This is a simple recipe to preserve, in screw cap jars, feijoa flesh with or without the skin on. The flesh is scooped out of the fruit and has a milder flavour when compared with slices of the fruit preserved with the skin on.
Introduction
This is hardly a recipe and probably requires no introduction. However, I should explain that my parents were keen fruit bottlers, using Fowler’s equipment and methods. I have continued their tradition, but have given away my Fowler’s equipment and replace them with twist cap glass jars for preserving fruit. Dolmio style jars as in the photo below are my favourite.
The jars are free or cheap in opportunity shops and are abundant in off-peak fruit seasons. They are simple to use and can have various capacities for meal size servings and preserving can be done quickly and efficiently in small or large batches. Small quantities are particularly suited to microwave ‘stewing’ and unlike the Fowler’s process, my technique does not require the direct heating of the jar and contents. It simply requires a suitably hot transfer of the stewed fruit to the jar, capping and a quick inversion of the jar to sanitise the inside of the upper reaches of the jar and lid surface.
This makes the fruit suitable for storage at room temperature and you can use your ‘energy hungry’ freezer for greater purposes.
Recipe
Halve the Feijoas across the small diameter and scoop out the flesh with a teaspoon. A spoon with a ‘keen edge’ works best as it can easily remove more of the flesh near the skin that adds to the flavour. A spoon that is sharpened [link] and kept for this purpose is even better.
Add the juice of a lemon, a little sugar to taste (150g/ kg of feijoa flesh) and a minimum of water and bring to the boil on a stove or preferably in a microwave oven with no water added.
“Using a minimum of water lets you store more fruit and less water per jar. This can be optimized by microwave oven stewing of the fruit, as there is no need to add any water.”
Quickly transfer the hot fruit to the jar, topping the jar up quite high so that there is a minimal ‘air space’. Immediately invert the jar to sanitize the lid. Use a cloth and protect your hands if the lid seal should leak.
[Photo of feijoa preserved in jars with sliced Feijoa and spoon in front]
The filling of the Jars can be done safely, quickly, cleanly, easily and precisely with a square scoop made from a square ice cream tub.
Note: “Can you hear a science lesson starting?” Lid leakage can be reduced or eliminated by keeping the ‘air space’ very small, as it is the expansion of this headspace gas that causes the leakage. The headspace gas is a mixture of air and water vapour which expands greatly when the gas moves into the very hot liquid. Keeping the gas volume small make the expansion small.
The hot sealing process causes the jar to develop a strong vacuum that makes the lid very difficult to open. “But don’t despair, as I have a post on opening such lids.”
Whole stewed Feijoa
An alternative to the above recipe is to use the feijoa with the skin. A disproportionate amount of the good nutrition of fruit and vegetables is in the skins. If this is not a good enough reason the stronger flavour (compared with scooped flesh) may persuade you. I find that they are very nice on breakfast cereals with milk. When the Feijoa is mixed in the milk develops a yoghurt texture and Feijoa flavour.
Recipe
Top and tail, the fruit and slice into circles that are about 5mm thick. Add some water, the juice of a lemon and a little sugar and bring to the boil. Store hot in Jars as above. These go well in pies in winter.
For more information on this fruit, please see About Feijoa.
Tim
gge
