Strawberry Jam

     It has been my longtime wish to prepare some fruit jam at home. About more than a decade back, we had tried making jam at home with some brand's Ready-to-make Jam sachet. I guess it was Kissan spreadmaker or something. Making a jam at home was thought to be something very complicated or close to impossible thing those days :)  
     A good factor of trying it at home is that we can make it with fresh fruits; adding no chemical preservatives & above all without gelatin or other such ingredients which might otherwise be present in some store bought Jams.
     Above all these is that accomplished feel :P of having made it from scratch at home !!!

     I have used Pectin, a natural preservative which is found in large quantities in Pears, apples, guavas, quince, plums, gooseberries, oranges, and other citrus fruits. Adding pectin is to maintain natural glossiness in colour and give a rich texture to jams or jellies which would otherwise be simply sweet juices. Adding pectin allows us to cook jam in a much shorter time and preserve the fresh flavour of the fruit.

Prep Time: 10 mins || Cook Time: 35 mins || Yields: 250gm ||  Category: Jam   

Ingredients:
1. Strawberries - 150gm (finely chopped)
2. Apple - 1 medium sized
3. Lemon - 1 small
4. Sugar - 100 gm

Method:
1. Hull the strawberries (remove the top most crown or green stem from the fruit). Grind a medium sized un-peeled apple with little water and Extract juice from its pulp.

2. Transfer the extracted apple juice to a pan & boil it for 3-5 mins along with a spoon of sugar and lemon juice. (This process is done to extract pectin from apple).

3. Add the finely chopped strawberries to the pectin and stir well. Cook until it becomes little frothy.

4. At this stage add sugar and stir till it dissolves.Cook for about 5 mins in medium flame.

5. After the pectin has blended well with the strawberry pulp, the colour of the paste will turn into glossy and dark in colour.Keep stirring until it reduces in volume.

6.  Keep a plate in the freezer for 5 mins and take it out. To check for the right consistency of the jam, pour a little jam on the plate and wipe down the jam with a finger. It should be sticky and should not move back when the plate is tilted. For a double check, move a larger portion of the jam with the laddle towards one side. It should move as a sticky whole mass revealing the base of the pan for a few seconds. At this stage, switch off the flame and cool down the jam.

     Store the jam in air-tight container and keep refrigerated until and after every use. The jam should keep well for 10-15 days. (or may be even more, but it used to get over within 6 or 7 days :P at my home. So i do not have an idea how far it lasts :P )