Image is for illustrative purposes only.
Candied pumpkin is one of the simplest preserves there is: peeled pumpkin and caster sugar, left together until the sugar draws out the juice, then cooked slowly in its own syrup until the pieces turn glassy and deep amber. Nothing else is needed, and nothing else is added.
The finished pieces are sweet and slightly chewy at the edge, soft in the middle, with a clean pumpkin flavour behind the sugar. Diced small they can be folded into fruit cakes and tea cakes in place of candied pineapple or apricot, or used to top a cheesecake, and the thick syrup left in the pan is excellent brushed over sponge layers.
Ingredients
The weights in the recipe table below will yield the following 'weight per unit' and 'number of units'. If you would like to change the recipe to cater to a different 'weight per unit' and/or 'number of units',
you can use the Recipe Calculator Tool below the ingredients table.
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Weight Per Unit: 733
Number of Units: 3
Unit Size: 500 ml jar
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WEIGHT
(grams)
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ALTERNATIVE METRIC
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INGREDIENT
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IMAGE
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CONDITION
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A
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1000 |
2.2 pounds
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Pumpkin
Pumpkin is a firm-fleshed winter squash. For candying, choose a dense, dry-fleshed variety such as Jap, Kent or butternut, peeled, seeded and cut into even pieces so they cook and candy at the same rate.
firm, dry-fleshed variety
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peeled, seeded and cut into 2–3 cm pieces |
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B
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1200 |
2.6 pounds
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Sugar
Sugar is the generalized name for sweet, short-chain, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. They are carbohydrates, composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There are various types of sugar derived from different sources. Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose (also known as dextrose), fructose and galactose. The table or granulated sugar most customarily used as food is sucrose, a disaccharide. (In the body, sucrose hydrolyses into fructose and glucose.) Other disaccharides include maltose and lactose. Longer chains of sugars are called oligosaccharides. Chemically-different substances may also have a sweet taste, but are not classified as sugars. Some are used as lower-calorie food substitutes for sugar described as artificial sweeteners.
caster
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2200
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Recipe Calculator Tool
Using this tool, you can alter this recipe for your own requirements. Use the two fields below to generate new weights for the ingredients above.
STEP 1. Enter your Custom Weight Per Unit
The 'Custom Weight Per Unit' is already loaded with the weight per unit for this recipe but can be changed if required. If all you wish to do is change the number of units (or servings), just leave the current weight per unit.
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STEP 3. Click Calculate
The new weights for your adjusted recipe will be displayed in the table above.
Method
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STEP
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ACTION
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DETAIL
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CONDITION
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1 |
Prepare |
Peel A (pumpkin), remove the seeds and soft centre, and cut the flesh into even pieces of about 2 to 3 cm. |
Pieces all a similar size so they candy evenly |
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2 |
Layer |
Layer the pumpkin pieces in a wide bowl or pot with B (caster sugar), finishing with a layer of sugar on top. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight, or in the fridge for up to 24 hours. |
The sugar draws out the juice and the pumpkin sits in its own syrup |
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3 |
Cook |
Put the pumpkin and all of its syrup into a wide, heavy pot and bring slowly to a simmer over low heat without stirring. Shake or tilt the pot instead of stirring so the pieces stay whole. |
Sugar fully dissolved before the syrup starts to bubble |
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4 |
Simmer |
Simmer gently, uncovered, for 40 to 60 minutes, spooning the syrup over the pieces now and then. |
Pumpkin turns glassy and deep amber and the syrup thickens to a light honey consistency |
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5 |
Cool |
Take the pot off the heat and leave the pumpkin to cool in its syrup. |
Pieces firm up and absorb more syrup as they cool |
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6 |
Store |
Pack the pieces with their syrup into clean jars, or drain them on a rack and dry the surface before dicing for cake work. |
Pieces well coated in syrup, not sitting dry |
Important Notes
The sheet gives no method or notes, so the steps above follow standard practice for candying fruit. The batch of 1 kg pumpkin and 1.2 kg sugar cooks down to roughly 1.8 kg of candied pumpkin and syrup, about three 500 ml jars. Kept covered in its syrup in sterilised jars in the fridge it will last for several months. If you want the pieces for folding into a cake batter, drain them well, spread them on a rack to dry for a few hours, then dice them and toss them in a little of the flour from the cake recipe so they stay suspended. Do not stir while the pumpkin is simmering: tilt or shake the pot, or the pieces will break up into a purée. A wide pot is better than a deep one, as the syrup reduces faster and the pieces stay in a single layer.
Tools & Arrangements
Vegetable peeler and a heavy knife, chopping board, large bowl for the overnight maceration, wide heavy-based pot, slotted spoon, wire rack, clean jars with lids, kitchen scales.
