Rose jam (Morabaye Gol, مربای گل محمدی) is one of the most delightful and famous members of Persian cuisine’s jam family. I can claim that Iranians can make jam out of almost every vegetable and herb. However, among all of the Persian jams, the rose jam is exceptional because it is the oldest jam of Persian cuisine. Iranians have been cultivating this unique type of rose since 4000 years ago in Fars province. This particular kind of rose is very resistant in front of dry climates, and other challenging conditions.they also make a juice and syrup out of this rose. The liquid name is rose water in English and Golab in Farsi. The syrup is made from petals like the jam. Kashan, Kerman, some regions of Azerbaijan such as Heravi has the best roses in Iran. In the spring, many Iranian homemakers buy roses to make their rose ground, rose jam, rose syrup, and sometimes even Golab!
Different types of Rose Jam:
There are two different types of rose jam available in Iran. One type of jam is made with fresh rose petals which are only available in the spring. To cook jam in this method, you need to clean and cut the leaves with scissors and then cook it with sugar and water. Another type of rose jam is made with dried rose petals, and you can make it whenever you want because dried rose petals are available the entire year and everywhere. In my opinion, the first method is better since it makes a brighter and fresher jam. Usually, the jam made with dried petals has a dark pink color.
Important Nutrition Facts:
The rose jam owes its nutritions to the rose; since the other ingredient (sugar) has no nutrition but carbohydrates! Each 100gr of Rose jam has about 278 kcal. It has 68.80 gr carbohydrates, 0.4gr protein, and 0.07gr fat. Moreover, it contains 8.80 mg vitamin C, 10.2 gr vitamin B4, and 0.12mg vitamin E. Furthermore. It has 20mg calcium, 77mg potassium, 32mg phosphorus, and 4mg magnesium. This type of Persian rose has shown effective symptoms in relaxation. Therefore many herbalists suggest using it as a medicine to calm the heart and nerves.
Vegetarian tips:
All of the Persian jams are vegetarian. Because they all have vegetable sources. Rose jam is made of water, special kind of rose cultivated in Iran, and sugar. If you are a vegetarian or a vegan, you can confidently enjoy Persian jams.
Serving Style of Rose Jam:
Iranians serve rose jam in small bowls next to a bar of butter for breakfast. In some regions, such as Azerbaijan they serve it after food as a dessert. It is also a very common topping for Shir Berenj, and they widely use it in Ramadan. While serving, the petals and the syrup that petals are in, are served together. If you are going to serve it with butter and for breakfast, Persian cheeses, Persian pieces of bread such as Barbari and Sangak, and a cup of Persian tea are the excellent choices as side foods. As a dessert, you can serve it along with other jams. It can also be a topping in any white dessert such as vanilla puddings.
What are the ingredients of Rose Jam?
The main ingredient of this jam is a unique rose (Gol e Mohammadi) cultivated in Iran. Another ingredient is sugar, as all jams require it. And at last, you need water to make this jam. Moreover, it would be best if you prepared some lemon juice to add to the jam while cooking, to avoid granulation. You can also use a little citric acid instead of lemon juice.
How to cook Rose Jam?
To make rose jam, you need to clean the roses to the point that only petals are left. Do not wash your roses; just clean them thoroughly. Do not worry about any microbes. It will be cooked on high heat. After you cleaned the roses, cut them with scissors, and saute them in a pot a little. Then prepare a thick syrup with sugar and water and a little lemon juice. You can put the syrup in the fridge and taste its thickness by a spoon. If your syrup is as thick as honey, it is ready. Finally, you will cook the petals in the syrup for 15 minutes and then pout the jam into a jar after cooling.
Recipe:
The preparation time is about 1 hour, and the cooking time is about 15 minutes. The amount of serving depends on your liking.
Rose Jam
Ingredients
- 1 cup of rose petals
- 2 cup of sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 cups of boiling water
Instructions
- Clean the roses without washing them. (we only need the petals)
- Cut the petals with a scissor
- Saute the petals for 2 minutes in a pan
- Mix sugar, water, and lemon juice and make a thick syrup
- Pout the petals into the syrup and cook the petals inside it for 10 minutes.
- Wait for 8 hours in room temperature to cool the jam
- Pour the jam into a clean, glass jog.
Notes
Uniqop’s advice:
- You can use this recipe with dried petals.
- Do not wash your petals because that can ruin your jam’s texture.
- You can use the extra syrup for other uses, such as Sharbat.
