Black plum jam – we'll be enjoying it this winter

We had a yellow plum tree growing at our dacha for many years.

The tree was old, its trunk cracked, and the leaves at the tops of its branches curled constantly—the plum was plagued by pests. Of course, we tried to save the tree—we sprayed it for pests, whitewashed the trunk, but nothing really helped. One day, our plum finally died, and we uprooted it, but a small shoot emerged from it, and a young tree is growing well.

The plums were bright yellow and very sweet, and I made a delicious jam from the amber plums, which was more like a thick jam with a hint of honey. I haven't made plum jam since then.

But this year I was overcome with nostalgia and wanted the jam that we always made when we lived in Kazakhstan - apricot (dried apricot), plum from prunes, from Kishmish grapes and from apples, which were called limonka. I've already made the apricot jam..

And over the weekend we bought black plums at the market, and I made jam. The plums weren't overripe, they were firm, delicious, and sweet.

Here in Kazakhstan, we grew exactly these plums, and the jam made from them was very aromatic, slightly sour, thick, with a curled skin that seemed so delicious.

Plum jam recipe

First, I washed the plums in warm running water and removed the pits.

I sliced ​​the plums, placed them in a wide, deep saucepan, and sprinkled them with sugar: 1 kg of berries to 1 kg of sugar, plus a little water. Gently mixed and placed on the stove.

I usually sprinkle sugar on the berries and let them sit for a while to release their juices. But this time, I was making jam in the evening and wanted to boil it and let it simmer overnight so the plums could soak in the syrup. When the jam came to a boil, I skimmed off the foam and reduced the heat. I was supposed to let it simmer for five minutes and then turn off the stove, but I was distracted by a phone call from my brother, and I completely forgot about the jam. My prune jam simmered for 15 minutes over low heat. During this time, it was set, thick, and a beautiful plum color with curled skins.

So I decided to immediately transfer it to jars and seal them. I ended up with four jars—0.500 ml and 0.620 ml.

In a few days I’ll be making raspberry jam and cherry jam (they’re already ripe).