Tomato jam? Similar to ketchup but different texture

Tomato jam sounds crazy, right? Well, you need plenty of tomatoes, sugar, spices and other ingredients. It is actually similar to a regular ketchup but the texture is similar to a fruit jam. People who do not like the regular stuff may try tomato jam for a change and use it in the same way as regular ketchup.

What can tomato jam be served with?

You can use it in many different ways. Because it is not sweet, unlike fruit jams, it should be served with savoury dishes. You can enjoy it as a dip for grilled or roasted meats. You can also use it as a sauce for tortilla chips, cream cheese, crostini sticks or even savoury crackers. You can also use tomato jam as an interesting decoration on your sandwiches and canapes.

Photo: Pixabay

Prepare glasses

First of all you need to prepare glasses. You need 5 half-litre jars or 8 to 10 quarter-litre jars or glasses. Sterilize them by boiling in hot water for 10 minutes or put them in the oven for 10 minutes at 110 °C. Make sure glasses are not cracked. Throw away any damaged jars or glasses. Boil the lids too and let them dry (wipe if necessary).

Prepare tomatoes

For the specified number of jars, you need 1.5 to 2 kilograms of tomatoes. Wash well and make a cut resembling the letter X on each tomato. Blanch them in boiling water for a minute or two let them cool and peel. Cut into cubes – remove the hard part around the stem.Put tomatoes into a large pot, bring to boil, cover with a lid and cook for another 10 minutes.

Making tomato jam

For every 1,000 ml of tomatoes you will need the following ingredients: 3 to 4 tablespoons of chilli flakes, 2 teaspoons of fresh grated ginger, 60 ml of lemon juice, 1 packet of sugar-free powdered pectin, 1 cup (250 ml) of sugar. Measure all ingredients except the sugar and mix all of them on a saucepan. Stir until the pectin is completely dissolved. Pectin must be added when the mixture is cold, so a good idea is to prepare tomatoes a day before cooking. Bring to boil and add sugar. Stir constantly, bring the mixture back to boil again and cook for 3 minutes.

Final steps

Fill tomato jam into prepared glasses (make sure they are still warm because they will not crack from the thermal shock). Wipe the edges and close with lids, which must be completely dry! Prepare a large pot, and place a towel inside. Line it around walls. Pour enough water in – it must reach 1/3 of the height of the glasses. Bring to boil and place glasses on the towel so, they do not touch each other and cook for 5 minutes. When done, remove, turn upside down and let them cool. Tomato jam should last for up to one year.

Source:

https://www.gettystewart.com/tomato-jam/

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017532-tomato-jam

Preview photo: Pixabay