Damson Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Gather the damsons in dry weather and remove any damaged fruit.
Stone the damsons and weigh them.
Make the jam
In a preserving pan, combine the damsons and sugar.
Gently stir until the sugar dissolves, removing any scum that rises.
Boil the jam for about 1 hour, stirring constantly to prevent burning.
When the jam looks firm and the juice sets, remove it from the heat.
Pot and store
Pour the jam into pots and cover with oiled and egged papers once cool.
Store in a dry place.
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
- Damsons
- Provide the fruit, pectin and acidity that give the jam its body and tartness.
- Loaf sugar
- Sweetens the jam and, at high concentration, helps it set and keep.
The step that matters
Boiling the jam. Boiling for about an hour with constant stirring prevents the sugar from scorching on the pan base. Setting depends on reaching the right concentration, so the cook must judge when the juice sets rather than rely only on time.
“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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