Plum jam: Saving really ripe fruit that nobody wants to ear, and adding very little sugar and agar agar

Publishing old photos as the plum season in the Oratia orchards is well finished! But jam recipes are good to keep! I used 1 kg of plum was far too ripe and soft for eating. It happens, sometimes we buy fruit and it is hot so it doesn't keep… but very ripe fruit is sweeter, and it is perfect for jams! I washed and the plums and put them in a pot with a little water and boiled them, then I strained them to discard stones and leftover skin and tasted the paste. I usually add 50-60% of sugar (I don't like the 1kg fruit for 1kg sugar ratio they do in NZ), but this paste was already sweet! So I added just 2 tbsp of brown sugar and a pinch of citric acid (as a preservative) and, fearing that the jam wouldn't set, 1/3 tsp of agar agar. If I were to keep this jam longer maybe I would have added more sugar, but I only made 5 small jars and they went pretty quickly!

Remember that apples and pears are still in season at the Dragicevich Orchard, 556 West Coast Rd, Oratia, Auckland.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

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