Pectin or say apple pectin is made up of fresh and juicy apples. It is a delicious fruit stock and can be teamed with bread or cakes. The process of making apple pectin is very simple and will not require much efforts on your part. Apple pectin is primarily used as a setting agent for jellies and jams. Home made apple pectin easily replaces the market purchased pectin and is much healthy. It can be stored and preserved for a long time so you will not have to hit the kitchen for preparing pectin very often. Read on to learn how you can make apple pectin at home without any fuss.
Complexity Level: Basic
Time Required: 30-40 minutes
Resources Required:
- Tart green apples
- Water
- 1 lemon
- Cheesecloth
- Bowl
- Spoon
- Can
- Freezer bag
- Saucer/ plate
Instructions:
1. Gather the ingredients
Making apple pectin is easy. You need some easily available ingredients for making apple pectin. You can use any kind of apple you like. Ripe green apples are just as perfect as the damaged ones.
2. Prepare the apples
Before you start making pectin, prepare your apples. You can use either frozen or even fresh apples, both work perfectly great. Clean the apples with warm water to remove any pesticides or other impurities. Clean them with a towel and keep them aside. If you are using frozen apples, defrost them before using for making pectin.
3. Cut the apples
Cut the apples in large chunks and place them inside a saucepan which you will be using for making pectin. You will also need to cut a nice juicy lemon and put it in the saucepan. Do not remove the peels, seeds or the cores of both the ingredients. Put them in the saucepan as it is.
4. Add water
Now that you are done with the apples and lemon, add water into the saucepan. The water must just cover the apples. Turn on the burner on medium heat and let the ingredients boil. Keep on stirring the apples every ten minutes to avoid burning.
5. Filter the pectin
After about 45 minutes your pectin will be ready. You can check this easily by looking at the apples which by now will be extremely soft and mushy. The water content in the saucepan will be reduced to almost half of what you added. Turn the burner off and keep the saucepan aside for cooling. Meanwhile, place about three layers of cheese cloth above a large bowl, the filtered pectin will get stored in this bowl thus make sure it is clean. You could alternatively use a jelly bag for filtering pectin. Pour the pulpy contents of the saucepan onto the cheesecloth and let them drain. Press the fruit to drain the leftover pulp. Remove the cloth once you are done with the pulp.
6. Cook again
You will have to cook the drained fruit pulp again. Simply pour the juice into the saucepan and cook over medium heat. You will have to decrease the volume to almost half. Keep on stirring to avoid over boiling or burning. Simultaneously, remove the foam which will come to the surface every now an then.
7. Check if the pectin is ready
After about 20 minutes of cooking your pectin will be ready, you can check this by dropping a spoonful of the pectin onto a plate and leave it to cool down. If after cooling down, the pectin forms jelly it is done; otherwise, you will need to cook it further. This is the only way you can check whether your pectin is ready. Once you get a jelly like substance consider your pectin to be ready for use or storage. You can store the pectin in a canned jar or simply into the freezer using a freezer bag.
Frequently Asked Questions:
For how long can apple pectin be stored?
You can store home made apple pectin for about 6 months. Just ensure that you store it properly in a proper jar or simply keep it in the freezer. Use it whenever you need.
Quick Tips:
- Use a spoon or bamboo skewer to determine when the fruit pulp or juice has reduced to almost half. Rough idea might not be reliable in case of pectin.
- Try giving your pectin some unique flavor by adding rosemary or thyme like herbs into the boiling juice.
Things To Watch Out For:
- Do not forget to remove the foam from the boiling juice else you will get cloudy pectin.
- Handle the hot boiling juice carefully to avoid burns.
