Honeysuckle jam - benefits and harm
Honeysuckle is one of the medicinal plants. The leaves and flowers of the plant have beneficial properties. But the berries are especially valuable. They are rich in sweet and sour taste and delicate aroma, for which so many people love them. In addition to its excellent taste, honeysuckle is valued for its valuable properties. This berry contains:
- B vitamins
- Vitamins C, A and P
- Calcium, iron, magnesium
- Tannins
- Pectins
- Organic acids
Honeysuckle jam has antipyretic and anti-inflammatory effects. Therefore, during colds and viral diseases, such a product must be on hand.
These berries have the ability to lower blood pressure, strengthen the immune system, and also have a positive effect on the gastrointestinal tract.
Heat treatment of berries somewhat weakens the beneficial properties of honeysuckle. But some of the valuable substances in the product are preserved during canning. Let's find out how to make honeysuckle jam to stock up on healthy vitamins for the winter and enjoy the aromatic delicacy for a long time.
Read more in the article: Honeysuckle berries - beneficial properties and contraindications
Preparing berries for jam
Before making jam, you need to properly prepare the honeysuckle berries. This will ensure you receive a quality product.
- You need to pick berries only in sunny weather. This should not be done after rain; you should wait until the fruits dry.
- It is advisable to prepare the jam immediately, since the berries do not store well.
- When harvesting, it is advisable to choose ripe berries. Damaged and rotten fruits should be thrown away.
- It is also necessary to separate strong berries from overripe ones. The first ones are suitable for making whole fruit jam. Overripe honeysuckle can be used for ground varieties.
- Debris must be removed from the fruit.
- You need to wash the berries very carefully so as not to crush them. It is best to place the honeysuckle in a colander and rinse under running water without touching it with your hands. Then carefully lay it out on a towel to dry.
After preparing the berries, you can start working.
Honeysuckle jam - a five-minute recipe for the winter
Five-minute honeysuckle jam
This jam can be prepared very quickly. And thanks to the short duration of heat treatment, it retains more useful substances. Honeysuckle jam cooked in this way is thick and tastiest.
You will need the following components: honeysuckle berries - 600 g and sugar - 600 g.
Cooking process:
- The berries are sorted, washed and placed on a paper towel to remove moisture.
- Place the fruits in a blender and add a small amount of sugar.
- Next, the berries need to be crushed to a mushy mass.
- Then the workpiece is placed on the stove, the remaining sugar is added.
- Bring the berry mass to a boil, stirring constantly.
- After the product boils, cook for 5 minutes.
- Hot jam is placed in jars and covered with lids.
Cooking features
Beginning housewives are wary of conducting their first experiments related to preserving berries for the winter. In fact, there is no need to be afraid of failure if you know the intricacies of the technological process and strictly follow the instructions accompanying the recipe.
- There is no need to wash honeysuckle in running water so as not to damage the integrity of the fruit. It is better to pour the berries into a large container filled with clean water, rinse them, removing leaves and debris, and place them in a colander. If the berry is heavily contaminated, the procedure can be repeated. After this, the honeysuckle is dried by pouring it onto a towel. The fabric absorbs moisture, allowing the berries to dry faster.
- Recipes for making “Five Minute” honeysuckle jam involve mixing the berries with sugar. This cannot be done with a spoon, so as not to damage the berries. It is better to shake the basin or pan several times. This way the berries will remain intact and the sugar will cover each of them.
- When preparing jams like “Five Minute”, the berries are given the opportunity to soak in sugar syrup, taking long breaks between stages of heat treatment. You cannot reduce them, otherwise the workpiece may deteriorate much earlier than you expect. Haste in this case can be costly.
- In jam, which is cooked for only 5 minutes or 2 times for 5 minutes, they put more sugar than usual. To prevent it from becoming sugary, you can add citric acid to it. Take 1 g of lemon per kilogram of berries.
- If you are preparing honeysuckle jam for the winter, you need to put it in sterilized jars. You can close the workpieces only with metal lids that ensure a tight fit. Lids must be boiled before use.
