To Preserve Cranberries
Ingredients
Directions
Boil the cranberries in a little water until very soft, being careful not to let them burn.
Add the sugar and boil for five minutes, covered tightly.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Cranberries
- Provide the tart fruit flavour and the natural pectin that helps the preserve thicken.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the tart fruit and, at high concentration, helps the preserve set and keep.
The step that matters
Boil the cranberries until very soft without burning. Sugars and fruit scorch quickly on direct heat, which turns the preserve bitter and dark. Cooking gently while stirring and watching the pan keeps the flavour clean. Softening the fruit fully lets its pectin release, which the later sugar boil depends on for a good set.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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