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Pineapple Jam
One of the most quintessential Chinese jam is pineapple jam, which is widely used as filling for pineapple tarts. Though these tarts are traditionally served during Chinese new year, the yummy tarts are loved by all Indonesian and these always pop up in all sort of festive events, be it Christmas or Eid al-Fitr.
As much as I love pineapple tarts, which goes by the name of nastar in Indonesia, I love making this pineapple jam throughout the year. It is super cheap and super easy to make at home, plus I use the jam for almost anything, for my toasts, pancakes, stir a spoonful with my plain yoghurt, etc, you get the point :) And, if you love making home made breads, you can use this as your bread fillings too. So… delicious. ♥
Ingredients for homemade pineapple jam
My pineapple jam is made with minimal ingredients:
- 1 whole pineapple, peeled and cored, then cut into chunks and pureed
- 50 gram brown sugar, or to taste
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
Cooking the jam cannot be any easier, simply place all the ingredients in pot and cook until bubbles, then reduce the heat and keep on cooking until the jam is thick.
Thin pineapple jam
Most of the time, what you need is a thin jam, i.e. spreadable jam such as any other fruit preserves. This kind of jam is suitable for:
- morning toasts, pancakes, or waffles
- bread filling
- cookie bars
Thick pineapple jam
If you are making this jam for Chinese New Year pineapple tarts (nastar), you want to make sure the jam is reduced until very thick and quite dry. We want to get it to the point where you once cooled, you should be able to shape the jam into round balls and hold their shape.
Pineapple Jam
Ingredients
- 1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into chunks (about 700 gram of pineapple flesh)
- 50 gram of brown sugar, or to taste
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
Instructions
- Puree pineapple in a food processor and then transfer to a sauce pot.
- Add brown sugar, cinnamon stick, and cloves. Turn on the heat and cook until bubble, reduce heat, and simmer until as thick or as thin as you want your jam to be. Stirring occasionally so the bottom doesn't burn or stick to the pan.
- Let the pineapple jam cool, discard the cinnamon stick and cloves, then store in glass jar(s).
Comments
Is it a typo¿ 50g sugar for a big pineapple? 500g
Hi Louis, I always try using ripe pineapple when making jam, which means it should already be sweet to begin with. But if your pineapple is not ripe, you may need to increase the amount of sugar. It is best to add the amount of sugar that suits your taste.
Hi Anita, This looks gorgeous! Is it possible to use tinned pineapple with the syrup drained? If so, should I use 700g of drained tinned pineapple? Many thanks :)
Hi JJ, you won't need to drain the syrup, but please make sure that the pineapple alone weighs 700 grams. :) Since the syrup is sweet and full of pineapple flavors, you can reduce the amount of sugar used. I will start with 50% sugar (25 grams) sugar, and add more as necessary.
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