This Rhubarb and Gin Jam is one of the easiest and most versatile preserves you will make. Making Rhubarb and Gin Jam is a delightful endeavor, capturing the tangy sweetness of rhubarb infused with the subtle warmth of gin. Serve it on toasted sourdough, with a cheese board, or include it in Afternoon Tea. Go savory and use it as a glaze for roasted meats, such as pork. This jam is without pectin and we’ll forego typical canning procedures making this a quick simple recipe for Rhubarb and Gin Jam.
The vibrant red hue of the jam, the chunks of tender rhubarb, and the aroma of botanicals from the gin combine to make this Jam simultaneously tart, sweet, and aromatic. All alcohol is cooked off so this Jam can be enjoyed by everyone of all ages.
Desserts, preserves and jams made with Rhubarb tend to offer one flavor and be either very sweet or very tart. Adding Gin transforms a one noted Rhubarb Jam into a multi dimensional flavor experience.
This preserve is similar to Rhubarb and Ginger Jam, except that Gin is added and the amount of ginger used is significantly less. Using less ginger highlights all of the botanical flavors offered by the Gin. The intriguing twist of adding gin to the mix makes this Jam unique.
In this post you’ll discover what type of Gin to use for this recipe, two foolproof tests to confirm the Jam is ready and how to make Jam without canning.
Making Jam Without Canning
This Jam is a non canned preserve. Having to boil a stock pot full of water, placing filled jam jars into the pot, boiling the jars for 10 minutes, then removing the jars from the pot and allowing them to cool, is eliminated in this recipe. This is plus side. The down side is that the shelf life of the Rhubarb and Gin Jam is shortened to around 1 month in the refrigerator. Because of this, making a small batch is recommended.
Freeze this Jam for up to one year, defrost in the refrigerator overnight and by the following day, it is ready to use.
Using Frozen Rhubarb
This recipe uses frozen rhubarb. Why? Quite simply – it is what I had. Field Rhubarb (meaning not hothouse) becomes harvestable as early as mid March and runs right through to the end of summer. It spreads easily in gardens if left unattended, meaning you could have a bumper crop without really planning on it. With all of this Rhubarb on hand, there are only so many rhubarb pies, crumbles and bars a person can make and eat. So, another alternative is to make Rhubarb and Gin Jam.
Should I Peel Rhubarb Before Freezing?
Correctly preparing Rhubarb for the freezer is vital to ensure it freezes well and produces the desired result once it defrosts.
If you have young, early season Rhubarb, then there is no need to peel. If however you end up with older stalks / late season Rhubarb, then peel the Rhubarb. First, scrub the stalks to remove dirt, then using a vegetable peeler, peel off the outer layer from the mid stalk down to the root. Peel only the curved part of the Rhubarb stalks. Slice Rhubarb into chunks as most recipes require chunks. Place in a freezer bag, label and date it, then freeze for up to one year. It is at its best quality for the first 2-3 months after being placed in the freezer.
Should Frozen Rhubarb Be Thawed Before Using?
No need to defrost Rhubarb if using it for Jam making, pies, crumbles, and cobblers. I would defrost it for muffins. Adding frozen Rhubarb to a raw muffin batter makes the batter too damp and the muffins will end up soggy. So it really depends on what the Rhubarb will be used for.
A Word About Gin
Photograph courtesy of Vendo spirit distributor based in Iceland.
There’s a saying, ‘Good friends offer advice. Real friends offer gin.’ Gin is not only a popular drink ingredient but in this recipe it moonlights as a food ingredient too. Gin offers a wide variety of botanical flavors, primarily juniper but sometimes cardamom, coriander, lavender, anise seed, sarsaparilla, orange peel, coriander and angelica. In addition Gin producers may add flowers, roots, fruits, and berries.
Gin is generally divided into 7 categories:
London Dry
Named after a style of Gin rather than where it was first created and produced. London Dry Gin lacks sweetness and the presence of juniper is evident. Bartenders favor using London Dry Gin in cocktails.
New Western / New World
A New Western gin uses juniper along with other botanicals. There is a presence of sweetness.
Plymouth
Named after the city in the south of England, this style of gin dates back to 1793. It has notes of citrus and botanical roots which give it an earthy taste.
