Jam Culture

[s1m0n]

Every year when the local berry crop arrives I turn a flat or so each of strawberries and raspberries into freezer jam. It's jamming time again, so that what I'm up to. This time while I was mashing strrawberries, I started thinking about the fact that each year when the new batch is done, I set a few jars aside, and give them to some of my friends, neighbours & co-workers. I don't really know why I do this, but it seems to be an important part of the operation. I never consider not doing it. That's how it's done.

This, it occurs to me, is likely cultural. I know I'm not the only person to do this. But I damned if know which culture this comes from. North American farm & small town culture? Canadian culture?

Who else does this? Is there a similar set of social rules in Europe?

It's also interesting that the receiver's reciprocal social obligation isn't to rush out and make jam or find some other small present to give in return (although that happens). What marks a receiver as a cultural insider is if they know to return the empty mason jar (washed) for use next year.

[Innocent Bystander]

Yes, this happens in Europe - or at least the UK and Ireland. We don't generally use Mason jars, as that's a larger quantity than we tend to comfortably consume. We usually recycle the little half-pound jars that we buy the commercial stuff in. There's no schtick about bringing back the empties, as most people have a stock of the things and it's seldom that anyone runs short. On the other hand, that's my experience as a city bod, and country bods likely don't have quite as much shop-bought materials. Maybe.
My sister sent me some jam that she had made. It was blackcurrant jam (my favourite). The label was written very carefully : "Raspberry".

[s1m0n]

I use one cup and two cup wide-mouth mason jars; the large size that I think you're thinking of is used most often for canning* rather than jam.

And yes, the size you get is an indication of esteem.

*Canning = chunks in a liquid, like Peach halves in syrup or dill pickles. I don't do preserves, but if did, I'd use a one litre/four cup narrow(er) mouthed jar. Getting something that sets (like jam) out of the bottom of a jar that tall means either very long spoon or very sticky fingers.

[emmline]

I'm not sure Simon...it's a very ingrained piece of culture in southwest Virginia, where my dad grew up. There, we could always assume that neighbors with gardens would be dropping off whatever they'd canned, and those who baked would be coming by with an extra cake of some sort. We were beset and besieged with food each summer, when we went to visit.

Last August, after my dad died, my mom and I went back to close up a small apartment they'd kept for when she and my dad were in town on business. We hadn't been there 2 hours before the next door neighbor showed up with a heap of string beans from his garden.

Not that people where I live now (same place I grew up--the Baltimore/Washington/Annapolis sprawlopolis) are inhospitable...they're generally very nice, but you don't get the level of overt neighborly sharing that occurs in my dad's small town. I don't know why, unless it has to do with the fact that this is such a (relatively) mobile area. Many people who live here also grew up here, but many others came later. Doesn't have the timelessness of generation after generation staying put.

[dwest]

We can or freeze everything, put up 12 pints of pickles yesterday. We likely will freeze some more squash tonight, make tomato marmalade on the weekend and several types of canned peaches. We use a very wide assortment of jars including some that are 1/2 gallon down to the small jars you might get pimentos in occasionally. I have a slight obsession for three fruit marmalade so that goes in the 1/2 gal. jars. When the grapes come in we will make jelly in smaller jars that are then shipped to various family who in turn ship us jellies they make. The peppers all get roasted and frozen, and I put up a couple of monster sized egg plant Parmesan in the freezer for large family dinners. When the acorn squash ripen later we will make squash pierogi, we have about 6 left in the freezer from last year. I will say a dishwasher really shines when you are canning, nothing quite like being able to put all those empties in the dishwasher and have them get cleaned just before you need them. We keep ours in an understair pantry and I still can't believe how dirty they get, must be all the mice and roaches.

[Doug_Tipple]

I will say a dishwasher really shines when you are canning, nothing quite like being able to put all those empties in the dishwasher and have them get cleaned just before you need them.

