SUGAR FREE CHERRY JAM WITH KUZU

It’s a great, healthy snack and a much better alternative to fat bombs and other calorie laden treats. Imagine a slice or two of my Amazing Protein Bread , or a High Fibre Bun, or other keto bread of your choice, slathered with organic butter from pasture cows, and a dollop of my cherry jam… (drooling allowed…)

Pure instant delight from a sweet fix that won’t make you feel guilty afterwards.

But what the heck is kuzu, and why did I choose it, when I could have opted for gelatine, agar agar, or chia seeds, and end up with fewer carbs? Aaah, well…

All About Kuzu Starch

I recently purchased some Umeboshi paste to experiment with my home-made vegan cheese (don’t ask…). Inside the Amazon delivery box was an unexpected – and free – pack of kuzu that the company thoughtfully decided to gift me. I didn’t have a clue what it was, and it almost went in the bin when I read the word starch on the packaging.

However. Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to look it up. Turns out that kuzu (also known as kudzu) is another super-food for the insanely health conscious like myself. Not a new super-food, mind, but one that’s been used in Japanese cuisine and medicine for centuries.

Kuzu starch comes from the ginormous root of Pueraria Lobata, a relentless, fast-growing and invasive weed that can be a costly nuissance if left uncontained. But the plant also has an amazing array of nutritional and medicinal properties. We all know about the importance of gastro-intestinal health and increased alkalinity for systemic well-being. So it’s no surpise that kuzu’s ability to reduce inflammation and acidity has made this Japanese healing wonder so palatable in the West.

After reading about this amazing starch, I just had to try it out. And with my Italian cherry tree in full fructiferous swing, what better way to test it than to make a sugar free cherry jam with kuzu!

So there you go, my dear friends. Kuzu may be very high in carbohydrates, but a little  goes a long way. It is flavourless and creates a clear gel once heated. So it doesn’t affect the look or flavour of your end-product. And it doesn’t impart an odd residual texture.

Would you rather stick to a more common gelling ingredient? You can certainly replace the kuzu with gelatine, agar-agar or chia seeds.

As for the Italian cherries, they contain 9g net carbs (per 100g), so they’re in fact a better keto option than blueberries (11.5g). But mulberries (8g), strawberries (6g), blackberries (5g) and raspberries (5g) contain fewer net carbs.

The bottom line is that one serving (10g/0.5 TBSP) of Sugar Free Cherry Jam with Kuzu contains just 1.3g net carbs. And you shouldn’t lose sleep over lower-carb alternatives just for the sake of a tiny little difference.

This jam is healthy. It tastes great. It’s easy to create. Keto life is sweet indeed!