Lemon Jam

I love lemon jam, but I can’t buy any organic lemon jam (or any other) – so I make it myself, the way I like it. It’s simple and fun!

Here is how:

Lemon Jam protocol:

Preparation time:  90 minutes

Complexity:          Easy!

Required tools (as shown in the “how to” pages):

  1. A wooden spatula or long handled spoon
  2. A 1 liter pot, preferably stainless.
  3. A knife and cutting board

 Ingredients:

  1. A large lemon (or more).
  2. white granulated sugar.

Protocol:

Grate the lemon and keep the zest aside.

Peel the lemon and get rid of the albedo (the white pulp), which is bitter. Make sure to get rid of all the white peel or your jam will be bitter. An extra attention to details will be worth it.

Halve the lemon and remove the inner core. Now start slicing the lemon, and remove the seeds. Once you are done, cut or dice the slices as fine as possible. This is the most extensive part of the process, the rest is easy!

Weigh the lemon and add an equal weight in sugar (for example: if your lemon weighs 100grams – add 100grams of sugar). Combine the chopped lemon, sugar and the lemon zest you put aside in a small stainless or teflon coated pot. If your pot is teflon coated – make sure it is a new pot, without scratches (why? read below). Mix and cover with water (usually about 1/2 a cup for a large lemon).

Cooking the lemon needs to go slowly. Cook on medium to low heat on a medium or small  burner – you need to give the sugar enough time to diffuse into the lemon. During the boil make sure to mix it every 10 minutes so the pieces floating on top will also get enough sugar.

Once your syrup level is starting to get low start mixing more frequently and be sure to monitor the pot constantly. Test the liquid using the jam test – put a few drops of the syrup on a clean plate set at a 30degree angle (more or less, I hold it by hand) and as soon as it starts to flow down – streak over the middle of the drop with a finger. If the drop merges back to a continuous line – you need more cooking time. If it cannot do that – it’s ready! I usually measure my jam temperature and stop at around 93C or 200F.

As soon as your drop test gives the ok or the temperature is right – it is time to shut down the heat source. Move the pot to a cool spot on the stove and  keep stirring for a few minutes. If you don’t – the jam may get burned from the hot pot bottom. Once cooler – at around 72C or 162F I pour the jam or marmalade into a clean, dry, jar. I close the jar and allow it to cool over night. Once cool – because I don’t sterilize my cans – I store it in the fridge.

That’s it!

Important notes:

  • Never cook an acidic food in a Teflon coated pan or pot that has a scratched bottom – the acid will dissolve some of the aluminum that shines through the scratched area. Aluminum is not healthy for you!
  • If you don’t want to incorporate the zest – just freeze it and make candies with it, or add to cakes!
  • This recipe should work just fine for other citrus fruits – give it a go!

Have a sweet day,

Saar