南高梅梳打 kishu ume soda

最近在京都祗園吃了一頓老公說極難吃的懷石料理。我也感覺口味不對，但有所啟發。
其中一道菜是糖煮南高梅、冰凍的夾雜小許酸和多多的甜，很開胃、涼快和消暑。

我因為信仰的關係不喝酒，不知道梅酒的味道。今天將一半南高梅作梅干，另一半作果醬。果醬瓶容不下所有果醬，剩下數湯匙的，用來加梳打水和冰塊，好爽快啊。

果醬的做法
500 g 南高梅
250-300 g 糖

南高梅泡水30分鐘，去頂上的小柄。
用沸水煮1分鐘，倒去水。重複多一次。這樣做的目的是去苦澀味。
將已煮的南高梅泡冰水以便處理，用隔篩去皮和核，只留果肉。
將梅肉放鍋中，加250g 糖，拌勻，試一試味道，如太酸，多放些糖。
中火煮約15 分鐘，用已消毒的瓶子盛起。





on our recent visit to kyoto, stanley said we had the worst kaiseki. i am quite disappointed actually but still i like a few dishes. as it is summer now and kishu ume is in season, the chef has included a lot of summer ingredients.  a small dish served between courses is one of exception that i quite enjoyed:  a stewed kishu ume, served cold, a tiny little tang and sweet cold broth. it is perfect for summer.

i have cooked some jam with kishu ume and left with a few tablespoon cooked jam.  just three ingredients: soda water, ice and the jam together, it is a pretty refreshing summer drink.

kishu ume jam

500 g kishu ume
250 - 300 g sugar

soak ume with water for 30 minutes. carefully remove the stem from the plum. blanch with hot water for a minute, discard water and repeat.  this is to remove the bitterness of the ume.

remove the peel and stone with a sift. just press the ume towards the sift.  put the mashed ume to a pot, add 250g sugar. if this is too sour add 50 g sugar more and adjust according to your taste. boil 15 minutes or until the jam is thick. laddle hot jam to a sterilized hot bottle and do the usual canning procedures.

for ume soda, put 2 tbsp ume jam, add a can of soda and a lot of ice cubes. sit back, relax and enjoy your summer!