Is this recipe unsafe? Fig jam: add lemon juice, boil 2 hrs

15 years ago

The main difference between this recipe and the one recommended by the NCHFP is the boiling time after adding the lemon juice -- the NCHFP recommends boiling the figs, water and sugar until thick, then adding the lemon juice and cooking only 1 minute longer before canning. Am I correct in believing this is a crucial difference in the recipes and will result in a less acid fig jam than the NCHFP recommends canning by BWB?

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Fig Jam

Here is a recipe from one of my French culinary mentors for a chutney-like Fig Jam or Confiture de Figues.

For the Sugar Syrup

Â½ cup water

1 pound granulated sugar

Â½ vanilla bean, split and scraped

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 pounds figs, preferable Black Mission

To Prepare the Fig Jam: Make sure you choose figs that are ripe. Gently clean the figs by wiping the skin with damp cloth and try to keep them whole.

To prepare the sugar syrup, combine the water, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, lemon juice and vanilla pod. in a non-reactive sauce pot . Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Add the figs, reduce the cooking temperature and let stew for 1Â½ to or 2 hours.

Remove the scum from top of syrup as the fruit cooks. Once the fruit is cooked remove the vanilla bean and can according to proper canning techniques.

Thanks for any help!

Val

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Comments (9)

digdirt2
15 years ago
First - I'm no jam authority, wife makes most of them in our house and she is gone right now. But based on all the past discussions here "safety" isn't a big factor with jams and such. Mold and mildews, maybe, but not any associated hazards with them otherwise simply because of all the sugar.

That said, Am I correct in believing this is a crucial difference in the recipes, no. It's just a difference in when the lemon juice is added in the prep process. The overall acidity could only be affected by increasing the amount of lemon juice, not when it is added.

No reason why you couldn't use either recipe as far as I can see. Maybe I'm not understanding your question correctly though?

Pull up 'fig jam Carol' or 'jam safety Carol' for more details.

Dave
valereee
Original Author
15 years ago
Dave, figs are low-acid. I'm wondering if the long boiling of the lemon juice will cause the product to not be acid enough to can in a BWB.
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Hi, we have made jam and jellys with our fig crop yearly with excellent results, however when small quantities are available we've found the cook and freeze method produces excellent results with little effort, no prep, easy cleanup. All that's required are: Dozen, more or less figs, stems on. 1 cup of water, 1/2 cup sugar, more or less depending on number of figs. 1 qt. sauce pan, Zip lock freezer bag. Put all in sauce pan, heat to a boil, stirring occasionally, turn off, let cool. Pour all into Ziplock bag, close and put in freezer. To eat, dump all into a small bowl let defrost, eat and drink. Figs and vanilla icecream, Yummy! Enjoy your crop year round, we do.
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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.
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I bought her book but haven't looked seriously at it barring the introduction and the oven method. I see the risk of the oven method with full-sugar traditional preserves as one of jar breakage, not safety. Jams are inherently safe; processing is meant to extend shelf life and prevent mold, not because they're prone to risky forms of spoilage. The exceptions would be such low-acid fruits as figs, mangoes and cantaloupe. And while there is risk with those if the levels of added acid are insufficient, I'm guessing it's quite low because to set a preserve you have to cook to about 68% sugar; at that level any remaining water is pretty well bound up by the sugar, which discourages the growth of micro-organisms. In the case of peaches and cherries, I see no risk unless a preserver is really really determined to make peach-cherry slop. Both fruits are naturally low in pectin at the firm-ripe level. At its optimum this will be a loosely set preserve. With dead-ripe fruit it won't set; you could firm it up by cooking it to death, essentially boiling out the water and evaporating into a viscous taffy, but it wouldn't be a gel. So purely hypothetically if you used dead-ripe windfall fruit (i.e. bruised - which also raises pH) you might have a risk, but it would be miniscule. If it disturbs your comfort level, though, you could always add a pinch or two of powdered citric acid, ascorbic acid (which would assist in preservation of the light color), or some of the acid blend wineshops sell. That wouldn't change the liquid ratio and could also be beneficial to cut some of the sweetness. The best resource I know of to explore issues of pH and the properties of preserves of all types is The Jamlady Cookbook. She has a scientific bent and tells you everything the layperson might want to know about the art of jam-making. Carol
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I think this recipe was developed as a way to use up the tons of zucchini the farmers get at harvest. :) You can't taste anything really but the strawberry and pineapple. The golden jam, my mom likes rhubarb.... GOTTA PLEASE MAMA! lol!
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digdirt2
15 years ago
Yes, I know they are low-acid but the lemon juice is added in both recipes to off-set that issue, right? So are you asking that if it is added before the long cooking time rather than after it will 'cook off' and reduce the acidity? Hmmm, I can't answer that so I'd better just shut up and leave it to others. ;)

If it will cook off and reduce the acidity and if that is the only real difference between the recipes, then I'd stick with the NCHFP recipe to be safe.

Searched everything here on figs and can't find an answer for you either but several discussions do mention calling your local county extension agent (assuming they are as knowledgeable as Linda Lou is) to inquire. Might be worth a try.

Sorry I can't be of more help.

Dave
valereee
Original Author
15 years ago
Yeah, that was my concern -- that the long boiling will reduce the acidity. I =think= I read that somewhere, but I couldn't find it when I searched. I emailed the folks at NCHFP, too, but I thought I'd ask here and see if anyone knew offhand whether the long boiling of acid was an issue.
readinglady
15 years ago
AFAIK, boiling and stewing cooks off water not acid. Plus, of course, the sugar is osmotic.

The question I have is why cook for 2 hours? The risk of overcooking and caramelization is high (not to mention the energy cost).

If this is a very old recipe, as I surmise, originally the long cooking may have served to concentrate the mixture and drive off as much water as possible to assure longevity on the shelf. But since the proportions are essentially the same as the NCHFP recipe and it will be BWB, I can't see the advantage today.

Carol
digdirt2
15 years ago
Thanks for that info Carol. That it would cook off the water while not reducing the acidity was my gut feeling but you know what they say about those. ;)

Dave
valereee
Original Author
15 years ago
Carol, I think it is an old recipe.

Man, I was sure I'd seen something about not cooking acids too long. If I find anything, I'll report back.
melva02
15 years ago
When you boil vinegar, it evaporates and blasts you in the face when you approach the pan, right? I thought it must have a boiling point below the boiling point of water. But it turns out the boiling point of acetic acid is higher, so you actually can drive off some water and concentrate the acid. I posted a link below, but googling [acetic acid boiling point] will lead to info about why it has a higher boiling point, etc. According to the sources I found, the boiling point of pure acetic acid is 244Â°F.

The acid in lemon juice is mostly citric acid. That is in solution, which means it's broken up and bonded with the water rather than actually being a liquid itself. It doesn't boil, it just breaks down into other substances at 347Â°F.

Valereee, I'm with Carol on this one. I once made pectin-free peach-pepper jam that was too soft, so I cooked it longer and ended up making it caramelized and rubbery. I would use the NCHFP method.

Melissa

Here is a link that might be useful: boiling point of vinegar
readinglady
15 years ago
I think Annie calls it "taffy." BTDT. Learned my lesson.

Melissa, thanks for the info on acids and the boiling point of vinegar. I was trying to remember where I'd run across that; the memory was a bit vague and it's always better to read the specifics.

Carol

Is this recipe unsafe? Fig jam: add lemon juice, boil 2 hrs

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Is this recipe unsafe? Fig jam: add lemon juice, boil 2 hrs

Comments (9)

digdirt2

valereeeOriginal Author

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valereee
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