Easy jam plums the depths of flavor
To achieve plum jam nirvana, start with good fruit. It doesn’t have to be precious stuff — save that for eating fresh — but find fragrant plums and pluots. That’s obvious. This next trick, less so. Start by cooking down the fruit before adding the sugar. It intensifies the fruit’s flavor and prevents the sugar from overcooking into unwelcome burnt bitterness. Once the sugar goes in, it liquefies into the plums’ juices and caramelizes just enough to deepen the plummy-ness while keeping the flavor fresh.
While you can jar the jam to make it shelf-stable, it’s easier to keep it in the fridge. Once chilled, it’s best within a few weeks, but it’ll definitely be gone by then.
Lemon juice accentuates plums’ tart side and adds natural pectin, which helps the jam set. You can skip it if you prefer a purely sweet and runny jam. The timing on the jam will depend on how ripe and juicy the fruit are. Follow the testing technique below to stop cooking at the right time. The recipe takes about 30 minutes, plus cooling time, and makes about three half-pint jars.
PLUM JAM
2 lbs. plums and pluots, pitted and cut into ½-inch dice (3½ c.)
1 T. fresh lemon juice
½ t. kosher salt
2 c. granulated sugar
Put 3 metal spoons in the freezer. Combine the plums, lemon juice, salt and 1 tablespoon water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to mediumlow and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the fruit starts to soften a little, about 3 minutes.
Stir in the sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil over mediumhigh heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to maintain a steady low boil. Continue boiling, stirring and skimming off foam from the surface occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and drizzly like maple syrup, 12 to 15 minutes. To test the jam’s doneness, take a spoon from the freezer and scoop a little onto the tip. Tilt the spoon; the jam should glide as slow as honey. Repeat the testing with the remaining spoons if needed.
Divide the jam among three clean half-pint canning jars. Seal and cool to room temperature, then refrigerate.
To make a Star Anise Plum Jam variation, add 3 whole star anise to the saucepan with the plums, lemon juice, salt and water. You can jar the jam with the star anise, but discard before eating.