I can see the logic in having a automatic dishwasher to clean a large group of jars just before you need them for canning. However, in general, I am not in favor of dishwashers. We had our dishwasher removed, as it wasn't working anyway. In its place we now have four large drawers, which are full of kitchen stuff that we use all the time. I enjoy the process of washing dishes by hand. Having my hands in the warm, soapy water is a pleasant sensual experience. I try to remain mindful of what I am doing, and I enjoy the process. I hand dry each piece and lovingly put it back in its storage location. However, I mentioned this once in a high school teacher's lounge years ago, and the home economics teacher actually yelled at me in disgust.

[Nanohedron]

However, I mentioned this once in a high school teacher's lounge years ago, and the home economics teacher actually yelled at me in disgust.

Well, don't be coy, man: out with it. We want DETAILS. Like, what's disgusting about clean dishes?

[Doug_Tipple]

However, I mentioned this once in a high school teacher's lounge years ago, and the home economics teacher actually yelled at me in disgust.

Well, don't be coy, man: out with it. We want DETAILS. Like, what's disgusting about clean dishes?

I think that the teacher was disgusted with me for saying anything bad about dishwashers, home economics being her specialty. I believe that dishwashers use too much energy, and I don't like to bend over to place or remove dishes from the bottom tray. I know a lot of modern women wouldn't dream of having a kitchen without a dishwasher. They don't want to be bothered washing dishes by hand. With the home economics teacher in question, I think that she thought that I was crazy to hold such a view. Of course, you can get clean dishes, with or without a dishwasher. You also can argue that a dishwasher uses hotter water and air-dries the dishes, which is more sanitary. But, to be honest, I was baiting the teacher in question, looking for a reaction. I was guessing that the "Chop Wood, Carry Water" appeal would not find a responsive ear in that group, and I certainly was right. I didn't really care much, though, as I had already decided to leave that school system the following year.

[Nanohedron]

I think that the teacher was disgusted with me for saying anything bad about dishwashers, home economics being her specialty. I believe that dishwashers use too much energy...

Uh, yeah...remind me how saving energy has nothing significant to do with home economics, would you? I missed that part.

[HDSarah]

I frequently give jars of homemade jam to friends, and yes, many do return the empty jam jars. I live in Alaska; I grew up in Washington state (the small-town, dry side of the state; not Seattle) with parents of midwest US origin.

As for hand-washing dishes, I suspect it would be the towel-drying that would cause certain people to recoil in disgust. Just leave them on the rack to air dry -- it's less time-consuming AND more sanitary. I think dishwashers MAY be economical (in terms of total hot water use) if you have lots of dishes to do and don't pre-rinse. Of course, it depends on your particular dishwasher and your own system of doing dishes. I washed dishes VERY efficiently back in my years of living without running water, when all my water was hauled (by me) in 5-gallon jugs. As with many cabin-dwellers who move into homes with plumbing, I went through a phase in which I reveled in "wasting" water. (I also discovered that pasta really DOES turn out better when you cook it in a large amount of water. )

I have a dishwasher now, but didn't for most of my life. When I was single it was easy to just wash my few dishes after each meal; it takes almost no time. I remember, back in my way-too-busy years with young kids, getting up at 5 am some days to spend an hour catching up on washing the huge pile of dishes. I would have appreciated a dishwasher then.

[Innocent Bystander]

Back before I appeared and was draughted in, my sisters were delegated to the chore of washing and drying the dishes and pots. Lorna was the eldest, and was trusted to wash properly, while Daphne was assigned to drying. She pretty soon realised that the dishes dried if left alone, which meant her work was reduced to putting things away. This irked Lorna. There was one celebrated occasion when my parents went out after tea, telling the girls to have the dishes cleared by the time they returned. Lorna washed the dishes and Daphne left them to dry. As Daphne prepared to put the dishes away, shortly before my parents were due to return, Lorna doused the lot in cold water. They still argue over that one.

