Preserved: hearty homemade!
20.9.2016
Translation: machine translated
Back to the cooker, because now it's time to make preserves! With these recipes, you'll become a "maker", or rather mum's or grandma's competitor. Because you can enjoy delicious summer fruit and berries in later seasons too. And: homemade simply tastes the best.
Who hasn't been there. You're visiting your parents and, as so often, your mum asks if you want to take a jar of jam or preserved fruit with you. So that the sandwich tastes the same as it did when you were a child thanks to the homemade jam, the Älpler macaroons thanks to the homemade apple sauce or the rice pudding thanks to the homemade plum halves. The best thing about it: in preserved form, you can still enjoy the delicious fruit from the region (or even your own garden?) even after a while! Preserving is therefore not just a savoury way of making homemade food, but also a way of using fresh ingredients and preserving them for longer.
For many people, however, it is only mum or grandma who use and preserve fruit, fruit or herbs themselves. But in 2016, you too can lend a hand and bring summer into the jar. Because where the heart is in it, something homemade (almost) always succeeds from personal experience. Try it out and share your experience with us in the comments.
Canning recipes are a dime a dozen. Chutney, pesto, jam, jelly, compote, syrup, pickled fruit, pickled fruit, sauces, liqueur or jam are just some of the ways you can preserve fresh ingredients. There are no limits to your creativity and you can create an enormous number of combinations. Awaken your love of preserving and your palate will be delighted when you eat it. We have selected two recipes to get you started:
Strawberry and vanilla jam in 5 steps
For 5-6 jars of 350 ml, shelf life approx. 1 year
- Wash and cut 1.2 kg of strawberries. Makes 1 kg of pulp, which is roughly diced
- Slice 2 vanilla pods lengthways, squeeze out the brand and place both in a saucepan with the strawberries.
- Add 1kg of preserving sugar (1:1) and stir.
- Bring to the boil while stirring and simmer for at least 3 minutes.
- Remove the vanilla pod.
- Fill the jam to the brim into the prepared, sterilised* jars with screw lids. Close the jars tightly, twist on the lid and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Turning the jar creates a vacuum, which extends the shelf life. Then turn the jars upside down again and leave to cool completely.
Plum jam in 5 steps
For approx. 4 jars of 350 ml, shelf life approx. 1 year
- Rinse, dry, stone and quarter 3kg of plums
- Mix with 500g brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of ground cloves, 2 pinches of ground mace and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon on the fat pan (deep tray) of the oven.
- Leave to infuse for 2 hours.
- Cook in a fan oven at 160° (top/bottom heat: 180°), stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens.
- Pour the plum compote hot and full to the brim into the prepared, sterilised* jars with screw lids. Close the jars tightly, twist on the lid and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Turning the jar creates a vacuum, which extends the shelf life. Then turn the jars upside down again and leave to cool completely.
*Sterilisation is a process that removes living and dead microorganisms from the jars to prevent mould growth. There are four ways to sterilise the jars and accessories
- Pot: Place jars, lids and rubber ring in boiling water for 15 minutes. Then carefully remove them from the hot water and fill them directly.
- Steam cooker: The wet jars are placed in the steamer with the opening facing downwards and sterilised together with the lids, swing tops and rubber rings for approx. 5 minutes at 100° C.
- Oven: Simply place a tea towel on a baking tray. Fill the jars with hot water, place the rubber ring in the water and place the jar and lids on the towel. Place in the oven at 100° C for 15 minutes.
- Microwave: Heat wet jars at maximum power (max. 900 W) for 3 minutes. Fill directly and seal. However, lids, handles and rubber rings are not heated during this sterilisation process.
With these products you will become a preserving guru:
Preparation:
Preparation is half the battle, as they say. With simple helpers, you'll have your ingredients ready in no time.
Cooking up:
Two alternatives are available. We recommend using a simple pan, especially for your first attempts. If you have caught the preserving bug, you can also work with an automatic preserving machine, for example.
Bottling:
In addition to the jars with screw lids selected above, there are also preserving jar alternatives. Note: For certain preserving jars, you will also need the appropriate rubber rings and clips.
Suitable literature
To help you expand your recipe variations, we recommend the following books. You should then be able to create even more flavourful compositions.
Further topics such as Vacuum packing and homemade syrup
Header image: Plum compote or plum halves: delicious with rice pudding, Älpler Makkronen and other dishes
Cinzia Memper
Category Marketing Manager
cinzia.memper@digitecgalaxus.chDiscovering foreign countries and cultures and tasting coffee or other delicacies is what I enjoy most when I travel. My home is decorated with little gems I find in thrift shops and at flea markets. When I’m having one of my big DIY moments, my creativity is unleashed. Both the mountains and the seaside restore my inner balance. With a snowboard or surfboard under my feet, I’m happy.