Honeysuckle jam “Pyatiminutka” can be stored at room temperature, then its shelf life is 6 months. If stored in a cool room, where the temperature does not rise above 16 degrees, the product will not deteriorate within a year.
A simple recipe for honeysuckle jam with photos step by step
I offer several more ways to make delicious honeysuckle jam. The first option is cooked without water, and the second - with the addition of water.
Option 1 without water
You will need the following components: honeysuckle berries - 1 kg and sugar - 1 kg.
Cooking process:
To prepare the dessert, only washed and dried berries are used.
- Honeysuckle is placed in a saucepan.
- Sprinkle with sugar and leave in the refrigerator for 3-5 hours. During this time, the berries release a sufficient amount of juice.
- Place the berry mass on the stove over medium heat.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook the jam for 5 minutes.
- Remove the berries from the stove. Remove the resulting foam with a slotted spoon or spatula.
- Let the jam cool and brew for 7-8 hours.
- Then return the pan to the stove, bring to a boil and continue cooking for 10-15 minutes over low heat.
- Place the cooled jam into sterilized jars and close tightly with nylon or metal lids.
Honeysuckle jam - We store the finished product in the refrigerator or cellar.
This jam can be consumed immediately after preparation.
Option 2
You will need the following components: honeysuckle berries - 1 kg, sugar - 1.2 kg and water - 150-200 ml.
Cooking process:
- Select ripe berries and rinse well.
- Add the specified amount of water to the cooking vessel and add sugar.
- Boil the syrup.
- Then place the berries and cook over low heat.
- As soon as the jam boils, remove from heat and leave to steep for 6-8 hours. During this time, the honeysuckle berries will be saturated with syrup and will not be boiled in the future.
- Cook the berry mass at a low boil for 15-20 minutes.
- Place the cooled jam into jars and seal with lids.
Jam prepared in this way is not candied and can be successfully stored for a long time.
Five-minute jam preparation options
Only a few minutes a day are allotted for making honeysuckle jam for the winter, called five-minute jam. This time is enough for the closed jars to be stored for a long time, and the contents not to be candied.
The mixture of berries and sugar should be brought to a boil several times, more often from 2 to 5. Moreover, the more cooking, the thicker the consistency will be. Some housewives, who are very responsible about preparing preserves, take up to 2 days to create a tasty delicacy (with long breaks between approaches to the cooking process itself).
Five-minute thick jam
To obtain a thick, rich mass, it will take about 3-4 cookings.
To prepare jam for 5 minutes with a thick, almost jelly-like consistency, you will need:
- honeysuckle 1 kg;
- granulated sugar 1 kg.
Preparation:
- There is no need to add water to the mixture. The juice that will be released from the berries under the influence of heat and sugar will be sufficient.
- During the preparation process, the berries are sorted, overripe and spoiled fruits, twigs and dry leaves are removed. The selected honeysuckle is washed twice through a sieve or colander under cool running water. Then leave it for a while, waiting until all the liquid has drained.
- The berries are placed in a saucepan or basin. Sprinkle sugar on top and leave in a cool place for 4-8 hours. If possible, leave the honeysuckle overnight.
- Under the influence of sand, juice will begin to release from the fruit. After a few hours, the dishes along with the settled contents are sent to the stove and the fire is turned on. Mix the mixture gently with a wooden or silicone spatula.
- When the future jam begins to boil, reduce the heat to a minimum.
- You need to cook for 5 minutes, stirring the berries occasionally. The resulting foam should be removed with a spoon or slotted spoon.
- After 5 minutes, remove the jam from the heat and leave to cool completely. Approximate exposure time is 3-5 hours. During this period, the berries are soaked in syrup and preserved.
- In the following approaches, the steps are repeated: place the mixture on the stove, turn on high heat, immediately after boiling, reduce the heat, cook for 5 minutes, stirring gently, skim off the foam. After five minutes, remove the jam. Let it brew for several hours.
- With each subsequent approach, it will be noticeable that the consistency thickens more and more. The moisture evaporates, and natural berry syrup remains in the container.
