The most delicious
strawberry jam comes from childhood. Someone was being cooked by his mother. And someone specially went to the grandmother's village in order to get to a delightful event - picking fragrant berries, from which thick strawberry jam was later prepared. By the way, they completely forgot about the “foams” ... What could be tastier?
Cooking jam is not difficult at all. Variations of cooking mass. You must choose a recipe based not only on your taste preferences, but also on the storage capabilities, quality of the fruits. Consider three types of berries for cooking. The first will be called "extra class". It includes selected large berries that have just been picked. Buying such an extreme is difficult. So you can find them, if only they grew up in your garden. They will make the most fragrant, "elite", thick strawberry jam. Making anything else of them is considered sacrilege, well, if only eat fresh.
Berries must be slightly rinsed with dust. It is important to cut off the stalk after washing, as otherwise the strawberries will absorb excess fluid. Choose a wide cooking tank (ideal if all the berries fall in one layer). The classic proportions for strawberry jam are 1: 1. But if you can reduce the amount of sugar due to the sweetness of strawberries, do it. If the berries, on the contrary, are too sour, feel free to add a “sand”. Cook the syrup. This is done simply. Pour half a glass of water at the bottom of the pan (if possible, if the sugar volume is small), turn on a low heat and add sugar, gradually dissolving it in syrup. When it becomes transparent and boils, send the berries there. Try not to injure them. Leave everything to simmer until boiling. From this moment, foam may form. It must be removed without touching a spoon of berries. Let it boil for half an hour, turn it off and leave it to cool completely. Repeat the process with boiling and cooling at least three times. Thick strawberry jam can be obtained in the case when all the liquid has evaporated, caramel and the berries themselves will remain. The density will be checked as follows: a drop of hot dessert should not lose its shape, even if the surface on which you dripped is tilted. For better and longer storage, it is advisable to pour the jam that has not cooled down into sterile jars and roll up the lids. Can be closed with plastic and just stored in the refrigerator.
How to cook strawberry jam if the berries are not so beautiful? In approximately the same way, only syrup is optional. Fill them with sugar in the proportion you need and leave for a while, so that the juice from the berries is absorbed into the "sand", and the process of its dissolution begins. After that, put on low heat and cook, as in the previous recipe
Thick strawberry jam will turn out perfectly and from berries not of the first freshness. You can use the previous recipe, or you can use a blender. Grind everything into a smoothie, mix with sugar and put in the freezer, if its volume allows, if not, then for a shorter time in the refrigerator. Or add a bag of "Yellowfix" (apple pectin), bring to a boil, then pour out the remaining sugar, boil for three minutes and pour into jars.