Add your favourite recipes

Plums

This is the place to ask other users for cookery advice, ingredient info and technique tips. You are very welcome to pass on your favourite recipes, but please bear in mind that, with over 1,200 recipes on the site, it might be worth seeing if Delia has something similar.

Page : 1

By Essex Girl 04 Aug 2012 16:17	Plums I've acquired a big bag of plums from my neighbour's garden and they are still rather hard. Would appreciate advice as to whether I should keep them 'til they soften a bit, or would they be OK for cooking, rather than eating raw, as they are now? Reply Quote
By Honey 04 Aug 2012 20:56	Plums What colour are they EG? We used to pick small Yellow Egg and Green Egg Plums at this time of the year and they are quite firm. We cut them in half, take our the stones and then freeze them and they made really good crumbles all through the year. :o( Not really for eating raw. Do you know what they are? If you Google Yellow Egg or Green Egg Plums, there are loads of recipes. But Victoria Plums are also ready now. I have ripened them in brown paper bags in a dark drawer. Reply Quote
By Essex Girl 05 Aug 2012 08:15	Plums If you went into a shop and asked for something plum coloured, that's how I'd describe them!! (Bit like Victoria plums without any green on them.) Reply Quote
By Honey 05 Aug 2012 11:27	Plums What about a plum and fig chutney... now that would be lovely which your cheese you love so much. I used to do a damson chutney and the stones usually float and you can skim them off. Reply Quote
By Essex Girl 05 Aug 2012 11:36	Chutney? Sounds very nice. Might think about plum and onion. Have never made chutney. What's the best way of sterilising jars? Reply Quote
By Essex Girl 05 Aug 2012 11:37	Chutney... By "best" I mean easiest. Reply Quote
By Honey 05 Aug 2012 11:58	Plums Don't really know the correct answer, but all I do is put the jars through the dishwasher to make sure they're washed in hot hot water and then pop them in the bottom oven of the Aga (low heat) for an hour before I fill them. Never had a problem with my jams, marmalades or chutneys. Eleanor sterilises bottles in a special plastic container in the microwave for 4 minutes. Perhaps you could put some water in each and then microwave on high? Or does that sound too dangerous? Anastasia will know the answer. Reply Quote
By sam from worthing 06 Aug 2012 15:15	Plums I would have suggested (and still do) a plum chutney. How i sterlise jars is to wash in hot water, dry them with a clean tea towel, put them on a roasting tray, and i "cook" them at 150c for about 20 mins, with the opening facing the roof of the oven (not upside down) - not the lids though. Reply Quote
By Essex Girl 06 Aug 2012 17:07	Sterilising Jars Thanks Sam. Had a look on here but couldn't find anything about sterilising jars. It does say to use plastic coated lids and not metal ones because of the reaction with the vinegar. Do you know if you can buy them to fit on standard jam jars? Reply Quote
By Honey 06 Aug 2012 18:18	Lids Lakeland sell them EG. http://www.lakeland.co.uk/3812/6-Red-and-6-Blue-Gingham-Twist-Off-Lids Also do plain white ones. Reply Quote
By Anastasia 06 Aug 2012 21:58	Preparing jars The best & by far the safest way to prepare jars is the way Sam has described? Make sure that you put the chutney or jam into a very hot jar , so hot that it bubbles as you add it, this is another safeguard against even the slightest touch of mould. Plastic lids are really not necessary. If you have a metal lid , just do not overfill the jar, leave a very small space at the top, then put 2 circles of grease proof , or parchment on top of the chutney. This really does work , it is a cheap but very effective seal against the contents coming in touch with the metal. Cut your circles a tad larger than required so when you put them in the jar they will come up the side just slightly. Works every time. Reply Quote
By Anastasia 06 Aug 2012 22:01	Lids Lids need to be sterilised , be they metal or plastic. This can be done easily by putting them in a container & pouring boiling water on them. As you pot the chutney remove from the container , dab dry with kitchen roll & use. Reply Quote
By Essex Girl 07 Aug 2012 07:41	Plum Chutney Thanks everyone. Will be in Lakeland today so might buy some lids anyway. Must now search for a recipe I like the look of. Very exciting! Reply Quote