During short heating, the fruits will not have time to burst and boil, so the black and burgundy delicacy will contain whole berries
Next comes the final check of the readiness of the jam. It is determined drop by drop. Pour a little syrup into the bottom of the plate and then run the edge of a metal spoon down the middle. If the separated edges do not come back together, this indicates that the treat is ready. You can no longer heat the liquid, but pour it into sterilized jars and seal tightly.
Another way to tell when you need to complete the five-minute cooking process is to pour a few drops on the side of the plate. The dishes are rotated and tilted in different directions. Drops that flow with difficulty from their original position indicate the final preparation of a tasty product.
Important! After cooling, the mass will thicken even more. Therefore, there is no need to put it on the fire again “just in case” - if it is already clear that the thickness of the jam corresponds to expectations.
Five minutes with water
If you add water, the jam cooks much faster. True, the consistency is more liquid than in the previous version.
Prepare a delicious dessert, observing the following proportions:
- 1 part honeysuckle berries;
- 1 part sugar;
- 1/5 part water.
After washing the berries, the water should be allowed to drain properly.
Preparation:
- The crop is washed, twigs and leaves are removed. Excess water is allowed to drain.
- The fruits are placed in a cooking container, half the sugar is poured into it, and liquid is poured. Turn on the heat and stir the mixture with water constantly.
- When the berries in the resulting syrup boil, add the remaining sugar and reduce the heat to very low. The jam should simmer for 4-5 minutes. During cooking, the foam is constantly skimmed off.
- The finished product is removed from the stove and poured hot into a sterile container. The jars, tightly sealed with lids, are turned upside down and covered with a towel. After a day, the finished treat is transferred to a storage location.
Honeysuckle and strawberry jam - step-by-step recipe with photos
Honeysuckle and strawberry jam
Honeysuckle can be combined with other ingredients. There are options for making jam with the addition of orange, lemon, etc. Very often this berry is combined with strawberries or wild strawberries. This delicacy turns out tasty and healthy.
For work, you can use strawberries and honeysuckle in equal quantities or based on the availability of berries.
You will need the following components: honeysuckle berries - 400 g, strawberries - 600 g and sugar - 1 kg.
Cooking process:
- Strawberries need to be sorted and those berries that are not suitable for jam removed.
- The honeysuckle is cleared of debris and sorted.
- Strawberries and honeysuckle are washed under running water.
- The berries are placed in a cooking container, covered with sugar and allowed to brew for about 12 hours. It is convenient to make the preparation in the evening and put it in the refrigerator overnight.
- In the morning, place the container on the stove, turning on low heat.
- Cook the jam in 2-3 batches: bring to a boil and leave for 10 minutes. Cook for the last time until done.
- During cooking, remove the foam with a spoon or slotted spoon.
- The resulting jam is placed in sterilized jars, covered with lids and rolled up. Turning them upside down, wait until they cool down, and then put them in the refrigerator or pantry.
If wild strawberries are used instead of strawberries, the principle of operation is similar.
Honeysuckle compote
Honeysuckle berry compote is prepared in the same way as others. Here, every housewife has her own favorite recipes. For example, my neighbor in the country always sterilizes jars filled with berries and sugar syrup in water for 15 minutes (this is too troublesome for me). A friend blanches the berries in a colander, dipping it in boiling water for a couple of minutes, and then putting the cooked fruits into jars. I prefer a simple, proven method:
- I place the washed and peeled berries in clean jars, and their quantity can be varied by adjusting the saturation of the finished drink. I prefer to fill in about half the jar, or 1/3 or up to the shoulders;
- I heat the required amount of water in a saucepan, pour boiling water into the jars, leave for 5-10 minutes;
- after that, I pour the water back into the pan, add sugar and boil again;
- I pour boiling syrup over the berries, roll them up and turn the jars over.
Honeysuckle jam for the winter: recipes without cooking
Since the amount of useful substances decreases during heat treatment, it makes sense to prepare jam that does not require cooking.
Option 1
You will need the following components: honeysuckle berries - 800 g and sugar - 1.2 kg.
