Ume jam from UNRIPE ume?


So I’m making umeshu but I’ve had to discard a lot of ‘bad’ fruits, it would be a pity to waste all that fruit though. Because technically they’re not ‘bad’ I just don’t want to screw up my umeshu.

I had an idea to cut out the ‘damaged’ parts and make jam from the ume. It would be a good candidate because of the high pectin in unripe ume and I think the bitter taste will go well with the amount of sugar in jam. Think like mixing it would a nice soda or something.

Thing is, I read somewhere that unripe ume contains cyanide in the seed? And all the recipes for ume jam online call for **ripened** ume. And Google warns against eating unripe ume…. but doesn’t provide a justification other than it’s sour/bitter taste…. sooooo

What’s the catch… will I die from eating unripe ume jam?

EDIT:

Did some more searching (this time not in English) using characters and it turns out that’s why I couldn’t find any recipes for unripe ume jam!

Also apparently the cyanide part of the fruit comes from the seed and boiling helps remove a significant part of it.

So be extra safe I also removed the seeds before going into the jamming process! The jam turned out well, with great complex texture and flavor. It’s really nice refreshing taste (sweet, lil’ bitter, sour) so not really a jam you would use on bread but something good for mixing with sodas! Ahhh I’m so happy\~\~

For reference:

[https://www.youtube.com/watchv=f020dakFIEM&ab\_channel=Aeee%E4%B8%8D%E6%83%B3%E7%A7%83%E5%A4%B4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f020dakFIEM&ab_channel=Aeee%E4%B8%8D%E6%83%B3%E7%A7%83%E5%A4%B4)

3 comments
  1. My grandmother used to say that unripe ume is poisonous and should not be eaten. But it seems it is not really a serious poison and some people make jam from it.

    Also, we often boil down its extract and drink it like medicine for colds and stomachaches.Some call it a panacea.

    https://youtu.be/23sobdwcgTg

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