Decoding jams, with Swetha Sivakumar

• Swetha Sivakumar, a food writer and researcher, is demystifying one ingredient every month, in a special HT column. This month: Jams. Jam-making can be traced to ancient traditions of fruit preserved in honey. Then sugar made an appearance, and began to feature proudly on menus of royals ranging from King Khosrow II of Persia in the 7th century CE to France’s Louis XIV in the 17th century CE. Sugar was very expensive at this point, and became cheaper only in the 18th century. What changed at this time was that the abomination of slavery became widespread. See how developments in canning boosted jams, and why sugar-free may not be ideal in the case of this delicious item.