To Keep Plums
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Select perfect plums that are not too ripe and fill a large crock carefully to avoid breaking the skins.
Cover the plums with boiling water, ensuring the water is level with the top.
Place a plate on top of the plums to keep them submerged.
Store the crock in a cool cellar and cover it with a board.
Store and serve
During winter, a scum will form on the plums, which helps preserve them.
When ready to use, scald the plums, pour off the water, add more water, and stew until tender.
Sweeten to taste.
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
- Plums
- Provide the fruit that is softened by stewing and sweetened for serving.
- Boiling water
- Covers the plums and helps begin preservation by heating the fruit and excluding air.
The step that matters
Keeping the plums fully submerged. Fruit exposed above the liquid is more likely to spoil from air contact and mold. Keeping the plate on top holds the plums under the water throughout storage.
“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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