Homemade apple jelly with chilli, mint and ginger
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES + STRAINING + COOLING MAKES 500ML | A LITTLE EFFORT | GF
Granny Smith apples or cooking apples 600-750g caster sugar (see method below) cider vinegar or lime juice 1 tsp
red chilli 1, deseeded and finely diced pul biber or dried chilli flakes 2 tsp
ginger 2cm piece, peeled and finely chopped
mint a sprig, leaves finely chopped
1 Chop up the apples, core and all, and put in a pan. Cover with 1-1.5 litres of water and bring to the boil, then cook for 45 minutes until the fruit has softened and darkened.
2 Strain the fruit and liquid through a sieve lined with a clean cloth or muslin – don’t push it through, that will cloud the jelly; be patient and let it drip.
3 Weigh the juice, then calculate 65% of that weight in sugar. Pour the juice into the pan along with the sugar and vinegar or lime juice and bring back to the boil.
4 Boil hard for 15-30 minutes or until the liquid has thickened to a syrup and reached 105C on a jam thermometer – it can take up to 40 minutes to get to this point, so be patient. If you don’t have a thermometer, do the wrinkle test: add a tsp of the jelly onto a fridge-cold plate and leave to cool for 30 seconds-1 minute; the jelly should form a skin, and wrinkle when pushed with a finger; this is when you know the jelly has set, and passes the ‘wrinkle test’. Stir in the chilli, ginger and mint.
5 Once you’re happy, pour a third of the syrup into a clean jar and put it in the fridge. Allow the syrup in the pan to settle for 10 minutes to start becoming jelly – this way you won’t end up with all the bits floating to the top. Tip the rest into the jar and allow it to set. Cover the surface with a circle of baking paper, seal with a lid and keep it in the fridge. It lasts for three months.