Fig Jam/Preserve makers........heeeeelp!!!

15 years ago

Hello!

Ive decided with the final batch of figs Ive plucked off my tree I want to make my first homemade jam ever!

Ive searched and searched and finally found a recipe that I think is simple enough to follow. However, since Im new to this I could use all the help I can get so if you can answer a few specific questions Id appreciate it!

First, here's the recipe:

Grandma Minnie's Fig Jam - from calfreshfigs.com

4 cups stemmed ripe figs (about 3 pounds)

Â½ cup lemon juice

1 Â½ cups sugar

3 ounces liquid pectin

Chop figs fine by hand.

Combine them with lemon juice and sugar in large non-aluminum pot.

Stir well.

Place on high heat and stir constantly.

Bring quickly to a full rolling boil.

Boil hard for one minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and stir in pectin.

Skim the foam off the top.

Fill and seal pint jars with two-piece lids.

Process five minutes in boiling water bath, with water 2 inches above the jar tops.

Makes about nine half-pint jars.

Now for my questions:

Where it says "process 5 min in boiling water", what is the purpose of that? Is it to vacuum seal the jars?

Ive read in other recipes if you dont seal, you can refrigerate as long as you eat it in a month. A MONTH? Is that all they last once you open a jar?

At the end, it says the recipe makes 9 half pint jars, looking at the ingredients I dont see HOW??? Am I missing something? Am I supposed to add water?

Lastly, if anyone has a better recipe feel free to pass it along, Im starting to save as many fig recipes as I come across and if its a proven winner then I'd like to try it.

Thnx!

Frank

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Comments (8)

sugarshane1313
15 years ago
Hi Frank, go into the Harvest forum and type in vanilla fig and you'll find a nice write up and recipe. i made this and it turned out very well;however next time i'd only add one vanilla bean instead of two. plus put the recipe you have on that forum and many will critque(in a good way) and let you know if its safe to can plus give good tips/safety measures
Jim
svanessa
15 years ago
The final 5 min processing in boiling water is to create a vacuum in the jar so it will seal properly and to kill any contamination that may have occured as the jars were filled. As the jars cool you will hear a pop as they seal.

1 cup = 1/2 pint. You have 6+ cups worth of ingredients but since the jars are not filled to the brim you may get 9 half pints but I'd guess more like 6 or 7.

