Defining the Different Types of Jellies and Jams

We're all familiar with the general category of jellies and jams-those sweet, jarred fruits with the soft, spreadable texture. But if you walk through a fully stocked supermarket, you'll notice a large group of similar products by different names, including jam, jelly, marmalade, fruit butter, and preserves. Clearly, since all these things have different names, they probably have differences between them. But what exactly sets them apart from one another, and what do their differences mean? Here's a quick introduction.

First, their similarities: All of these products are made with fruit, juice, and, sugar and many of them contain pectin, a natural substance that thickens the texture. All are made via processes that involve cooking, and they're all known for their ability to keep for many years when stored in jars.

Jam
Jam is essentially a puree made with fruit juice and small pieces of chopped-up fruit. The texture of jam is relatively thick, with lots of small pieces of fruit. There are different ways to make jam, but the most common one involves extracting the pulp and juice from a fruit, heating them with water, and storing the mixture in refrigerated glass containers until they thicken and cool. There are also versions of jams that are cooked for only a very short time and then either frozen or eaten fresh.

Jelly
Jelly is a clear fruit spread with an even texture. It generally doesn't contain any tangible fruit pieces, although there may be some remnants of pulp, plus some seeds from the fruit. Jelly is made in essentially the same way as jam, except there is an additional step to filter out the fruit pulp after heating. If made properly, the jelly will thicken due to the natural pectin in the fruit, and since there is no pulp, jelly is usually sweeter than its counterparts in the jams and jellies category.

Preserves
Preserves are made in much the same way as jam, except the fruit is kept in much larger chunks. Rather than being chopped up finely and pureed, the fruits are kept in medium pieces or even whole. For example, small fruits like strawberries or cherries may not be chopped up at all, and then the preparation process causes the fruits to shrivel and shrink so that they are no bigger than bite-sized chunks.

Marmalade
Marmalade is a subcategory of preserves made from citrus fruits. This means that you will never see marmalade made from any non-citrus fruit. The most common types are made from lemons, limes, oranges, grapefruits, or any combination of these fruits. In some countries, jellies and jams made with citrus fruits are also referred to as marmalade.

Fruit butter
Fruit butter is a thicker version of jelly made by running the whole fruit, usually a larger fruit such as apple or peach, through a sieve after the cooking process. This creates a thick mixture that forms lumps similar in consistency to butter-hence the name. Fruit butter is usually very sweet and makes a great ingredient for desserts.

best spyware remover safe weight loss furniture storage self cleaning litter box better homes and gardens magazine info prodigy review Waterman Expert fry pans flatware set

cast iron wok