Navy Strength
This Gin has a higher alcohol by volume ratio. Named after the British Royal Navy, a gin is considered Navy strength once it reaches 57% ABV. Gins in the U.S. are around 40% ABV, and in Europe 37.5% ABV.
Old Tom
Old Tom gin has a richer and sweeter flavor than London Dry. Sweeteners such as sugar or even licorice root are added after distillation. This also adds color due to use of a malt base and/or barrel-ageing.
Genever
Genever gin was created in 16th-century Holland. It is an easy sipping Gin made with malted grains and has the lowest alcohol content of less than 35% ABV.
Sloe Gin
Sloe Gin is a sweetened gin-based liqueur commonly used for mixing in dessert cocktails.
Why Add Lemon Juice?
Why add lemon juice when the Rhubarb is tart enough? Welcome to the world of my inner thoughts! Lemon juice or similar acid is often added to foods to brighten food and make them less two dimensional and more three dimensional.
In this case, lemon juice has the sole purpose of being added because this jam is being made without pectin. Jams and preserves rely on pectin to help them set. Pectin is a natural ingredient found in fruits. Jams containing pectin usually go through the canning process. As this recipe avoids this process, then another ‘setting’ agent is needed. Enter lemon juice. The acid in lemon juice helps it set and limits bacterial growth that would otherwise be killed during the canning process.
Ingredients
I recently enjoyed a Gin tasting my husband put together for me on Mother’s Day. Truth be told, I think the Gin tasting was more for him than me! As I enjoyed each mouthful of the different Gins, I began to wonder what flavor would pair well with them. I thought of Rhubarb, then I thought of Jam and then I wondered what it would be like to add a hint of ginger. The rest, as they say, is history. Now you know how it came about, here are the ingredients.
- Rhubarb: I used frozen rhubarb. Fresh rhubarb can also be used.
- Gin: I used Copper Cloud Irish Gin made in Drogheda, Co. Meath, Ireland. It uses 29 handpicked botanicals. The flavor of these botanicals lend themselves well to the flavor of the Rhubarb.
- Ginger: fresh.
- Sugar: white granulated.
- Lemon juice: I used fresh but bottle lemon juice will work.
How to Make Rhubarb and Gin Jam with Ginger
Without further ado, here is the Rhubarb and Gin Jam recipe:
First place a small plate into the freezer, you’ll need this later. Using a spoon, remove the skin from the ginger, then grate the ginger. Squeeze the lemon.
Put the rhubarb, sugar, and grated ginger into a pot. Pour in the lemon juice.
Add in the gin.
Bring the ingredients to a boil and then simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove any foam if you wish. The foam is only air pockets coming from the rhubarb.
When the jam appears thick, part it with a spoon to make a gap. If the gap does not close, then it is ready.
Another test to confirm the jam is ready, is to place a spoonful on the cold plate that was previously placed in the freezer. Drag your finger or spoon handle through the jam. If it stays in place, then the jam is ready.
So now I invite you to embark on your own culinary Jam adventure by trying this recipe.
A Tip From Me
This Rhubarb and Gin Jam can be jarred for your own personal use or labeled with rustic twine and gifted. Nobody will be able to resist the appeal of this homemade delicacy.
Don’t worry if you don’t having canning equipment at home. Along with this recipe, there are other recipes that do not require the Jam to be canned. Click on the images for these recipes:
Simple Rhubarb and Gin Jam with Ginger
Ingredients
- 1 lb rhubarb
- 6 oz sugar
- 2 tbsp gin
- ½ oz ginger
- ½ lemon juice from ½ a lemon, about 1 tbsp.
- ⅛ tsp salt pinch
Instructions
- First place a small plate into the freezer.
- Using a spoon, remove the skin from the ginger, then grate the ginger.
- Squeeze the lemon, collect the juice in small dish.
- Put the rhubarb, sugar, and grated ginger into a pot. Pour in the lemon juice.
- Add in the gin.
- Bring the ingredients to a boil and then simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove any foam if you wish. The foam is only air pockets coming from the rhubarb.
- When the jam appears thick, part it with a spoon to make a gap. If the gap does not close, then it is ready.
- Another test to confirm the jam is ready, is to place a spoonful on the cold plate that was previously placed in the freezer. Drag your finger or spoon handle through the jam. If it stays in place, then the jam is ready.
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