How To Make Liquid Pectin From Roselle Seed Pods

~Making Liquid Pectin From Roselle Seed Pods~

~Ingredients~

-Cleaned Roselle seed pods with the red calyxes stripped off.

-Enough water so the seed pods can be submerged in a pot.

-That’s it!

~Fill Your Pot With Pods~

Place all of your cleaned Roselle seed pod calyxes in a pot. Fill with enough clear water to allow the pods to be submerged slightly. Remember: more water will mean a thinner pectin, and more required time to cook down.

~Boil The Pods and Smoosh Them Down!~

-At first, cover your pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a simmer, first for 10 minutes.

-After about 10 minutes, when the pods are beginning to soften, smoosh the pods down with your spoon or potato masher.

-Continue to suimmer for another 20 minutes, or until the seed pods are translucent.

*Smooshing the pods is optional, but a good idea, as it helps to release more of the natural pectin more quickly. Conversely, you can rough-chop the pods before you boil, but I find this a little hard on my hands, so choose to smoosh in the pot.

~Strain and Squeeze!~

-Set a cheese cloth over your collection bowl. When the seed pods are translucent and softened, pour your liquid and pods into the cheese cloth or jelly bag to drain.

-Alot of the loose liquid will come out first, but the pods will hold onto a lot of the gel. Let it cool just a bit.

-After cool enough to handle, squeeze as much of the gel out of the pods as you can! There will be more than you think!

~Pour It And Store It!~

-And here you go! This beautiful, magical pectin is ready for use immediately, or can be stored for later use.

-Store in the ‘fridge for about 3 days, per research. I’ve kept it in my ‘fridge for longer, but I also performed the “Pectin Strength Test” (I linked it in the videos of this post), to ensure my pectin bonds hadn’t reduced.

-It also stores very well in the freezer!

~So How Do I Use It?~

The strength of your liquid pectin may vary depending on how long you boiled it, and how much you squeezed out. You can perform an easy test to see how strong your pectin is (see the videos linked to this post). If you have a “Strong” liquid pectin, you can use the guidelines below. But remember, this is not a low-sugar pectin. This means you NEED the recommended amounts of sugar to create the “set” of the jelly or jam that you want. Sugar acts as a dehydrator and helps the pectin to create the bonds it needs. You will also need some lemon juice:

~For Jams Made With Naturally Low Pectin Fruit:~

Such as strawberries, figs, or peaches, have lower amount of natural pectin and require a bit more.

-Use 1 – 1.5 cups of Roselle liquid pectin to 4 cups of fruit. Use 1 cup pf sugar for every 1 cup of the combined volume of fruit/liquid pectin. Don’t forget to add 1-2 TBS of fresh lemon juice to help the pectin molecules bond and gel properly.

~For Jams Made With Naturally High-Pectin Fruits~

Such as apples, crapabbles, tart plums, cranberries, grapes, or citrus peels, you won’t need as much of your roselle liquid pectin.

-Use 1/2 cup to 3/4 cups of Roselle liquid pectin for every 4 cups of your high-pectin fruit. Continue with your 1:1 ratio of sugar:combined volume of fruit/liquid pectin, and don’t forget your 1 TBS of lemon juice per 4 cups of fruit.

Don’t forget to check out our links for more instructions on how to make Roselle Jam, and more!

Roselle Video Playlist

Learn more about growing, growth habits, flowering stages, harvesting, and more in our Roselle Video Play list on YouTube (click above).

Roselle Recipes

(Coming Soon!) It’s not just for tea! Check out all the delicious ways you can use Roselle in your kitchen!