Making roselle jam gives me great satisfaction. Firstly, the roselle we use to make the jam is grown in our own garden (hence no chemicals). Homemade jam is also pure, made from fruit and sugar only without any extra ingredients such as preservatives or coloring. Last but not least, my whole family loves homemade roselle jam, and they would spread it on their toast or crackers every morning whenever there is a jar in the fridge.
Homemade roselle jam, great with scones too
I've made roselle jam a few times now. The first time I made it was with whole roselle calyx, hence we ended up with some texture in our jam. The next few times, I blended the roselle calyx first before boiling it with sugar. My family prefers the blended version.
A few tips about jam making that I picked up while reading some cookbooks:
1. Use a stainless steel pot when making jam.
2. When making jam using tough-skinned fruit, the fruit should be simmered and softened first before adding sugar as sugar has a hardening effect.
3. To test if the jam has set, you can either use a sugar thermometer (the setting temp is 220F/105C), or place a teaspoonful of jam onto a frozen plate and if a crinkly skin is formed, then it has set. Another way of determining if it has set is something I learnt from Vivian's post - use your spatula and draw a line in the centre, and if it has set, the line can stay for a few seconds before disappearing.
This homemade roselle jam is slightly tart, which make this a really appetizing spread. You can control the amount of sugar you put in too, I usually use about 3/4 cup of sugar to 250g of roselle. Now, I am waiting for my next roselle harvest so that I can make this for my family again :)
Homemade Roselle Jam
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 40-45 minutes
Makes 325-g jar
Ingredients
250g roselle calyx, washed
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup caster sugar
1. Peel the roselle calyx from its seed pod. Place in a blender/food processor with 1/2 cup water and blend until you get a puree.
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| Roselle harvest from the garden |
2. Pour the roselle puree into a stainless steel pot and bring to the boil over medium high heat. Once boiling,
low to medium low heat and add the sugar. Stir occasionally, making sure that the sugar has completely dissolved. Cook for about 30-35 minutes until jam has thickened. It will look jelly-like. To test if jam has set, please use one of the above methods (see above 2nd pic).
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| Draw a line once the mixture looks "jelly-like" and if the line stays for more than a few seconds, your jam is ready. |
3. Remove from heat, and pour into dry clean jars. Seal immediately. Once cooled, store in the fridge. The jam will thicken further once cooled completely. This jam will keep for at least 3 weeks.
Note: If using unblended roselle calyx, simmer over medium low heat for 10 minutes before adding sugar.
I used to make roselle jam too. My family prefer the jam in baked goodies instead of spread :P
ReplyDeleteI've not managed to use it in bakes yet cos my family really loves it as a spread :)
DeleteHi Yen, I just made the roselle jam yesterday that I harvested. Really nice with bread and I'm going to try in my bakes too.
ReplyDeleteHomemade jam !! This is really interesting ! You are so talented.
ReplyDeleteYen, I want to get the roselle plant!
ReplyDeletethis is pure home-grown, home-made goodness! something really special :D
ReplyDeleteOh.....i didnt know can make into jam. Thought only for drinks.
ReplyDeletethanks...will go pasar malam and hunt for roselle
DeleteI think I've seen them selling in NSK too.
DeleteOh nsk hv ya...I'll try my side here. See if this nsk hv it too :) thanks ya
DeleteI wonder where I can get roselles. I rang up a gourmet store once and they were so expensive so definitely not jam material. I'd love to make this!
ReplyDeleteThey're pretty cheap to buy here, compared to fruits such as strawberries and blueberries. It also grows really well in KL, so I have about 10 plants in my garden :)
DeleteLovely jam! I've just sowed some roselle seeds a couple of days ago! Keeping my fingers crossed that they will sprout!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck, they're pretty hardy plants and grow quite easily :)
DeleteYen, nothing beats homemade, esp when you grow your own roselle, great efforts & I must say that your jam looks just as glossy as like the commercial brands. Bravo bravo!
ReplyDeleteJessie, those imported fruits such as strawberries and blueberries are so expensive, so I cant really buy them to make jam. Roselle is a cheap and very good alternative! And yes, so happy I can grow them in my garden. I'm waiting for the day where I can get a big harvest of mulberries!
DeleteI saw Anncoo cooking this too! Looks just as yummy as yours!
ReplyDeleteYou simply cannot beat homemade jam! I haven't yet had the courage to make it..yours looks delicious
ReplyDeleteI prepared this 2 weeks ago. Naturally tangy and easily spreadable. My favourite. Thanks for the tip on cooking blended calyx. Nice home-made jam.
ReplyDeleteSeeing your blog about your homemade Roselle jam made my mouth water! The Roselle flower produced a red tint that made it look like a cross between strawberry jam (minus the seeds) and raspberry jam. I hope to read more exciting recipes from you! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteFaith Thomas @ TheBerryFarm.com.au
I had never heard of Roselle jam. I have used the flower in baked goods with great success. I cut the flowers into small bits,then folded into into my brownie recipe. The brownies were a huge hit. No one else had even heard of the Roselle flowering plant.They were said to be some of the best brownies they'd tasted,very moist as well. Looking forward to making the jam next.Thanks for the recipe.
ReplyDeleteIn some parts of Malaysia, they make roselle dry pickle, where its tarty and delish! Like the orange peel pickle with asam, but this doesn't have the powder on it. Akin to slightly dehydrated calyx
ReplyDeleteCan you use the dried flowers ? If so, how much?
ReplyDelete