What is Pectin?
For those of you who don't jar your own jellies and jams, you may be unfamiliar with pectin. It is a polysaccaride that is found naturally in fruits like berries and when combined with sugar and heated up becomes a thickening agent. Before pectin, you would have to continuously reduce jam over heat to get it to the right consistency.
Found in most supermarkets but with a limited shelf life, you want to use a new box each year. I have found an excellent source describing just about everything you want to know about pectin here.
What About Sugar Free Pectin?
I received an email from Robert N. asking about the availability of "No Sugar Pectin" for preparing raspberry jam. I immediately contacted Chef Jennie Field, a graduate of Orlando Culinary Academy, Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts School in Florida. Here are Robert's question and the Chef's response:
Hi RG - Kathy M. suggested I ask you to help in our quest for NO-SUGAR PECTIN. We grow lots and lots of raspberries and the family loves the jam my wife makes, but prefers it with no-sugar pectin. We just have not been able to find it. Any suggestions?
Chef Field's Response:
Most pectin needs a high sugar to gel--there are special low-sugar and no-sugar kinds you can get to make jams and jellies with a lower sugar content. Here's a link to purchase no-sugar pectin:
Apparently, you can use this type of pectin to make a Polaner All-Fruit type of jam: fruit, some fruit juice, and maybe some sugar along with the no sugar pectin. In my experience, raspberries have a pretty high pectin content. I used to make a great raspberry jam at the restaurant with just IQF raspberries, lemon juice, a bit of salt, and sugar. Not sure how "low-sugar" they want their jam to be, but my ratio was 1 to .9 fruit to sugar--gelled just fine, as long as I reduced it to the right consistency on the burner.
andre
Hello, we wanted to make you aware of our new canning website and let you know we are here for your readers! We have a wide variety of canning supplies on our site. We are looking forward to the next harvest. Please let us know if we can be of assistance in any way. Thanks.
Norma
I made rhubarb jam an I ,think ball classic pectin is almost pure sugar. I do not like the jam. last year I made rhubarb jam an it was tart an very good don't recall name of pectin I used .Must not have had sugar in it . I do put sugar in the rhubarb ,pectin with sugar is over kill. what brand has n9o sugar in it ?