THERE ARE TWO BASIC FAMILIES OF PECTIN:
High Methoxyl
High methoxyl pectin’s need a high concentration of sugar to create a gel.
Our Standard Sugar Pectin (SSP) and our Confectionary Pectin(CP) use a high methoxyl pectin.
SSP Requires: End brix: 55—66 pH range: 2.8—3.3
(Optimum: 65 brix @ 3.2pH)
CP Requires: End brix: 78—83 pH range: 3.2—3.4
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Low Methoxyl
Low methoxyl pectin’s need the presence of calcium to create a gel.
E Our Low Sugar Pectin (LSP) requires an end brix range of 45 to 55.
Our No Sugar Pectin (NSP) Requires no added sugar. NSP uses preservative to maintain shelf life once opened and in the refrigerator.
Recommended amounts: SSP – Use 2% of total batch weight LSP – Use 3% of total batch weight NSP – Use 5% of total batch weight CP – Use 6% of total batch weight
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HOW TO PROCESS JAMS, JELLIES AND FRUIT SPREADS:
You must ask yourself four questions during the process.
1. Do I have the correct amount of pectin? 2. Is the pectin properly hydrated? 3. Are my brix where it should be? 4. Is the pH in range.
When using a proven recipe, it is assumed that the answer to these questions is “yes”. Also using our LSP and NSP will give more freedom to change the recipe without creating a no-set situation. This will be covered more in detail later.
What if you want to make jam that requires you to come up with the recipe yourself? I am going to teach you how!
Let’s start with the standard sugar type recipes.
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FIRST: Determine the fruit that will be used
Let’s use strawberry as an example:
The brix of strawberries range from 7 to 10. Let’s go with 8 brix. pH range from 3.25 to 3.5.
(note: We have technical sheets on most fruits that give both brix and pH ranges. Contact us for these.)
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SECOND: Determine Your Batch Size
Let’s go with six 10oz jars.
(note: a 10 oz. jar will hold close 12 oz. jam or jelly by weight. The reason is because the higher sugar content gives a greater density)
6 x 12 = 72, making our desired yield 72 oz.
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THIRD: Weigh your ingredients
It is always better to weigh your ingredients than use a volume measure. It’s more precise.
Now that we have determined our final yield of 72oz, we can start figuring out our ingredients weight. In order to have a final yield of 72oz we need to compensate for loss. Based on experience we will see a 6% to 7% loss due to evaporation. 7% of 72 is 5oz, so our starting batch weight is 77 oz.
We want to have a starting brix of 59-60 to achieve a final brix of 65.
43 oz Sugar @ 100 brix
33.25 oz Crushed Strawberries @ 8 brix
2 tbsp Lemon Juice 1.5 oz SSP @ 100 brix
TOTAL: 77.75 oz.
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43 oz
2.66 oz
1.5 oz
TOTAL: 47.16 oz.
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By dividing our brix weight by our total weight we now know our starting brix. In this case the starting brix is 60
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Cooking procedure standard sugar pectin:
· Weigh out 43oz sugar and set aside.
· Weigh out 1.5oz SSP and set aside.
· Clean and crush 33.25oz strawberries in a 6 quart pot.
· Add defoaming agent then start heating.
· Just before the berries are about to boil add your SSP stirring constantly.
· Bring to boil for 30 seconds and start adding sugar in two parts while constantly stirring. We do not want the batch temperature to get too low. Bring back to near boil and add the last half of the sugar.
· Bring back to a final boil for one minute stirring constantly. Turn off heat, skim off foam if necessary. Fill jars. Invert for two minutes.
Parameters:
Brix 65 pH 3.2
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Low Sugar Recipes:
Let’s use blueberries.
Brix range 14 to 17
pH 3.1 to 3.3
We will base our recipe on a standard 1/3 less sugar. We will stay with a 72oz end weight giving us a 77oz start weight. We determine the pectin weight by our yield.
72 x 1.5% equals 1.08oz or 31 grams.
ACTUAL WEIGHT
31 oz Sugar @ 100 brix
45 oz Blueberries @ 15 brix
62 g (or 2.16 oz) LSP
TOTAL: 78.16 oz.
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BRIX WEIGHT
31 oz
6.75 oz
2.16 oz
TOTAL: 39.91 oz.
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This recipe gives us a starting brix of 51. Use the same cooking procedure for the standard sugar recipe. You could use a little less sugar but I would not recommend going below 45 brix as a starting point. We will not be adding additional acid because the fruit should have enough natural acid.
(note: A general pH rule is fruit with a pH greater than 3.3 will need the addition of acid)
How much acid to add is more difficult to determine. There are several variables.
Parameter: Brix 54-55 pH 3.2-3.3
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NO SUGAR ADDED RECIPES:
We say no sugar added because it is more correct than saying no sugar. All fruit has some natural sugar, so we are basically gelling pure fruit. Determine the size of your batch. We will stick with 77oz for a starting batch weight. Multiply the required NSP amount (5%) with the starting batch weight (79oz) or 3.95oz(round to 4oz). The reason we determine the amount of pectin based on gross weight is because there is less cooking time therefore less loss.
- 75 oz. strawberries crushed
- 4 oz. NSP
- Concentrated Sweetener. Add to taste
- At this time I am recommending Sucralose (good flavor and heat stable).
- Second choice if your looking for all natural would be Stevia mixed with Erythritol.
COOKING PROCEDURE - NO SUGAR PECTIN:
- Weight out strawberries (make sure the berries are thaw before mashing)
- Put prepared strawberries in a 6qt pot
- Weigh out pectin, sweetener and set aside
- Begin heating and add defoamer if necessary
- When fruit is near boil whisk in the NSP
- Bring to boil for one minute. Skim foam and begin filling jars. Invert for 2 minutes
That’s all! I hope these tips are helpful, and I’m looking forward to hearing back from you about the delicious masterpieces made with the help of these recipes!
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to email or call our technical department.