4 of 6 melons records are published. The wall fills in as the season turns.
Low acid, corrected by hand
A ripe cantaloupe sits at pH 5.9 to 6.2, which is above the line where a boiling water bath can be trusted. Every melon recipe in this collection acidifies first and cooks second, and this one uses a measured 15 percent lemon juice by weight of fruit — not for flavour, for safety.
Musk melon is the most aromatic melon and the one that loses the most in cooking, so this recipe pushes the aroma in two directions: fresh ginger for heat and a small amount of the fruit held raw and folded in at the end. The acid load is measured by weight, because pH 5.8 will not support a water bath on its own.
Honeydew has one thing going for it: a clean, pale flesh that makes a jelly which is almost colourless, and almost colourless is the perfect canvas for mint. Everything else about it is a problem — pH 6.3, water everywhere, and a flavour that boils off in minutes.
The white layer under a watermelon rind is the only part of the fruit with real pectin, and it is also the only part that is not 92 percent water. Cut it into strips, lime it overnight and cook it in a spiced syrup and you get something closer to a candied citrus peel than to a jam — firm, translucent and unmistakably worth making.
Listed newest first by publication date. Cantaloupe Jam, Acidity Corrected from pH 6.0