Adding Jell-O to jam
I too canned strawberry jam that did not thicken. I was very glad to see your advice about adding strawberry Jell-O to each jar as I open it. Does this work with other fruit jams (peach, etc)? Can you just add the Jell-O at the start of the process instead of pectin?
Judith Almand
Brandon, Florida
Yes, adding Jell-O works for other fruit jams/jellies. No, you can’t add the Jell-O instead of pectin. However, there are jam recipes that use Jell-O if you care to Google them. If you have several jars of failed jam, you can re-do them. To do this, measure no more than 8 cups of jam. For each cup, measure 1½ tsp. powdered pectin, I Tbsp. water, and 2 Tbsp. sugar; set sugar aside. Combine pectin and water in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Add the un-jelled jam and sugar, stirring to mix well. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Boil hard for 30 seconds. Remove from heat. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch of headspace. Place new, hot, previously simmered lid on jar and tighten ring firmly tight. Process in a boiling water bath canner for the full time required for the original recipe. — Jackie
Chicken skin
I stripped the skin off chicken that I cooked tonight. Now I have a bowl of skin (raw). Seems a shame to throw it away but what can be done with it? No one wants to eat it but can I give it to pigs or chickens?
Gail
Palisade, Colorado
You can give it to your pigs or chickens. For safety’s sake, you probably should boil it until “done” to prevent possible bacterial infection. Both chickens and pigs naturally dig up and catch insects and small mammals and eat them (raw). — Jackie
I regularly use chicken skin to make schmaltz, it’s rendered just like making lard and cracklins with pork skins. You can use it in cooking instead of oil. or as a bread spread, it’s better than oleo but not quite as good as butter.
Marlene,
It would but it would have better flavor if the skin was boiled with at least bones with some meat on them.
if you boiled it and then chilled to let fat rise, skim, wouldn’t it can up to make broth if you added veggies & strained?
If you cook the skins, it makes a good addition to dog food in small amounts. So does the liquid you cook it in, if you boil it.
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