Jam tastes like paste

[lana-in-fl]

I seldom use pectin when making jam, but my strawberry jam was runny and my plum jam was not as set as I like it, though I was sure I had taken them up to 222F. I had used a bit of pectin powder to make mint jelly, which came out beautifully, so decided to make my second batch of plum jam with pectin. I could only find the liquid pectin. I followed the results exactly (except that I used the immersion blender on the cooked plums, because I always do) and it came out looking good. DH and SIL both think it's good, but to me it tastes like paste. DD says she can taste what I do, but can still get a plum flavor. I am most upset - I have 8 cups of icky sweet stuff and ruined 3 lb of delicious plums Did I do something wrong?

 

[marilynfl]

oh...this is bizarre. I rarely, like maybe once every two years, make jam and I just made peach jam last night using liquid pectin. Which I've never used before! Oh bugger. I'm going to open one of the jars and taste it now. I did manage to burn the entire bottom of the stock pot while I was meticulously skimming off the foam of the barely bubbling jam. Then, when it was all nice and clear, I stirred from the bottom and it was a grade-school volcano experiment gone CRAZY, bubbling like the cauldron in Macbeth! I actually leapt back...which is not a pretty sight to see, let me tell you.

Was your pectin a darkish color and very thick? Because I was expecting clear and this recipe used both 3-oz packages.

Okay....cracking one now to taste it....

whew...mine is okay, but not set AT ALL. The instructions did say it could take up to TWO WEEKS to set so I was planning on just sticking them down in the basement pantry and forgetting about them. Now this is Wild Turkey bourbon jam, so it definitely has that slightly boozy taste, but it's not paste-y at all.

I made 7 jars of jam, 2 jars of juice (for cocktails) and then managed to scrap out 2 jars of super-thick jam skimming the top from the burnt bottom remains. I typically use the jam for pies or ice cream anyway, so I'm not that concerned if they don't gel.

But two weeks seems a bit ridiculous.

Don't you JUST HATE wasting good ingredients.

 

[charley2]

I make jams and jellies every year and will ONLY use powdered pectin when I use pectin. I think it is much more predictable.

I make peach jam sometimes maybe doing what Lana is describing--pureeing the peaches, add pectin, then sugar and cook for the one minute of rapid boil. Can't think what the paste flavor might be. Chances are anyone tasting it will appreciate the plum flavor far more!!

<I did manage to burn the entire bottom of the stock pot while I was meticulously skimming off the foam of the barely bubbling jam.>
I would suggest that you do not skim your jam until it is totally cooked and off the burner and ready to pour into the jars. That is when it will all come to the top. The timing of the rapid boil with pectin is really important because after one minute it is going to go to the glue type of jam.

 

[lana-in-fl]

Marilyn, I'm so glad yours is good! Put it in the fridge to set a bit more quickly. Two weeks is ridiculous.

Mine was thick and dark, but I expected that because I blended it. I tasted it this morning, and it was better - clearly plum jam and no library paste. But it tasted exactly like a commercial plum jam, bland and unimpressive, nothing like my first batch that was a bit runny, but tangy and delicious. I know that when I make candied peel, it doesn't taste right until the next day, so maybe this is similar.

So all's OK that ends well. I'll use the jam to sandwich cookies and put on the base of tarts etc, where it won't be the only flavor. But no more liquid pectin!

 

[lana-in-fl]

I make jams and jellies every year and will ONLY use powdered pectin when I use pectin. I think it is much more predictable.

I make peach jam sometimes maybe doing what Lana is describing--pureeing the peaches, add pectin, then sugar and cook for the one minute of rapid boil. Can't think what the paste flavor might be. Chances are anyone tasting it will appreciate the plum flavor far more!!

<I did manage to burn the entire bottom of the stock pot while I was meticulously skimming off the foam of the barely bubbling jam.>
I would suggest that you do not skim your jam until it is totally cooked and off the burner and ready to pour into the jars. That is when it will all come to the top. The timing of the rapid boil with pectin is really important because after one minute it is going to go to the glue type of jam.

Thank you, Charley2. I am going to go back to No Pectin, but maybe use the pectin powder where necessary, as you say. I have been thinking that when I juice my wild oranges, I might soak all the seeds to get natural pectin, and freeze it so I have some to give other jams a bit of a boost if they seem reluctant to gel.

