14 Best Step-by-Step Recipes for Making Apricot Jam for the Winter

Apricots are rightfully considered sunny fruits. These "sunshine" can be preserved for the winter in the form of aromatic jam, preserving all the vitamins and beneficial micronutrients. This amber-colored delicacy will complement and diversify your collection of homemade preserves. Jam made from ripe apricots can be enhanced with nuts, adding a citrusy "tartness." The culinary imagination is limitless. Let's explore the basic techniques for preparing this southern dessert.

How to make apricot jam for the winter

Apricot dessert will retain the rich vitamin and mineral content of the sunny fruit if preserved properly and cooked according to the correct cooking time. The harvested fruit should be sorted, peeled, and washed. When making it for the first time, the recipe must be followed precisely. With experience, each cook develops her own secrets for making apricot jam. Tips for novice cooks:

1. To ensure apricots retain their shape and don't become soft, avoid using overripe fruit.
2. Prepare the dishes in advance before cooking the delicacy; copper and aluminum containers should not be used.
3. Do not allow sugar to burn.
4. Maintain the proportion of sugar to the main product.
5. They do not digest the syrup.
6. To increase the shelf life of the finished product, citric acid is added to the jam.

Note! To determine the readiness of apricot jam, check the syrup by placing a small drop on a plate. If the liquid doesn't run, the syrup is ready.

Specifics of product selection

The consistency and flavor of the finished dessert depend on the quality of the harvested fruit. Apricots should be firm, not overripe, and free of bruises, mold, and signs of insect damage or rot.

Give preference to garden varieties grown in your region.

Apricots can be halved or stuffed with nuts or raisins, carefully removing the pits. A sharp, thin knife or a paper clip can be used for this. Making jam with the pits is not practical; it's difficult to eat, and the syrup will be runny.

How to properly prepare containers

The correct organization of the cooking process depends on the choice of cookware. Jam should cook evenly, and sugar should not burn. Shallow containers with wide necks and sides are preferred. Copper and aluminum pans should be avoided, as these substances spoil the flavor of food and are harmful to human health.

Prepare a wooden spatula in advance for periodically stirring the delicacy during heating and cooking, and a spoon for skimming off the foam after boiling.

How long does it take to cook?

Apricot jam recipes are divided according to cooking time:

1. "Five minutes".
2. Long cooking time more than 30 minutes.
3. Without cooking.

The most popular recipes are the "Five-Minute" jam, which requires a cooking time of 5 to 10 minutes. The fruit retains all its vitamins and valuable microelements, and its aroma is preserved. After boiling, the jam is often allowed to cool before continuing to cook.

The longer the apricot dessert is cooked and simmered, the more sugary it becomes, and some of the vitamins evaporate. However, this jam has a longer shelf life. The 40-minute cooking method is suitable for green, unripe apricots.

How much sugar do they add?

The amount of sugar is determined by taste; the amount of sweetener to add is up to the cook, based on the natural sweetness of the fruit and the preparation technique. Keep in mind that apricots are naturally sweet. The classic ratio is 1:1.

The amount of sugar affects the shelf life of the finished product: the more sugar added, the longer the apricot dessert prepared for the winter will last.

How to make apricot jam at home

Following the recipe exactly is the key rule for beginners. The final taste of the dish and the quality of the fruits depend on the proportions of ingredients, cooking time, and the choice of fruits. shelf life of apricot treats.

Classic seedless recipe

When making pitted apricot jam, halve the apricots. This treat looks aesthetically pleasing and produces a delicious dessert with the right consistency.

First, the apricots are pitted and weighed without the pits. The optimal sugar to fruit ratio is 1:1. The halves are sprinkled with sugar and left to soak overnight. During this time, the fruit will release juice and the sugar will dissolve.

In the morning, place the container with the aromatic contents on the stove and begin preparing the dessert—bring the future jam to a boil. As soon as foam appears, skim it off. Cook the dessert for 5-7 minutes. While hot, pour the treat into warm, sterilized jars and seal with lids.

Note! Do not add citric acid; added sugar and natural fructose are natural preservatives for apricot jam.

Option with bones

Apricot jam made from whole fruits with pits It has a delicate almond flavor and an attractive appearance. The ripe fruits are immersed in a thick, aromatic syrup. Making this dessert at home is easy, but the key is to choose the right apricots—they shouldn't be too soft or overripe.

Using a toothpick, make small holes on both sides of the selected apricots. The prepared apricots are sprinkled with sugar in a 1:1 ratio and left overnight. In the morning, the jam is simmered for about half an hour, stirring regularly and skimming off any foam.

This delicacy doesn't have a long shelf life; it's recommended to add a pinch of citric acid to the dessert. Furthermore, over time, the pits begin to release hydrocyanic acid, which is harmful to human health. Whole apricot jam should be consumed within a year.

Thick jam made from apricot slices

The best dessert to go with tea on a cold winter evening is thick jam made from amber apricot slicesThis dish is prepared using a classic recipe for jam made from pits. The secret is to cook the jam twice to create a thick syrup.

After the first five minutes of cooking, allow the jam to cool completely, then bring it back to a boil and cook for another five minutes. This trick allows the dessert to thicken, resulting in a syrup of an unusually beautiful amber color.

Without cooking

Every homemaker dreams of making a fragrant dessert that preserves all the vitamins and freshness of summer fruits. Apricots must be pitted, and the amount of sugar used is the same as the fruit, plus an additional 250 grams.

