Mango Jam (with Pectin)

It is officially the end of end of mango season. I was lucky enough to taste the final mangoes of the season in India. My mom and I ran to the market in the middle of a hot day as soon as we heard there're mangoes in the market. My daughter and I totally enjoyed the sweet Banganapalli mangoes, while the self proclaimed mango phobic person (my son) looked at us like we were crazy. It's been good 14 years that I ate a good Andhra mango.

I was excited to see some mangoes on our recent visit to the local Indian grocery and bought a whole crate out of sheer excitement, only to find that most of them had dark spots on them. They tasted super sweet and juicy, but the dark spots started to grow bigger by the day. With my husband travelling, I couldn't possibly eat all of them, so decided to make a jam with the rest of them -- this way at least we can preserve and relish the mangoes longer.

I bought some pectin long time back and the recipe is right out of the instructions that came with the package. The package contains Pectin and white Calcium powder. According to the package, calcium water is needed to activate the pectin. I remember using pectin without the calcium water and it worked just fine. But I wanted to stick to the recipe and followed the instructions as is. After reading the FAQ on their website I realized that fruits contain some calcium which might be enough to activate the pectin, but as a precaution, they have included calcium water in all their recipes so the jams and jellies jell properly.

Ingredients:

Ripe Mangoes - 3~4 medium, peeled and chopped to get 4 cups
Lemon or Lime juice - ¼cup 

Sugar - ¾cup (can add up to 2 cups depending on the sweetness of your mangoes)
Ground Cardamom - ½tsp
Pectin - 3tsp
Calcium water - 1tbsp+1tsp (½tsp calcium powder mixed in ½cup of water)

Method:

• Wash and dry the mangoes thoroughly. Peel and chop the mangoes. Then using a potato masher or the back of the spoon mash the mangoes to get a coarse texture. If you want a smooth texture, then blend it into a paste.
• Combine the sugar and pectin in a small mixing bowl and mix well to combine.
• Place the mashed mangoes into a heavy bottomed pan. Add lemon/ lime juice, calcium water and bring the mixture to a boil. 
• Add the sugar-pectin mix and keep cooking, stirring continuously for 2~3 minutes to dissolve pectin. Bring the mixture to a full boil and cook for 1~2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
• While the jam is still hot, pour into clean bottles and let the jam cool completely before closing with the lid. Refrigerate the jam and make sure to use dry spoon/ knife while taking  it out.

Linking this to Valli's 'Cooking from Cookbook Challenge: August -- Week 5'.

Also to Mir's 'No Waste Challenge (Elizabeth's link here).