 

[charley2]

Is there any reason you don't use pectin--and powdered pectin IS "natural" apple pectin. It does increase your yield. The low sugar pectin is not good at all, to my taste--don't know what they have done in that one.

 

[lana-in-fl]

Is there any reason you don't use pectin--and powdered pectin IS "natural" apple pectin. It does increase your yield. The low sugar pectin is not good at all, to my taste--don't know what they have done in that one.

I've never needed to use pectin before, and I've been making jam for years. I did try the Pomona, but the fruit floated to the top of the jar. It tasted good, though. I just seem to have lost my jamming sense, which is why I tried the pectin.

 

[charley2]

I agree you don't "have" to use pectin for most jams but I started doing it because it was faster and easier and the product was good. And I also used Pomona one time and didn't see the benefit in spite of MANY people swearing by it.
Reading some other items about liquid pectin I wonder if the pectin didin't get fully dissolved and maybe that is what you are tasting.

I use the "drip off the side of the spoon" test for gelling and have good results with that.

 

[marilynfl]

My liquid pectin peach jam is still loosey goosey. I've used two jars in peach ice cream and will probably reprocess the remaining jars with regular pectin.

 

[charley2]

You might try just cooking it longer and do the cold plate test or the drip off the spoon test. HOw much do you have and is it totally liquid as in when you started or sort of gelled?
If you do decide to use pectin I would get the bulk jar and use only a tablespoon or two--not the equivalent of a full package (which is about 6 TBS I think)

 

[wigs]

This was a timely post from Lana. I used some Certo liquid pectin this year for the first time because the grocery store didn't have enough boxes of the powdered Original Sure-Jell I typically purchase to use. I never thought to check the jam batches made with powdered pectin against the ones made with liquid pectin. I assumed there would be no difference. Well, now I'll know if ever I come across the errant jar of something gelling improperly and realize what happened was it was probably made with the liquid stuff. Sigh.

About a month ago my SIL gifted me a jar of plum jam she'd picked up in some shop near where she lives. It was Plum French Thyme Jam which is much different than what I make so I was excited to try it. Slathered some on an English muffin last week, and it was so thick and paste-like I considered using a grapefruit spoon to dig some out of the jar! The thickness was so off-putting I couldn't really tell if the flavor was good.
I am now planning to buy a better quality store brand of plum jam (like Bonne Maman or Stonewall Kitchen) and will melt down the thick stuff to stir into something I know is decent in taste and thickness. I hate to throw it out so will try to come up with a plan to make it palatable.

 

[charley2]

YOu might just try adding water to what you have--or wine?--and mixing it well over heat. I overcooked some strawberry jam and did that to salvage it 'cause it DID taste good.
They sell SureJell powder in bulk now which is nice because it gives measurements for smaller amounts of fruit.

 

[lana-in-fl]

Thanks, Charley, that's a good idea.

 

[wigs]

YOu might just try adding water to what you have--or wine?--and mixing it well over heat. I overcooked some strawberry jam and did that to salvage it 'cause it DID taste good.
They sell SureJell powder in bulk now which is nice because it gives measurements for smaller amounts of fruit.

Thank you, charley2, for your suggestion of adding a bit of water or wine and reheating slowly over low head. I'll give this a try. Wigs

 

[wigs]

Reporting in--I'm late with this follow-up, but it's better than never, right? I tackled the fudge-like consistency of the half-pint jar of Plum French Thyme Jam that my SIL had gifted me in August. (She purchased it at some farmer's market in Illinois, I think.)

First, I did some sleuthing on the Internet about the natural pectin content of various fruits. At www.foodpreserving.org I discovered that plums have a natural high pectin content which made perfect sense as to why someone whipping up a batch of plum jam might have added too much pectin, thereby ending up with my very thick jar of jam.

I then searched for and located a plum jam online that had received rave reviews, and I promptly ordered a pint jar. I melted down (over low heat) my half-pint, too-thick one, added a bit of wine and some fresh French thyme leaves that I had processed into a paste using my trusty mortar & pestle and mixed all that into the newly purchased pint jar that was a normal consistency, and voila, it came out GREAT! Thanks for everyone's hints above. My salvage operation was a roaring success!

 

[lana-in-fl]

Good to know that plums have a high pectin content. Thanks for the feedback and I'm so glad all came out well in the end. I might try to rescue mine when I have some time.