Is it easy to make jam in a saucepan or is it easier to waste £79.99 buying an electric jam maker from Lakeland?

[PhantomOfTheChocolateCake]

I'd like to try making jam. Is there a traditional method that will save me £79.99?

A sugar thermometer from Lakeland is about a fiver.

And you do what with that?

buy it from tescos. making your own jam will be far more expensive than buying it.

I made jam at school.

Not hard...you just need to know how IYkWIM...fancy tools not necessary

It's easy to make jam. My mum makes it in a saucepan, not even a thermometer needed. It's fruit and sugar.

My mam always makes it in a really big pan. I think she may have a sugar thermo thing... Hope this is a bit of help...?

spending £80 on a jam maker is uitterly ridiculous

if i had the money, i'd buy the jam maker.

work smarter, not harder.

Booo Tesco!!!

It's fun to make things. Far cheaper than Fortnum and Mason

So you heat the fruit, add the sugar, leave it to boil, heat the jars to steralise them and put the concoction mix inside? It's this easy?

It is a rip off. I could go to the pound shop and buy 80 jars instead.

oh yes. but it will cost a lot more to make it than to buy it. Fruit is expensive.

I do agree with expat though - if I wanted to make it I would buy the machine to do it with.

thisi s what my mum does, I think. Trick is to keep your eye on it and stir. She tests it in a little cold water to check if it will set.

The machine's really expensive.

I may try it as christmas gifts.

waste of bloody money, and space in your cupboards.

Where it will probably spend much of its time.

Jam is nice to make, and is better than store bought (once you get the hang of it) but isn't going to save you money, unless you also grow your own fruit in large enough quantities

my mum and mil only make it when we have been to pick our own or mil has fruits in her garden. It's really not hard to make jam. And you get lots of it which lasts well.

Thanks pointy. Does it have to be a special saucepan?

yep, did it for the 1st time ever last month

Pan, stove, lots of stirring, funnel into steralised jars, job done.

no.

You don't need a sugar thermometer, you boil the fuit with the sugar for a few minutes in a saucepan and then dribble some of the juice onto a chilled saucepan. ait until it's cold then put it with your finger, if it wrinkles it's ready to pot.

Don't buy a stupid jam maker from "I Saw You Coming"

the only fruit worth making jam with are damsonss (free, find em and pick em) and blackberries (ditto)

see

Does look nice though. A bit useless for anything other than jam.

lol @ I saw You Coming

I bought this today

a home jam making machine? Further validation that this recession is seven years over-due.

Can you get a lady of a certain generation to show you? It's probably the nicest thing I've ever done with my MIL.

oh dear

Isn't as bad as this one though. What's the point?