Place the washed apricot halves in an enamel pan, sprinkle with sugar, and leave to soak overnight. In the morning, drain the syrup into a separate bowl, and pass the candied apricots through a meat grinder or puree them in a food processor.

Bring the apricot syrup to a boil, stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. Skim off any foam. For better preservation, add citric acid. Pour the hot syrup over the pureed fruit and stir. For long-term storage, pour the aromatic puree into pre-sterilized jars and seal with lids.

A quick and easy recipe for "Five Minutes"

"Five-minute jam" is the simplest, most popular, and most delicious apricot jam recipe. Seeded fruit slices are covered with white sugar and left overnight. The next day, the candied fruit and syrup are stirred until it boils, cooled, and then brought back to a boil. The hot apricot treat is carefully placed into warm, sterilized glass jars. Amber honey jam from apricots it's ready.

Variant with kernels

An original Soviet-era recipe. Apricot jam is prepared using the classic "Five-Minute" method, but the pits are not discarded. They are thoroughly rinsed and added to the saucepan with the dessert just as it begins to boil. The jam is simmered with the pits for 5 minutes, then the fruit mixture is cooled and brought back to a boil. Skimming off any foam regularly is essential.

This jam tastes different from pitted apricots. It imparts a pleasant almond flavor to the dessert. The finished product has a limited shelf life; pitted jam should be consumed within a year.

Royal recipe with walnuts

A variety of candied stuffed apricots in thick syrup. It's recommended to use slightly unripe apricots; these don't bruise or lose their appearance during stuffing and cooking.

Rinse the walnuts and place them in the apricot pits. The hole left by the seeds shouldn't be too large. You can use a skewer or a thin, sharp, narrow knife.

Stuffed apricots are not boiled; they are soaked in hot syrup twice. Citric acid must be added, and sterilized jars and lids are used for long-term storage.

With almonds

Perhaps the most original and delicious apricot dessert. The apricots are pitted and halved. The preparation process is the traditional "Five-Minute" (five-minute) method: just as the aromatic syrup with the fruit is about to boil, the peeled nuts are added to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, cool, and then bring to a boil again. A touch of citric acid is necessary. A royal delicacy with a delicate almond aroma and amber syrup is ready.

With gelatin

Gelatin is often used to thicken apricot syrup, achieving a jelly-like consistency.

Proportion: 1 kilogram of white sugar and 1 kilogram of pitted apricots require 50 grams of gelatin. The jam is prepared according to the classic recipe, dissolving the gelatin in warm water according to the package instructions.

Important! Pour the dissolved gelatin into the hot jam at the end of cooking, and immediately remove the container with the syrup from the stove.

With orange and lemon

Orange and lemon are ideal companions for apricots in jam. This delicacy is the best preventative for respiratory illnesses and a treasure trove of vitamins and minerals.

Cut the apricots in half, removing the pits. Zest the lemons and oranges by grating the citrus peels. For 1 kilogram of apricots, the zest of 1 lemon and 1 orange is sufficient.

Place the apricot halves in a bowl, sprinkle the zest on top, and sprinkle sugar over the entire contents. The fruit should release its juices, which will take about 4 hours. Then place the jam on the stove and simmer over low heat for about half an hour. Skim off any foam with a slotted spoon. Pour the finished treat into sterilized jars.

With lemon

In this version of apricot dessert, one lemon, ground through a meat grinder, is added to the mixture of halved apricots and sugar; the seeds must first be removed from the citrus fruit.

The delicacy is cooked using the “five-minute” method; a little more sugar needs to be added to this jam.

Recipe for a multicooker

In a multicooker, apricot jam is made using the "Soup" or "Bake" mode. The pits are removed, and the juiced apricots and sugar are poured into the multicooker bowl.

The lid must be open and the foam must be removed, otherwise mold may form on the remaining foam during storage. The multicooker bowl should only be filled one-third full. When preparing desserts in a multicooker, it's important to consult the instructions for your appliance.

From frozen apricots

Frozen apricots can be used to make delicious jam. The fruit must be defrosted slowly. First, move the fruit to the bottom shelf of the refrigerator to release the deep freeze. Then, transfer the apricots to the table and thaw at room temperature.

If frozen fruit is immediately dropped into boiling water, the skin will crack, the fruit will lose its shape and attractive appearance, and some of its vitamins will be lost. You can then use any recipe for jam and use the defrosted fruit as you would fresh.

Recipe using unripe and green apricots

A special feature of making jam from unripe fruit is that less juice is needed to create the syrup; small apricots must be steamed. After pitting, the fruit is washed and placed in a colander. Green apricots are plunged into boiling water three times.

Meanwhile, prepare the sugar syrup in a saucepan. Add 1 kilogram of sugar and half a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained to remove pulp and seeds, to 500 milliliters of water. Once the syrup boils, add the steamed fruit. Cook for 20 minutes. Skim off any foam, and stir regularly to prevent the jam from burning.

Terms and conditions for storing blanks

Apricots with pits, whether in their own juice or jam, must be consumed within 12 months; this southern dessert begins to lose its flavor and becomes unhealthy due to the release of dangerous hydrocyanic acid from the pits. The best storage location is a cellar.

Jam is stored in jars with screw caps at a temperature not exceeding +15 From no more than 3 months. Under sterilized iron lids, seedless fruits retain their flavor and aroma for over 1.5 years.