Fermented Rhubarb & Blood Orange Jam Recipe

For this week's recipe, we've combined two seasonal beauties, Yorkshire's finest forced rhubarb and blood oranges, with the bang on trend practice of fermentation to make a delicious and good for your gut jam. The shocking pink of forced rhubarb and the raspberry sweetness of the blood oranges makes this both a treat for your eyes and your tum.  We love both of these ingredients infinitely for their colour, flavour and their short seasonal availability makes them all the more special. If you've never fermented anything before, this is an easy recipe to get you going. All you need is a bit of raw apple cider vinegar (ACV) with the mother (meaning it contains live bacteria) and good airtight jar. Make sure once the jam is cooked, you  let it cool to room temperature before adding in the ACV, as too much heat will kill the bacteria, which you will need as they will do the fermenting. Be sure to store it in the fridge or a cool place and serve from it using a clean spoon. The jam makes a great probiotic addition to breakfast, snacks and can even be served alongside a savoury dish, much like you would a chutney.

Total Time: 1 h 15 m I Prep: 15 m I Cook: 1 h I Difficulty: Moderate

Yields 1 x jar jam (approx 400 ml)

Ingredients:

• 350g rhubarb, finely sliced
• 75g natural sweetener (e.g. agave, maple syrup or honey)
• 1 bay leaf, torn
• 1 star anise
• 2 cardamom pods, seeds only
• ¼ tsp Himalayan salt
• Zest and juice of ½  blood orange
• 1 tsp raw apple cider vinegar (with the mother)

Method:

• Combine the rhubarb, sweetener, bay, spices and salt in a small saucepan along with the zest and juice. Cook at a simmer until the rhubarb softens, so that you can lightly squash it an all allow the juices to release.  Remove from the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.
• Once cooled, add the vinegar or kombucha  into the mixture and stir well.
• Transfer to a sterilised jar and seal tightly, allowing the jam to ferment at room temperature for four to five days.
• Taste the jam with a clean spoon, it should taste slightly sweet, but slightly savoury, with a tart with a subtle vinegary kick.  When it ready, label and date the jam and transfer to the fridge or cold place, where it will keep for up to two months if unopened. Once opened, consume in 12-14 days.