Plum Jam

part of: Plum

Plum jam is a classic preserve made by cooking plums with sugar until the mixture sets to a spreadable consistency. It has a deep, fruity flavour with a pleasant tartness that balances the sweetness, and a colour that ranges from ruby red to dark purple depending on the variety of plum used.

Plum jam is a traditional staple of the Australian pantry, spread on toast, scones, or crumpets, and used as a filling in cakes, tarts, and biscuits. It also makes an excellent glaze for roast meats, particularly pork and duck, where its tartness cuts through the richness.

Homemade plum jam is a popular way to preserve the summer glut of plums, and it is one of the simpler jams to make at home, as many plum varieties are naturally high in pectin, which helps the jam set without added thickeners.

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How it's made

Ripe plums are washed, halved, and stoned, then combined with sugar in a heavy-bottomed pot. The mixture is brought to a rolling boil and cooked until it reaches setting point — the temperature at which the natural pectin in the fruit causes the jam to gel. Some recipes add lemon juice to aid setting and brighten the flavour. The hot jam is poured into sterilised jars and sealed immediately, creating a vacuum that preserves it for months.

Nutrition (per 100g)

Energy 251kcal

Protein 0.2g

Carbs 64.4g

Fat 0g

Fibre 0.9g Sugar 64.3g

Mass Distribution

What it costs the planet (per kilo)

Carbon ≈1.04kg

Freshwater ≈211.98L

Land ≈1.15m²

≈ Estimated — worked out from a category-typical value further up its supply chain. Where this comes from →

Where it comes from

Made from

Plum, fruit

In the kitchen

Used as

sweet fruit spread

Goes well with

pork bread duck brie butter

Classic dishes

Plum jam on toast
Glazed pork tenderloin
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Where this data comes from

Nutrition data from

FSANZ

How it was calculated

Analysed

Full credits, licences, and methods: the sources page →

Where to next

made fromPlum, fruit goes well withpork goes well withbread goes well withduck goes well withbrie goes well withbutter shares a sourceBaby Food (Plum) shares a sourceCanned Plums shares a sourcePlum shares a sourcePlum Sauce shares a sourcePrune (Dried Plum) shares a sourcePrune Juice

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