this post was submitted on 04 Oct 2025
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Fruit & Fruit Trees

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submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by stabby_cicada@slrpnk.net to c/fruit@slrpnk.net
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Text reads: "at some point in your life you will be boiling fruit, water, sugar, and lemon juice in a pot to make a syrup or jam. The instructions will tell you to simmer for a certain period of time. Your timer will go off and you will look at the pot and go "hm this doesn't look thick enough, maybe I'll let it go for another 10 minutes". This is the devil speaking. It's only so liquid right now because it's at boiling point. It will thicken when it cools down. Learn from the follies of my youth and do not let this happen to you."

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[–] Malgas@beehaw.org 13 points 2 months ago

Trusting a recipe to give you the exact timing for something with as many uncontrolled variables as home cooking is not actually any less insane than eyeballing it. The real lesson is: learn how to test for doneness.

One way of doing this for jams and jellies is to stick a plate in the freezer before you start and then drizzle a little on the cold plate when you think it might be done to see if it sets.

[–] teft@piefed.social 11 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

This applies to cheese sauces too. The recipe calls for 1 cup of cheddar. As much as I want to add 2 cups it will end up as spackle instead of cheese sauce so lets just use 1 cup.

Or making too much roux for the sauce. That'll also cause it to come out as spackle instead of sauce.

[–] swab148@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 2 months ago

Sounds like you're an excellent spackle maker!

[–] Olap@lemmy.world 9 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I have also pots of runny jam. Get a thermometer

[–] aramis87@fedia.io 4 points 2 months ago (2 children)

You can re-make runny jam to try to save it.

[–] teft@piefed.social 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

You can also use runny jam for syrup on pancakes. That's what my grandmother would do with hers that "failed". Blueberry pancakes with cranberry jam/syrup is amazing.

[–] aramis87@fedia.io 3 points 2 months ago

My policy is to try re-making it once, and then just use it as syrup (pancakes, waffles, French toast), ice cream topping, a pie filling component, or drizzle for cakes, etc.

[–] Olap@lemmy.world 2 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Even a year later?

[–] aramis87@fedia.io 2 points 2 months ago

I usually try to salvage the jam immediately, so I don't know. You could try re-making one jar and see if it sets?

[–] fubarx@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

Doubly goes for Pectin. Use too much, and you end up with solid brick.

[–] Chee_Koala@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

#RealTalk

Make the preserve you deserve

[–] wolfyvegan@slrpnk.net -1 points 2 months ago (3 children)

The real lesson to be learnt here is that cookery is in fact the devil whispering directly into your brain and making the fire seem yummy.

Fruit is best consumed in its whole, fresh, ripe, raw form, and if you need to cook it, something isn't right.

[–] LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net 13 points 2 months ago (2 children)

I agree but this is definitely tropic-dweller privilege speaking here lol

[–] Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de 4 points 2 months ago

as a swede, seeing the fruits people consider "boring" in the tropics makes me weep profusely

we have okay mangos, whoop de doo

[–] wolfyvegan@slrpnk.net 4 points 2 months ago

Perhaps so. If I needed to survive the winter in finland, I'd probably make jam too.

[–] lemmyng@piefed.ca 7 points 2 months ago

Fruit is best consumed in its whole, fresh, ripe, raw form, but if I miscalculated how much my family likes fruit based on hour much I line fruit them I'm damn well going to cook the rest instead of letting it spoil. Fresh fruit is best, fruit compote is second best.

[–] pdqcp@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 2 months ago

I also prefer fresh fruit, but at least around here, we dont have them year round, so I jam anything else I'm not able to feast upon during harvesting period lol