Fig jam
Figs are low in pectin and high in sugar, so fig jam does not set like a redcurrant one — it stays thick and slightly syrupy, and that is right. The key is overnight maceration: sugar draws out the juice, shortening the cooking time and keeping the fig pieces whole.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Macerating with sugar 720 min
- Cooking 45 min
- Cold saucer test 5 min
- Filling the jars 25 min
Step by step
0 / 5 doneMacerate the figs with sugar overnight
Quarter the figs, layer them with the sugar, add the lemon juice and zest (the juice is essential: figs are low in acid, and the acid keeps the jam safe and helps it thicken) and refrigerate for 12 hours. The sugar draws out juice by osmosis, creating a syrup in which the figs cook without falling apart.
Ingredients: 1200 g figs · 600 g sugar · 2 pcs lemons
TipTrim the stalks but do not peel the figs — the skin is thin, softens in cooking and helps the pieces keep their shape.
By morning a ready-made syrup has pooled in the bowl.Boil with wine and spices
Tip everything into a wide pot and add the wine, thyme, star anise and pepper. Bring to the boil and cook uncovered for 40–45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes and skimming the foam.
Ingredients: 150 ml red wine · 4 pcs thyme · 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar · ½ tsp pepper · 1 pcs star anise
TipA wide pot evaporates faster than a tall one. In a narrow pot the cooking takes longer and the figs are more likely to collapse into mush.
Wide pot, frequent stirring and skimming.Do the cold saucer test
Put two saucers in the freezer beforehand. Drop a teaspoon of jam onto a cold saucer, wait a minute and push it with a finger: if the surface wrinkles and does not flood back, the jam is ready.
Ingredients: 1200 g figs · 600 g sugar · 2 pcs lemons
A wrinkling skin — the jam will thicken further once cool.Finish with balsamic
Take off the heat, remove the star anise and thyme sprigs and stir in the balsamic vinegar. Added at the end it keeps its acidity and aroma — boiled for 45 minutes it would lose most of its aroma.
Ingredients: 150 ml red wine · 4 pcs thyme · 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar · ½ tsp pepper · 1 pcs star anise
Jar it hot and seal
Ladle the boiling jam into scalded jars, leaving 1 cm of headspace. Seal and process for 10 minutes in a pan of hot water reaching three-quarters of the way up the jars. Processed, it keeps a year in a dark larder, and 3 weeks in the fridge once opened.
Ingredients: 150 ml red wine · 4 pcs thyme · 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar · ½ tsp pepper · 1 pcs star anise
Before you start
What to serve it with
With blue and aged cheeses, foie gras, roast duck and ham sandwiches. The wine, pepper and balsamic give it a spiced, semi-savoury character — better with cheese than at breakfast.
Dried figs
Out of season use 600 g of dried figs soaked overnight in 400 ml of water. Reduce the sugar to 400 g — dried figs are far sweeter.
Without wine
Swap the wine for grape juice with an extra spoonful of balsamic. The colour is lighter but the depth survives.