Cooking process:
- Prepared berries, cleared of debris, are washed well in running water.
- To dry them, you need to place the fruits on a paper towel. This must be done, since excess moisture changes the consistency of the finished dish and worsens the taste.
- The dried berries are crushed with a blender or passed through a meat grinder to obtain a homogeneous mass.
- Add sugar to the honeysuckle and mix thoroughly.
- The jars in which the jam is planned to be stored must be washed and sterilized.
- The berry-sugar mixture is placed in prepared containers and rolled up.
The delicacy can be stored for a very long time, therefore, this recipe is suitable for winter preparations. Jam should be kept in the cellar or refrigerator.
Option 2 with strawberries
Honeysuckle and strawberry jam without cooking
Without heat treatment, the berries retain all their healing properties. Therefore, we will prepare healthy jam - an assortment of honeysuckle and strawberries without cooking with a minimum amount of sugar.
You will need the following components:
- honeysuckle berries – 300 g
- Victoria berries -700 gr
- sugar - 250 gr
- Wash the honeysuckle carefully, place on paper towels and let dry thoroughly.
- Sort Victoria, remove the stalks, wash thoroughly and let dry.
- Place honeysuckle and strawberries in a blender and add a little sugar.
- Then the fruits need to be crushed to a homogeneous consistency.
- The ground berries are transferred to sterilized jars, covered with a nylon lid, and stored in the refrigerator for no more than one month.
If it is necessary to preserve the jam for a longer time, then the berry mass is placed in small containers.
Cover with a lid and place in the freezer. Shelf life in the freezer is 5-6 months.
Popular recipe for jam without cooking
I would like to immediately note that this option will help preserve all the vitamins that nature itself gave us. There’s just one drawback: this delight cannot be stored for too long, but if you put it in the refrigerator, it will last for a couple of months.
But it’s better to eat right away or at least during the first month. Children and adults will be delighted with this dish.
We will need:
- honeysuckle – 600 g
- sugar - 1.2 kg
Stages:
1. Prepare the berries for use. Sort and wash.
2. Then add sugar and stir. Juice will be released, which will help the sugar dissolve, but it will take about 24 hours. You can, in principle, slightly heat the saucepan and stir, but just don’t bring it to a boil. And then, it will already be an option with cooking.
3. Next, proceed traditionally, transfer the resulting delicacy into jars or bowls. Close with sterile lids and store in a cool place.
Honeysuckle jam without sugar (fructose)
Fructose jam from honeysuckle
Fructose jam is also a wonderful delicacy. It is suitable for those people for whom sugar is contraindicated, or for those who prefer a lower-calorie treat.
When cooking honeysuckle jam with fructose, it is important to consider the following:
- Fructose enhances the aroma and sourness of honeysuckle better than sugar.
- Jam made with fructose will be slightly lighter than jam made with sugar.
- Fructose is not a strong preservative compared to sugars. Therefore, such jam cannot be stored for a long time. It is better to use it within 3 - 4 months. And keep it in the refrigerator all this time.
You will need the following components:
- honeysuckle berries – 500 g;
- fructose – 350 g;
- water - 0.5 cups.
Cooking process:
- To make jam, first boil fructose syrup and water.
- Then the washed and well-dried berries are poured into the syrup.
- Cook the berry mass for no more than 7 minutes. Next, cool and place in sterilized jars.
Honeysuckle jelly “Pyatiminutka” with gelatin
What you need (for 1.5 l):
- honeysuckle – 1 kg;
- sugar – 0.8 kg;
- water – 0.2 l;
- gelatin – 20 g.
- Pass the honeysuckle through a meat grinder or turn it into puree in another way.
- Mix the berry puree with sugar and let it sit for an hour and a half.
- Mix gelatin with cool water and leave for 20 minutes. Then dissolve it by heating it in a water bath.
- Place the basin with honeysuckle on low heat and heat to a boil.
- Boil the berry mass for 5 minutes, then pour gelatin into it, stir and cook for another minute.
- Distribute the jelly into the prepared glass container and seal tightly.