Make delicious, pectin-free jelly at home

Making a tasty, consistent jelly is a culinary challenge, but it's a skill well worth learning. We'll show you all of the steps and ingredients you'll need to make a mindblowingly delicious pectin-free jelly.

• Unlike other sugar-preserved foods which contain parts of the whole fruit, jelly is made from fruit juice only. Select a fruit that has enough natural pectin for gelling. Some good choices include pears, apples, oranges, and plums.
• To collect juice for jelly making, cook your fruit and then hang it in a jelly bag made formed from several layers of cheesecloth.
• Squeezing the bag or pressing it with a spoon will hasten the flow of juice but can lead to cloudy jelly: it's better to let the juice drip from the bag naturally. If you do squeeze the jelly bag to collect extra juice, strain the juice through a clean cloth a second time.
• Prolonged cooking will turn sweetened juice into jelly by boiling away water until the sugar reaches the right concentration. Timing is critical, and overcooking results in a jelly that's stiff or full of sugary crystals, whereas undercooking will produce a thin, runny jelly.
• Because of the precision required in the process, work with the exact amounts specified in the recipes. Don't double a batch for extra jelly: make two batches instead. Use a thermometer to tell when the sugar concentration is right.
• As cooking progresses and water boils away, the sugar concentration will rise and the temperature will then go up. When the temperature has reached 105°C to 106°C (221°F to 223°F) the jelly should be done. Remove it from the heat and check that the setting point has been reached by dipping a cold metal spoon into the mixture and holding the spoon away from the heat. The jelly should run off in a sheet, rather than in individual drops.
• Fill pre-warmed jars with hot jelly (at a temperature of more than 85°C/185°F) to within 1.5 centimetres (3/4 inch) of the rim. Put on the lid and then immediately invert the jar for one minute. This will sterilize the lid and create an airtight seal. Return jars to the upright position and leave undisturbed for 24 hours.
• For retention of colour and consistency, store sealed jelly in a cool, dark place and use it within three months.

Homemade jelly is much more delicious than store-bought varieties and can even make a tasty, thoughtful gift. So get creative and flex those culinary muscles! There's a tasty future up ahead.