Blueberry is a berry that grows abundantly in taiga forests on small shrubs. It is healthy and rich in vitamins and minerals. It contains a lot of vitamin C, which makes it especially valuable. It also helps with some diseases. People believe that if you regularly eat this berry, you can improve your damaged eyesight. Therefore, in those areas where it grows, every housewife tries to stock up on blueberry jam for the winter. And each has its own recipe, passed down from generation to generation.
Features, pros and cons of blueberry jam
Before preparing blueberry confiture, it is useful to understand what the advantages of this product are and what its disadvantages are.
How is jam different from other berry preparations? If for jam it is important that the berries or fruits remain intact, then for jam, on the contrary, the more homogeneous the mass, the better. Therefore, it is easier to prepare it.
Pros of blueberry jam:
- Prepared in one step. If you do not need to care about the integrity of the berries, you can allow vigorous and prolonged boiling.
- All berries are suitable for preparing this delicacy - overripe, bruised and not fully ripened. They will still boil and mix.
- In winter, it is convenient to spread it on a slice of bread, without worrying that the mixture may spread.
- Can be used in baking.
- Nutrients are not destroyed during cooking.
The disadvantages include the duration of cooking and the boiling of the berries by half or more. Also, the risk of burning is much higher for jam than for preserves.
Preparation of the main ingredient
The requirements for preparing blueberries are the same as for other berries:
- Sort the collected raw materials from leaves and forest debris.
- Rinse under the tap or fill with water and drain immediately so that the juice does not go into the water.
- If you come across spoiled berries, it is better to remove them so as not to spoil the taste of the finished product.
- Place blueberries in a thick-bottomed bowl and place over low heat so that the berries slowly steam and release juice.
To prepare the delicacy, it is better for the berries to be slightly overripe.In this case, they are more saturated with useful substances, and the confiture turns out tastier. Therefore, do not rush to pick the berries too much, let them ripen well.
How to make blueberry confiture at home
There are many recipes for blueberry jam. Each is good in its own way and has its own unique taste. During a good year, you can prepare blueberry delicacy in several ways.
A simple recipe for the winter
Most housewives prefer to simply boil the berries well with sugar. To do this take:
- Blueberries - 1 kg.
- Sugar - 0.5 kg.
The jam will burn less if you first boil the berries until thick and then add sugar. Readiness is determined with a spoon. It should flow from the spoon in a thin stream. Pour the finished jam into sterile jars and roll up.
"Five Minute"
It is very convenient to make instant jam “Five Minute”. It cooks for just five minutes after boiling, and thanks to this, all the beneficial substances are preserved.
Ingredients:
- Blueberries 1 kg.
- Sugar 0.5 kg.
The prepared berries are crushed with a blender. The mass is poured into a bowl with a thick bottom, sugar is added and mixed well. Then put on fire and bring to a boil. Time for five minutes, remove from heat and pour into jars.
The downside of this delicacy is that it does not last long, it needs to be eaten within a month, so it is prepared in small quantities.
No cooking
You can make blueberry confiture without cooking. To do this, the berries are not washed, or washed and then dried.
Ingredients used:
- Blueberries - 1 kg.
- Sugar - 2 kg.
The berries are thoroughly crushed with a blender and ground with sugar. The resulting mass is heated to a temperature of 85 degrees, poured into sterile jars and rolled up.Such preparations retain the taste of summer and all the healing properties.
In a slow cooker
You can make a treat in a slow cooker. To do this, add all the ingredients and set the “Baking” mode for half an hour. Then switch to “Stew” and cook the jam for another hour. You can choose different ingredients to suit every taste.
With gelatin
Ingredients:
- blueberries - 1 kg;
- sugar - 0.5 kg;
- gelatin - 1 pack.
Jam with gelatin is thick and cooks quickly. To do this, dissolve instant gelatin in water and add it to the jam 20 minutes after boiling. Then cook for another 15 minutes. The foam must be skimmed off during cooking.
With pectin
Pectin is a jam thickener sold in powder form. It allows you to significantly reduce cooking time. It is added to blueberry jam 20-30 minutes after boiling and boiled a little more.
Ingredients:
- blueberries - 1 kg;
- sugar - 0.5 kg;
- pectin powder - 1 pack.
This jam stores well, but it needs to be used up during the winter.
With banana
Ingredients:
- blueberries - 1 kg;
- bananas - 1 kg;
- sugar - 1 kg.
Mash bananas with blueberries, add sugar, boil for 15 minutes and pour into jars. The mixture must be stirred during cooking to prevent it from burning.
Spiced
Some housewives love spiced jam. Cinnamon, rosemary, mint, oregano, ginger, barberry and other spices are suitable for this. They are chosen to taste and added at the end of cooking.
Sugarless
People with high blood sugar should not eat foods containing sugar. Therefore, it is better to prepare blueberry jam without this ingredient. It can be replaced with honey or sweeteners. But you can simply boil the chopped berries until thick and then distribute the jam into jars.
With lemon
Lemon gives blueberry jam a good taste. And also its juice acts as a preservative.You can add just the juice or the whole lemon, crushed in a blender.
How to store blueberry jam
Blueberry jam keeps well in sealed jars, as long as both jars and lids have been well sterilized. To prevent the lid from rusting, it is covered with cloth or film and tied.
In this form, well-made jam can be stored for 2-3 years in the basement or pantry.
If the jam was prepared according to instant recipes, it is better to store it in the refrigerator and use it quickly.
Making blueberry jam is very simple. Therefore, housewives always try to prepare it for the winter in order to have vitamins on the table all year round.
