Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Spicy Mulberry Balsamic Jam


This isn't a jam jam. It doesn't have a smooth, spreadable consistency. It's more like a sticky, yummy, eat-with-your-fingers type of jam.

I enjoy jam but I rarely ever make any. I like my fruits fresh and whole and I feel cooking them with loads of sugar takes away from the taste. So I don't have traditional jam making ingredients like pectin in my pantry. That's why this jam is not of a jammy consistency.

For those occasions when nothing but jam hits the spot (certain weekend mornings come to mind), I have a jar or two of fruity, pink and purple jams in my fridge. I'm a sucker for jams made of berries and grapes and mixed fruits. Yellow jams like mango and pineapple aren't too appealing to me. Not because of their colour, but because they have that tart taste which is distracting when I dip my bread and jam into coffee and take a bite.

I'm not particular about the make and brand. I appreciate the standard Kissan mixed fruit jam just as much as a fancy artisan one. My latest favourite is Towness' grape and strawberry jam.

When Towness announced that they were introducing seasonal mulberries at their store for a few days, people started to comment excitedly on their facebook page. Having never tasted this fruit before, I was really tempted to order some even though I usually avoid fruits which are expensive.

I hadn't realised that 200gms was a lot of mulberries! Hubby and I quickly finished half of it when the box arrived. But there is only so much mulberry one can eat and the other half was sitting in the fridge going soft for a few days. That's why I decided to make jam with it.

I really don't have quantities for the jam. It was one of those put together-taste-adjust things. So I'll just tell you the ingredients I used and the process I followed and you adjust the quantities to your taste. I think this recipe will work well with other berries too. I can easily picture it made with strawberries, blackberries and blueberries. Let me know if you try it with any of them.

Spicy Mulberry Balsamic Jam

Spicy Mulberry Balsamic Jam
Ingredients listed in descending order of quantities used.

Mulberries
Sugar
Balsamic Vinegar
Chilli Powder
Salt

Wash mulberries and drain.
Place them in a pan with sugar and cook while stirring.
Add a bit of salt and continue to stir and cook on medium heat.
When the whole mixture is mushy, add chilli powder and a generous splash of balsamic vinegar.
Reduce the heat to low and stir well.
Taste and adjust the chilli powder and salt quantities.
Once everything reaches a sort of jammy consistency turn off the heat and allow to cool completely.
Transfer to a glass jar and store in the fridge.
Enjoy! :)

8 comments:

  1. Love this! "I love making jam too but rarely make it"....I think is so unusual that you add the spice and balsamic here and it sounds just wonderful. I make a jalapeno peach jam that mixes so many flavors without being sugary. I haven't used Mulberries before. I need to check them out...sounds delicious,
    Thanks Susmitha :)

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    1. Thanks Angela. :) I hadn't initially planned on making it spicy or adding balsamic. But during the cooking process I felt that just sugar wasn't enough and it was missing something. That's why I added the balsamic and then the spice to go with it. :)

      That jalapeño peach jam sounds delicious!

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  2. Susmitha - you're doing a great job trying out all of these amazing things, and an EVEN GREATER job of sharing it on your blog.

    The yum factor around all of these is a sureshot trigger for many of us reading your blogs to venture into vegan territory, and your blog is the trail we'd like to follow..
    - Sumanth

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    1. Hi Sumanth, thank you so much for your kind words. It always makes me happy when new and aspiring vegans tell me that my blog is helping them on the vegan path. :)

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  3. That is a thing of beauty, Susmitha!! Like jewels in a jar. We have several mulberry trees and I never know what to do w/ the berries (other than eat them straight away) - but jam is sounding perfect!

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    1. Wow it must be heaven having mulberries aplenty! Here the season lasted like two weeks and the mulberries are gone from the market already. My mom says they had a mulberry tree at her grandma's house and she used to eat lots and lots of it whenever she visited during her summer holidays. I need to find someone in Bangalore with a mulberry tree in their house! :)

      I'm thinking that other than jam, mulberry would be awesome in pies!

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  4. Is it weird that the first thing I thought when I saw the photo is that I want to lick your finger! Haha! Looks delish! xx

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    1. HAHAHAHAHA you're too funny, Somer. I just pictured you trying to do that. It's hilarious! :p

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