Preserves, pickles, jellies and jams

About preserving

From 'dried' pasta to 'smoked' salmon, redcurrant 'jelly' to strawberry 'jam', different methods of preserving are still used in abundance in the food we enjoy today.

It may seem like a lot of hard work to preserve your own food at home when it's so readily available in the shops, but it's more straightforward than many people imagine and the resulting flavours and satisfaction that come from preserving your own ingredients can't be matched. It's also economical - making your own preserves is invariably far cheaper than buying the equivalent quality ready-made. This is even more apparent if you grow your own fruit or vegetables or, failing that, follow the golden rule of only preserving what's in season at the time.

But even if we don't need to preserve our food, for reasons of cost or longevity, it's worth doing it for the almost magical affect it has on flavours and textures. Think how much sweeter and more intensely flavoured a semi-dried tomato tastes in comparison with a fresh tomato, or the soft, jammy, slightly chewy texture of whole pieces of strawberries suspended in their jam against the juiciness of the fresh fruit. It's for all of these reasons that it's worth knowing a few basic methods of preserving.

About jams and jellies

Whether it's jam, jelly or chutney, preserved fruit brightens up all manner of meals and allows you to enjoy the seasons' finest produce at any time of year.

A traditional jam is made by cooking whole or cut fruit, usually to a pulp, with sugar. Some fruits, such as raspberries, can be cooked to a pulp and then sieved before the sugar is added, to get rid of excessive pips. A jelly is made by cooking just the juice of the fruit with sugar.

Both jams and jellies set because of the action of pectin. Pectin occurs naturally in fruit and, when cooked with sugar and the naturally occurring acid in the fruit, thickens and sets the preserve.

Be aware of the pectin content of the fruit your using because the higher the pectin content, the better the set. If you use fruit with a low pectin content, try adding some fruit with high pectin content such as apples, damsons or redcurrants to give a good result. Commercial pectin is readily available and can be added to low-pectin fruits to ensure a good set - it should be added to the fruit before the sugar. Alternatively, adding a few squeezes of lemon juice to low-pectin fruits will help them set.

High-pectin fruits include: blackcurrants, redcurrants, cooking apples, damsons, quinces, gooseberries and some plums.

Low-pectin fruits include: blackberries, cherries, elderberries, pears, rhubarb, strawberries and medlars.

Making jams and jellies

Always use fruit that's in peak condition, preferably slightly under-ripe, when the pectin content will be at its highest. Over-ripe or damaged fruit's not ideal - the jam will not set well and is likely to deteriorate rapidly.

It's the sugar you add that reacts with the pectin and the fruit's natural acids to set the jam. The amount of sugar you need depends on the amount of pectin in a fruit, but generally, the fruit-to-sugar ratio for traditional jams is 1:1 (e.g. 450g/1lb sugar to 450g/1lb fruit). The sugar content's sometimes a little higher or lower depending on pectin and acid content. Very acidic fruits such as blackcurrants have good pectin content and may need a little extra sugar to get a really juicy jam. With fruits lower in pectin, such as strawberries, you can get away with using slightly less sugar.

Coarse-grain white granulated sugar is best for jam-making as it ensures a good clear jam. The coarse grains dissolve more slowly and evenly giving a better result. Fine caster sugar can also be used. Granulated sugar with added pectin is also available, but it shouldn't be necessary to use this.

The magical temperature in jam making is 104C/220F, also known as the 'setting point'. You can buy a preserving or sugar thermometer to test when jam reaches this point, but it's not essential.

To test for setting without a thermometer, put a drop of the jam on a very cold saucer (you'll need to put the saucer in the fridge or freezer first to ensure it's really cold). After a few seconds push the jam with your finger. If the jam surface wrinkles then it has reached setting point and is ready. If it's not ready then continue to boil, testing every few minutes.

As soon as you pour the jam into sterilised jars (see the 'Preserve essentials' section for how to sterilise jars) you should cover the surface of jam with wax discs. Doing this immediately ensures a good seal and prevents mildew appearing on the surface. Store preserves in a cool, dry area, away from direct sunlight, and use within the year.

Chutneys and pickles

In chutneys the main preserving agent is vinegar. Traditional British chutneys are usually made with locally grown vegetables or orchard fruits, but other fruit such as peaches, bananas and apricots also work well. Mango is another favourite for making chutney. The vegetables and/or fruit are normally chopped and simmered with the vinegar, sugar and spices before being transferred to sterilised jars and stored for up to a year.

Pickles are normally made with vegetables which are preserved whole or in large pieces in vinegar flavoured with spices. They are normally pickled raw to preserve their 'crunch'. Perhaps the most famous pickle is piccalilli - a mixture of vegetables, including cauliflower, which is soaked in salted water for several hours before being mixed with vinegar and spices including mustard and turmeric.

Most chutneys and pickles need to be left to mature for about three months before eating - this allows the ingredients to absorb the vinegar and for the vinegar to mellow. Freshly made chutneys can be very vinegary and harsh, even unpleasant. To test if a chutney's ready, run a spoon gently across the top of the chutney. The spoon should leave a trail and no excess vinegar should run into it - if vinegar quickly fills the trail then it's not ready.

Equipment checklist

You must use clean, sterilised jars to store your jams and jellies - any trace of dirt will affect the contents, which will quickly deteriorate. To sterilise jars, wash in hot, soapy water, rinse well and then place upside-down on a rack to dry in a cool oven at 140C/275F/Gas 1 for at least half an hour. Always take care when preparing jams and chutneys to do as the recipe states and sterilise and prepare equipment as directed to minimise the risk of food poisoning.

You will also need: a preserving pan or heavy-based large saucepan, a long-handled wooden spoon for stirring, wax-coated paper discs for covering the surface of the preserve, cellophane covers to seal the jars if not sealing with jam jar lids, labels, a preserving thermometer (optional).

Other methods of preserving

Oven-drying is a good method of preserving some types of fruit and vegetables including tomatoes, peppers and apples. They can then be added to salads, soups or casseroles to lend flavour, colour or texture or can be eaten as a snack. Be aware that fruits and vegetables dried commercially are often treated with chemicals to help the food keep its colour, so don't be disappointed if your home efforts lose some colour.

To dry fruit or vegetables wash and prepare them - smaller fruits and vegetables such as strawberries can be dried whole, otherwise slice or quarter them. Place them on a wire rack and leave in a very low oven no higher than 130C/250F/Gas ½ for 12-48 hours, depending on what you're drying. Cool and store in an airtight container and use within a few weeks.

Smoking, salting and freezing are also effective methods of preserving with delicious results. Making gravadlax (or gravlax) is probably one of the easiest methods of salting food for the home cook - although it will only preserve it for a few days. Salt cod, for example, will keep for at least a year but takes several days to salt initially.

Recipes

Strawberry jam by Sophie Grigson (video recipe)

Instant Punjabi-style pickle by Madhur Jaffrey (video recipe)

Gravadlax by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall