at a temperature of 130 degrees for two hours, stirring occasionally. After the indicated time, it is transferred to a glass jar (450 ml), cooled at room temperature, and then stored in the refrigerator and used as necessary.
Gooseberry Dry Jam Recipe
For jam, you need 1 kg of gooseberries and sugar, as well as 250 ml of water. First you need to make sugar syrup from sugar and water. After boiling the syrup from its surface, it is necessary to remove the resulting foam. Next, you need to load the gooseberries in the syrup and boil them for 8 minutes. After this, remove the pan from the heat and let the jam brew for 8 hours. After the specified time, repeat the procedure. Just jam you need to boil and insist 6 times.
After the jam is infused for the last time, it must be laid out on a sieve so that all the syrup is stacked from it. After about 1.5 hours, put the gooseberries on a parchment and dry in the oven at 40 degrees for three hours. Dry jam is recommended to dry for another hour at room temperature. Then it must be sprinkled with sugar and transferred to a glass jar for storage.
Dry plum jam
Baked plum jam is prepared using a similar technology with strawberry. It turns out no worse than dry jam, because the berries languish for a long time in their own juice in the oven, where they turn into elastic candied fruits.
To make jam, plums (3 kg) are removed. Then it is laid out in a heat-resistant dish, covered with sugar (1 kg), sent to the oven, heated to 200 degrees, and covered with a lid. The first 30 minutes, the jam is cooked under the lid, the remaining 2 hours without it. Every half hour plums need to be stirred. A few minutes before the end of cooking, you can add rum or brandy (3 tbsp. Tablespoons) to the jam. Baked jam can be preserved, as usual, and stored in a cool dark place all winter and even more.
Candied Cherry (Dry Jam)
Another option for making delicious cherry jam. For its preparation, pitted cherries are boiled in syrup from water (1 l) and sugar (6 glasses) for 1.5 hours. After cooling the jam, the berries from it are laid out on a sieve, and then on a baking sheet.
Dry jam in the oven is baked for 1.5 hours at a temperature of 150 degrees, stirring occasionally. After cooling, the candied fruit is sprinkled with sugar and stored in glass jars.
Many people think that only dry apple jam can be made in the oven. Meanwhile, there are many more interesting recipes, according to which they prepare delicious berry and fruit home-made candied fruits.