[emmline]

I don't mind washing dishes, and can appreciate the sensual aspects of warm water and suds. I have spent years without a DW, (as well as without an oven, roof, back wall...fun times, fun times...)
As Sarah says, when you are raising a family and the dish quotient expands exponentially, time becomes an issue. As does real estate--there's never enough space on the drying rack, so they can end up on dish towels spread over the entirety of whatever counter space you have. This is something I have very intimate knowledge of.

Currently I have a 2 drawer system. I'm sure their are many reasons to scoff at the unecessary-ness of such a set up, but I enjoy being able to set one a-running, and still have another to absorb the dirties that continue to dribble in.

[dwest]

We lived for several years without indoor plumbing or power. My wife and I had both grown up as the primary dish washers in our families plus I had spent several years as a lab-ware washer while an undergrad. On top of that I had spent a summer as a mess cook on a pre-WWII wood research vessel off the NA Atlantic coast. The gallery was designed for humans a maximum height of six feet. I was six feet five inches. There are few things more fun than washing dishes in steamy hot warm water during rough seas with your neck crammed against the ceiling and your face overhanging the sink with that wonderful smelly steam caressing your cheeks. I still catch myself walking with my head bent and to the side sometimes.

Dishwashers do conserve water and are significantly more sanitary. Our current machine uses six gallons, while most hand-washing uses on average 11-12 gallons. I consider water a much more valuable commodity than energy and we save energy in other areas in our home.

[Nanohedron]

Dishwashers do conserve water and are significantly more sanitary. Our current machine uses six gallons, while most hand-washing uses on average 11-12 gallons. I consider water a much more valuable commodity than energy and we save energy in other areas in our home.

Now there's a defense of dishwashers that I can listen to and chew on, and I'm more likely to be persuaded than if I were just getting yelled at.

As for hand-washing dishes, I suspect it would be the towel-drying that would cause certain people to recoil in disgust. Just leave them on the rack to air dry -- it's less time-consuming AND more sanitary.

Maybe towel disgust might be it. Lacking any confirmation I'll go ahead and assume that's right, and straight away it makes me wonder: If the dishes are clean and the towels are clean (and certainly one's hands must be clean), what would be disgusting? What about handling dishes from the dishwasher to put them away? One must handle them. Are one's hands equally as clean as those dishes beforehand? In most cases I seriously doubt it.

If it's a dishwater issue, that's going to depend on how you go about it. As my dish and utensil usage is comparatively small and it makes more sense to wash larger batches, I immediately pre-rinse my dishes and so the batch grows in comparative cleanness. It may use more water, but not as much as a full dishwashing expedition every time I have a sandwich. And yet I am concerned with being as sanitary as possible, so a pre-rinse goes toward that, and pre-rinsed dishes don't feed pests. I don't have a dishwashing machine, can't afford one, and in any case I wouldn't have room for one even if the landlord agreed to foot the bill and install it.

One does the best one can with what one has.

[Doug_Tipple]

I can understand that busy people with children and a lot of dishes to wash must be thankful for the time-saving convenience of a dishwasher. However, for one or two people I have found them to be somewhat of a nuisance. With the amount of dishes that we use, it would take at least two or three days to fill the dishwasher so that it was economically feasible to run the load. Unless you pre-washed the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, in that time some of the food on the dishes would have hardened, making it difficult for the machine to wash it off. I was always finding food spots on dishes after they came out of the dishwasher, which doesn't meet my definition of "more sanitary". Also, during the three days that the dishwasher was setting there with unwashed dishes, I continually found myself looking for kitchen items to use (my favorite knife, for example) only to discover that the item I was looking for was in the dishwasher and not available for use. I'm the kind of guy that has a favorite coffee cup, cereal bowl, etc. I suppose you can understand that I want the yellow coffee cup with rooster on the side and not just any-old coffee cup.