Sweet & Savory Tomato Jam Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Why is my tomato jam not thickening? ›

If, after waiting, you find the jam is still too loose for your liking, empty the jars back into a wide pot and cook again. Wash and sterilize the jars and try again. While you can simply reduce the jam to your liking, you can also add commercial pectin or chia seeds to the reducing jam to guarantee thickening.

Combine tomatoes, sugar, lemon juice, ginger, red pepper flakes, salt, cinnamon, and cumin in a large, heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer until mixture reaches a thick, jam-like consistency, about 2 1/2 hours.

Ways to Eat Tomato Jam:

It completely transforms an egg sandwich, grilled cheese, or BLT. As a topping for burgers or hot dogs in place of ketchup. As a dipping sauce or glaze for meatballs. It pairs well with cheese and charcuterie platters, providing a complementary flavor.

Ketchup is more like jelly, and tomato jam is more like, well, jam. The reason tomato jam and ketchup have different textures really comes down to how each is prepared, just like jellies and jams. Ketchup is made with tomatoes that are mashed, boiled, and thoroughly strained.

To remake cooked jam or jelly using powdered pectin measure 15 mL (1 tbsp) water and 7 mL (11/2 tsp) powdered pectin for each 250 mL (1 cup) product into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in jam or jelly.

If you simply take fruit and cook it with some sugar to sweeten it a little, it will get thick enough to turn into jam by the naturally occurring pectin in the fruit and the process of reduction. Reduction occurs when we simmer the fruit, and the liquid turns to steam and evaporates, which thickens the jam.

With a simple lemon juice trick, your homemade jam will achieve your desired thick texture. Preparing jam is about capturing the sweet essence of the fruit while simultaneously cooking it down to the perfect syrupy consistency.

Add chia seeds to the recipe.

The chia seeds soak up the juice and moisture from fruit purée and plump up, giving a thickening effect to the jam without using heat or added sugar or pectin. Think of it as a chia seed pudding made with fruit rather than milk.

If the jam is still liquid then we don't particularly recommend reboiling. It can be tried but there is a risk that the jam becomes over boiled, which also means that it will not set. The jam can also burn much more easily when reboiled. The thin jam can be repurposed as a sweet chilli sauce.

Plum tomatoes like Roma, Amish paste, or San Marzano are both good choices. San Marzano has only two seed chambers, and both San Marzano and Amish Paste are less acidic than Romas which makes them a sweeter choice.

What are the benefits of tomato jam? ›

Benefits of tomato jam

On the other hand, tomato jam is rich in magnesium and potassium, as well as vitamins B, C and A, which is why it helps protect the immune system, as well as being a great ally in skin and eye care.

Tomato jam is best served in instances where we would use jams in a more savory application, like on a charcuterie board with mild soft cheeses or even in a pizza. A popular recommendation online for tomato jam is to use it in BLT sandwiches in the winter when good tomatoes are unavailable.

In the UK, the terms "tomato sauce" and "ketchup" are often used interchangeably to refer to a sweet, tangy condiment made from tomatoes and other ingredients such as sugar, vinegar, and spices.

Place the tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, ginger, salt, cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes in a 3- to 4-quart Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Simmer the jam until thickened, about 2 hours.

Jams are usually stewed fruit with the fruit in it and lots of sugar and pectin that thickens and makes it gel, and is a condiment for toast or used in baked goods. Ketchup might be cooked tomatoes but it is more processed than jam, and has a different range of tastes to be used on meat or other foods.

There are two ways to thicken jam with gelatin, but the easiest method is to soften sheets of gelatin in hot water and then add them to the jam as it cooks. Alternatively, dissolve powdered gelatin in warm water and add it to the still-cooking jam.

If it still hasn't set, it's time to determine how much jam needs to be recooked. You don't want to remake more than 8 cups (4 pints) at a time. For every 4 cups of jam that needs to be remade, whisk together 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon powdered pectin.

If the jam is still liquid then we don't particularly recommend reboiling. It can be tried but there is a risk that the jam becomes over boiled, which also means that it will not set. The jam can also burn much more easily when reboiled. The thin jam can be repurposed as a sweet chilli sauce.

Once the jam is done cooking, it may look a little thin, but just remember that it will thicken in the fridge as it cools. For a thicker version (good for fruits that are low in pectin, like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and peaches), add a tablespoon of pectin powder.