did/does anyone , or have you heard of making jelly/preserves without using sure gel? something makes me remember this.
anyway, we were in N.C. and went to an indian doings just north of fayetteville, and my husband bought a pint of apple preserves. and the lady offered me the recipe, and being the dumb bunny i am, i said 'no thanks'. BUT they are just out of this world. got a recipe off the internet, and it no way compares to the stuff we bought in N.C. it is sooooo thick, looks almost like she cooked it way down, and didn't use sure gel. and maybe less sugar, than my recipes call for. does anyway have a recipe similiar to what i am talking about.?????

I think my grandma used cornstarch and cooked it for a long time.She also just used wax to seal the jars .

I use less sugar than most and just keep cooking until it is thick enough. to test take a spoonful out and let it cool on a saucer and check for consistency.

Apple peels can be used to thicken up jellies - they are a natural source of pectin. Chances are, she did not need pectin, depending on the apple variety. I used to make boiled cider jelly with apple peels, then strain before putting up in the jars. It was great with chicken and pork.

So did my mother! After she poured the wax on top of the jelly we would stick our fingers in it to make wax finger puppets. I used wax on my jelly within first few years of marriage. Then life happened. Last year I started again but I now use the lids and rings. I like using honey instead of sugar int he recipes. The longer you cook it, the thicker the jams get. And just adding a wee bit more of pectin can also thicken it up. I use very little sugar in my recipes. Good ripe fruit doesn't need much. After you put it on toasted homemade bread with a dollop of real Land O Lakes butter you don't notice the lack of sugar.

keep them coming. maybe one of the indian ladies from clinton/fayetteville, will give me the recipe???? please.

I make crabapple jelly with no added pectin, and black berry jelly, I throw in some apple cores (that I save from making applesauce) and it comes out fine.

is what you bought, apple butter?

PT, no, it was apple preserves. she said. real chunky and thick. so, do you just cook, and cook and stir, and cook it down? the recipe off the internet said nutmug,
6 C apples, cored, sliced
1 C. water
1 T. lemon juice
l pkg pectin powdered
4 C. sugar
2 tsp. nutmug
it was just tooo sweet, and was more like jelly when i got done, with a FEW chunks. maybe my apples were too soft. next yr, i'll try it with 1/2 that sugar, firmer apples, and just cooking it down.

I made apple butter a while back and did not use sure gel.
The difference was that you did not peel or core the apples. these used the natural pectin in the fruit to make it thick. Maybe this will help you. You also still have to cook it down and strain out the peelings and seeds with a sieve.

yes, that's the way i make my apple butter also. and apple sauce. i just buzzed it just a second in the blender, to sort of cut up the peels, and then everything went into my old fashioned cone sieve. easy as pie.

but like i said, it was chunky indian apple perserves. out of this world. cohan tribe, or similar to that. clinton n.c.

You may be able to contact the event coordinator via the internet and see if they can refer you to someone who would have the recipe. Ann in TN

I remember those jams and jellies...poured into sterilized, boiled jars with a thin layer of wax poured over it. THEN a long piece of yarn or string was coiled in it and draped over the side, then more wax poured over that. The string was to help pull up the wax when you wanted to serve it.

I remember Grandma saying sweet apples make lousy jelly. She used only tart apples for her apple canning.

I never use SureGel - just use fruit with plenty of pectin. I've never figured out why people use it.

Ny sister learned from her MIL to make currant jelly without pectin. Something about cooking till it slides off the metal spoon. I tried but it never worked for me. But I think by cooking it longer, it would have more vitamins in it for winter nourishment.

We don't have/use sure gel is Australia. When I make jams I add lemon juice and cook it until what ever fruit I am using softens then i will bring it to 220F which produces a nice rolling boil which can't be stirred down. Cook it at this temp for 5 minutes then turn off wait a few minutes (up to 5 mins) then jar as usual.

I should say I usually do a sheet test before I jar it just in case it needs a little more time although usually this is enough.

Maybe1day

have you ever made chunky apple preserves? and would you please explain how you make your jelly/jam?

thanks maybe1day. what's a sheet test? put in on a plate to see if it's firm enough for you?

Oh now that's clever. Never saw my Mom or grandmothers doing that. They say that you shouldn't seal jars with wax anymore, though, so I won't get to try it.

Sure Gel makes a special concoction for using less sugar, it is right beside the regular Sure Gel at my grocery.I made a new apple jam this year 6C peeled & chopped apples, 1/2 C water, 1 tsp butter, cook to rolling boil, add 1 box, regular Sure Gel bring back to a boil. Add 1 C sugar and 3 C brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp allspice. Again to a rolling boil, stirring constantly, boil for 1 minute, remove from heat. I left my apples a little larger than what I think of as chopped cause I like apple pieces in my jam.

When I was growing up my Mother and Aunts used the sheet method. Then they start using Certo (liquid form). I used that for years. Now I use sure-gel or Certo. Both very good. I do believe they would add more fruit to have it thicken with the sheet method. Been a long long time.

Quince used to be used to cause jelly to jell but I don't know the amount. vaguely remember Grandma using it(we had a quince tree out back where she used to pick them)