Superior Barberry Jelly, and Marmalade
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Strip the barberries from the stems and wash them in spring water.
Drain the fruit.
Bruise the fruit slightly.
Place the fruit in a clean stone jar with minimal liquid.
Place the jar in a pan of water.
Steam the fruit until tender, about 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Make the jelly
Pour off the clear juice.
Strain the juice.
Weigh the juice.
Boil the juice with 18 ounces of sugar for every pound of juice.
Boil for 5 to 7 minutes.
Make the marmalade
For marmalade, press the barberries through a sieve with a wooden spoon.
Boil quickly with the same amount of sugar.
Boil for the same time (5 to 7 minutes).
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
- Barberries
- Provide the fruit and natural pectin that help the jelly set.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the juice and helps the jelly set and keep.
The step that matters
Boil the juice with sugar for 5 to 7 minutes. Boiling the sugar and juice together long enough concentrates the mixture and lets the pectin and sugar set the jelly. Boiling too briefly can leave it runny, while overboiling can make it stiff or caramelised.
“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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