Simple step-by-step recipes for making apricot jam at home for the winter
Apricot jam is aromatic and tasty, it can be spread on fresh bread or used for baking. Many adults and children like to eat this sweetness with tea. There are many recipes for apricot jam, they differ in ingredients and the time it takes to prepare. Many housewives carefully keep their signature recipe, which has been passed down from generation to generation.
General cooking principles
To prepare a delicious apricot treat, you need to follow these recommendations:
- Dessert is made from well-ripe fruits. Unripe apricots do not give a rich taste and aroma.
- During the cooking process, the product should be constantly stirred, as it quickly burns.
- Half-liter jars are prepared for packaging the finished product. They are pre-washed with soda and dried in the oven.
- For cooking, use a deep aluminum bowl or saucepan. You can use a stainless steel pot.
In addition, you need to prepare lids, a seaming machine, a large wooden spoon and a plate to remove the foam.
To accurately measure ingredients, you need to use a kitchen scale. If you take products by eye, the taste of the finished product may not be as it should be.
Preparation of the main ingredient
The apricots are sorted out, washed with running water and laid out to dry on a towel. After that, the fruits are divided in half and the seeds are pulled out. Care must be taken not to get rotten fruits, otherwise all the jam will be spoiled.
Ways to make apricot jam at home
You can cook apricot jam according to different recipes. You can cook sweetness on the stove, in the oven or in a slow cooker.
A simple recipe for the winter
The simplest is the recipe in which the jam is cooked only from fruits and sugar.
- Peeled apricots are poured into a bowl and covered with sugar, in a ratio of 1: 1.
- Leave the fruit in sugar for 3-4 hours to let the juice flow.
- Put the bowl on low heat and cook, stirring constantly. It is important to regularly remove the foam, then the finished product will be transparent.
The jam is brought to a boil, boiled for 15 minutes and removed from heat. They boil again after 3-4 hours, after which they are rolled up into prepared jars.
The jar is first placed in a dry plate, and only then hot jam is poured into it!
In a multicooker
It's easy to cook apricot jam in a slow cooker, you should follow this recipe.
- Peeled fruits are twisted in a meat grinder or chopped with a blender.
- Pour the apricot puree into a multicooker bowl and cover it with sugar in the ratio 1: 1. If the apricot is sweet, then the amount of sugar can be slightly reduced.
- Set the "Jam" mode and cook until tender.
The ready-made apricot delicacy is poured into dry jars and tightened with lids. After that, the banks are well wrapped in a blanket and left for a day.
In the oven
In the oven, you can cook an unusually tasty and thick jam. What is remarkable, with this method of making sugar, an order of magnitude less is needed than with the traditional method. To prepare a fragrant apricot jam, you need to prepare:
- peeled apricots - 3 kg;
- sugar - 1 kg;
- ½ cup wine vinegar.
The fruit is washed, pitted, and poured into a heat-resistant saucepan or deep baking dish. Fall asleep with sugar and leave for 10-12 hours at room temperature.
After that, wine vinegar is poured into the apricots and mixed well. There will be no vinegar aftertaste in the finished product.
Put the container with the apricot mass in the oven and simmer for 2 hours. After this time, the pan is taken out and the sweet mass is poured into sterile jars.
The sweet mass should be constantly mixed, as it quickly burns and becomes covered with a caramel crust.
Through a blender
Grind the pre-prepared apricots with a blender. Pour the resulting puree into a bowl and pour sugar into it at the rate of 1: 1. We put the container on low heat and cook for 40 minutes. We must not forget to stir constantly.
Some housewives put gelatin in such a jam, at the rate of 40 grams of dry powder per 1 kg of sugar. But adding it is not necessary, since the sweetness hardens so well.
Through a meat grinder
You need to cook apricot jam through a meat grinder step by step. The recipe is this:
- The prepared fruits are twisted in a meat grinder.
- The resulting puree is weighed and sugar is added 1: 1.
- The puree is mixed well and put on low heat, where it is boiled until tender.
If you need a very thick product, a full tablespoon of gelatin is added to the sugar. After hardening, such a product resembles marmalade.
Amber-transparent jam
Cooking such a delicacy is a little more difficult than according to the rest of the recipes. For cooking, you need the following products:
- apricots - you need to take ripe and dense fruits;
- sugar;
- citric acid or lemon juice.
Put the apricots in a bowl in layers, sprinkle each layer with sugar. In this state, the product is left for 12 hours. During this time, the fruit will start juice.
Put the bowl on low heat and bring to a boil, boil for 5 minutes and turn off. The next time is cooked after 12 hours and again for only 5 minutes. After the third cooking, the sweet mass is poured into jars and wrapped in a blanket.
With oranges
This jam has an amazing taste and aroma that is difficult to convey in words. For cooking, you need the following products:
- 2 kg of peeled apricots;
- 1 kg of oranges;
- 3 kg of granulated sugar;
- glass of water;
- 1/3 teaspoon citric acid
To cook a delicious dessert, you need to adhere to the following recipe. The oranges are washed, peeled and sliced. The pits are removed from the apricots. The products are combined, covered with sugar and water is added. Boil over low heat until the fruits are ready, then grind them to a puree consistency and add citric acid. Cook for another 10 minutes, stirring constantly, and put in jars.
With carrots
If you need a tasty and thick filling for pies, you can boil apricots with carrots. You will need:
- seedless fruits - 1 kg;
- peeled carrots - 0.5 kg;
- sugar - 1 kg;
- water is an incomplete glass;
- citric acid - 1 incomplete teaspoon.
Cut the carrots into slices, fill with water and simmer under the lid until soft. Add apricots, sugar and lemon to the carrots, then cook until tender over low heat.
Cool the sweet mass a little and grind to a puree state with a blender. Then boil for 10 minutes and roll into jars.
Seedless
Apricot jam is almost always boiled without seeds, so you can use one of the above recipes. Fruit and sugar are taken in a 1: 1 ratio, if desired, you can add a tablespoon of gelatin per 1 kg of apricots.
Chocolate jam
Pampered sweet tooths can be offered apricots boiled with cocoa. This delicacy has an exquisite taste and aroma. To prepare you need to prepare:
- apricots - 1.2 kg;
- sugar - 1 kg;
- water - 1 glass;
- cocoa - 3 tablespoons.
Pour the apricots into a bowl, add water, 1 kg of sugar and boil over low heat. Grind the sweet mass until puree.
Mix a glass of sugar and cocoa separately and add to the apricot puree. Cook for 10 minutes, then pour into jars and wrap with a blanket.
How to cook apricot jam for pies
For pies and pies, you need thick jam in pieces. To prepare it, take 3 kg of apricots, add 4 kg of sugar and leave overnight. In the morning, boil the apricots over low heat for 10 minutes, then leave until evening. In total, you need to cook the jam 3 times, after which it is laid out in banks.
How to store apricot jam
Properly cooked apricot jam keeps well in the cellar. If there is no cellar, it is quite possible to store it in the pantry or in the kitchen, away from heating appliances and a stove.
The shelf life of the product is 2 years. After this time, the jam may change somewhat in color and taste.
