A hugely wonderful gift – cherry plums from a friend’s garden.

My favourite preserves to make with these are cordial syrup, cherry plum sweet chilli sauce and jam.

I don’t bottle them (aka waterbath) as even with a heavy sugar syrup the skins remain bitter, (even after 2 years in the jar).

So today I’ve started making the cordial syrup. The acidity of cherry plums contributes to a refreshing, not too sweet syrup. The pectin level is quite low, medium at best, so the cordial is less likely to set than others.

Here’s the recipe for the cherry plum sweet chilli sauce.

Cherry Plum Sweet Chilli Sauce

Ingredients

500g cherry plums, weight with stones removed, chopped

220g long red chillies, ends removed and chopped finely

4 ½ cups white wine vinegar

4 ½ cups white sugar

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 ½ tablespoons grated fresh green ginger

5 garlic cloves, crushed

2 teaspoons cornflour mixed to a paste with 1 tablespoon extra vinegar (optional)

Method

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.  Boil over medium heat for 40 minutes.

Thicken if needed with the cornflour paste.