Sue
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jude, fruit preserves are pretty safe, the fruit is acidic and the sugar acts as a preservative. The reason for lemon juice in most preserve recipes is for the acidity to allow commercial pectin to work or for the pectin naturally found in the lemon. Now, that said, figs and tomatoes have both been found to contain borderline levels of acidity, MSU says figs are "slightly above" 4.6, so you want to ensure that you use enough lemon to reduce the acidity to a safe level. Recommended is 2 tablespoons per quart of figs. Bottled lemon juice is preferred because it has a consistent acidity whereas fresh lemons vary Since you have about 3 quarts of figs, ypu'd have about 1 lemon per quart. That's about 2-3 tablespoons of juice plus the peel. If you have nice big juicy lemons it's probably good, but I think I'd add the fresh lemons and a bit extra. Annie
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I have a friend who raves about this jam mix but I too am quite concerned with the safety of it, let alone the need for it to be included in a jam for flavoring. Just because the NCHFP approves the use of Jello in that one recipe, it still concerns me. I would rather just make straight fig jam with pectin and put in some strawberry pulp for the flavor balance, which is quite tasty, I must say. Jello is made from the hides,tendons,and bones of animals - well refined and resulting in base collagen but still an animal by-product. I am not a vegetarian but I would rather eat a pure fruit jam, thank you very much. And, since I sell jam at the farmers market, I would (according to my ethics) have to put it in the ingredients list as an animal by-product although the USDA does not describe it as such! Shoot! I have enough trouble explaining the lard in my pie crust. Eaten as part of the pie crust, lard is quite delicious, and nutritious, but to be canned with fruit to sit on a shelf or refrigerator doesn't appeal to me one bit. Besides, pressure canning meat is what I have been taught is the only acceptable method and you wouldn't PC a jam, so this is a NCHFP conundrum. On another note, since I bill my products as being fresh, naturally grown (no -cides), and as being free of artificial flavors and colors, Jello is not that, by far. Nancy
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You are welcome Dave and tracydr! I get some concord grapes from my neighbor this way, they climb over my side of the fence! I just make juice out of them and drink it. So I also made Habanero Fig jam. This is what I called it because it is a jam, not a jelly, and it did not come out gold. However, it is inspired by the Habanero gold recipe that several of you kindly posted. To our surprise, this is a "HOT" item, not just taste-wise, but popularity wise. It is pretty different with fresh figs, so I will post how the recipe was modified. HABANERO FIG JAM 2 quarts washed fresh figs, chopped. Used mostly ripe figs, but to increase the pectin amount we included a few under-ripe figs too. 1/2 cup minced red sweet peppers 1/2 cups minced onions 1/2 cup minced Habaneros (I used orange Habs). 1-1/2 cups white vinegar 6 cups sugar 1 tsp salt Boil all ingredients together in large pot. Bring it to just below the candy temperature (measured with a candy thermometer). At this point I chose to take an immersion blender to it because we thought we would prefer it smooth rather than chunky. Pour into clean warm jars. Do the usual with the jars and lids, BWB 10 minutes. This made 7 half pint jars. Consistency of jam, spreadable but thick. No pectin was used and none was needed. Next in line will be Pequin-Fig jam. Lots of pequins and very few habaneros this year. The ones used in this jam were a rare find in the depths of the freezer. Last year was a good habanero year.
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FO876
Original Author
15 years ago
Thnk you all!
vern_2006
15 years ago
My wife and I have made jam for years from many kinds of fruit. We never process our jam. We wash our jars in the dish washer we keep the jars hot in the dish washer while we make the jam. We put the jam in the hot jars and have never had a jar not seal. So far no one has died eating our jam.

Vern
FO876
Original Author
15 years ago
So far??? LOL! :)

How long does it last once opened? Anyone?
vern_2006
15 years ago
If you keep the jam in the refigerator it will last for months.

Vern
svanessa
15 years ago
Bacteria requires a high water content to grow. There is not enough free water in jams and jelly's due to the high sugar content for them to survive much less reproduce.

Mold however requires very little moisture to grow. That's why jams and jelly's will last in the refer for so long and stay good. They may, over time develop some mold and lose flavor but no bacteria will grow.

The really bad bacterias need anaerobic (airless) conditions to develop. This happens in home canning of things like sauces, beans, other veggies that are not processed fully. Plenty of free water to develop the nasty clostridiums (botulism) and salmonella's.

A tidbit from my microbiology class some 30 years ago. So JAM on! :-)

Sue
scott_ga
15 years ago
For fig preserves, I don't chop them up or peel them (except for my daughter, who wants jam from figs peeled and chopped). I put them in a stainless steel pan with enough water to cover them and cook them for 15-20 minutes, then drain the water off and set the figs to one side (remove stems before this initial cooking). Combine sugar with lemon juice (a little less than 1/2 cup sugar/cup of figs--or add lemon juice about 15 minute befor figs are done)along with a little water, heat stirring constantly. Add figs. Cook until clear (sometimes I take the figs out and cook the syrup down some more, then add figs back). Pack into hot jars. Place into boiling water bath 10 minutes.

Hot biscuits with butter and a jar won't last long at all.

Fig Jam/Preserve makers........heeeeelp!!!

Comments (8)

sugarshane1313

svanessa

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Fig Jam/Preserve makers........heeeeelp!!!

Comments (8)

sugarshane1313

svanessa

Related Discussions

FO876Original Author

vern_2006

FO876Original Author

vern_2006

svanessa

scott_ga

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

FO876
Original Author

FO876
Original Author