Ube Jam (Ube Halaya / Purple Yam Jam)

Purple Yam vs Purple Sweet Potato vs Taro

• Purple yam (ube) and Okinawan purple sweet potatoes have almost identical shapes, outer skin texture (some are dark brown and some lighter brown) and flesh color (both come in vivid purple flesh). And from what I read online, both are said to taste very much the same too.
• Taro has a completely different outer skin (dark brown) and has an almost white interior with very light purple spots. In fact, it is what we call 'keladi' in Malay (in Malaysia) or 'yam' in English.

❤️Why you will love this recipe

• This is an easy recipe and uses all natural ingredients. There is no artificial food color used.
• This delicious recipe is packed with delicious ube flavor and has a beautiful deep purple color.
• It tastes way better than store bought ube halaya and not too sweet too. You can even adjust the sweetness level in this recipe if you so wish.
• You get to learn how to make your own homemade ube jam and use it to make other delicious dessert.

Like this recipe? You will also like my ube ice cream and ube rolls recipe. And see also how to make your own strawberry jam, pineapple jam and mango jam without pectin. And how you can use your homemade jam to make jam filled shortbread cookies like these mango cookies.

📋Ingredients

• Ube (Purple Yam) - this is the key ingredient. This recipe requires fresh and uncooked purple yam.
• Condensed milk - sweetens the jam.
• Full fat coconut milk - contributes to the delicious creaminess of the ube halaya.
• Butter - I use salted butter, but unsalted butter will also work fine for this recipe.
• Salt - just a small pinch to enhance the taste.

🧾Substitution and variations

• This recipe is for ube jam made using fresh ube and has not been tested with grated ube or ube powder.
• If you are not able to find ube at all, you can also make this recipe with Okinawan sweet potatoes.
• For a brigther purple color, you can add half a teaspoon of ube extract when cooking the jam.
• You can also add one teaspoon of vanilla extract for a vanilla flavored ube halaya.

Preparing the Ube

• Since ube is grown underground, it is often covered in dirt (soil). Washing it thoroughly helps remove the dirt but I prefer to remove the skin completely before cooking it just to be sure.

1. Start by rinsing the ube to remove the dirt.
2. Next, chop into large pieces.
3. Peel the skin by cutting it off using a sharp knife.
4. Once the skin the peeled, chop each piece into smaller pieces. This helps them cook faster.

1. Rinse the chopped ube in water. Place them in a medium-sized pot and fill the pot with water such that the ube is all submerged below the water level.
2. Boil the ube pieces over medium-low heat until they become soft.
3. To test, lift out a piece of ube onto a plate and use a fork to break it. If it breaks easily, the ube is cooked. Depending on the size of the ube pieces, this would take between 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Drain out all the water. You can do this by pouring out the ube along with the water into a colander and let the water drain off completely.

Making the ube jam

• The next step is mashing the ube.

1. Place the cooked ube pieces into the blender.
2. Add the coconut milk.
3. Add the condensed milk.
4. Blend the ube until smooth. You may need to constantly use a long spoon or stirrer to stir the ube in the blender for it to operate smoothly. Or you can use the 'pulse' function.

1. Pour the smoothly blended ube paste into a saucepan. Turn on the stove to a low flame.
2. Add the butter and the salt.
3. Cook the ube jam over low heat for about 45 minutes. Stir the jam constantly, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan continuously to avoid the jam from sticking to the bottom of the pot or pan. Also, towards the end of the cooking process, as the jam starts to thicken, it will start spitting. Keep the lid on when you are not stirring.
4. The jam will thicken further (to a spreadable consistency) as it cools down so you need not cook it until it is completely thickened. You can test by using your spoon to scrape the jam across the pan. If it stays in place, the jam is done. Remove it from heat.

🍽️Serving & storage

• Let the jam cool down completely to room temperature before storing in an airtight container or glass jar or a mason jar. Keep the lid of the pan on as you cool the jam to prevent skin from forming on it. Remove the lid every 30 minutes or so to wipe away the steam condensation on it.
• Keep the jam refrigerated. Consume it within one week. You can also freeze it for up to one month for a longer shelf life.

💡Expert tips

• Instead of boiling the ube in water, you can also steam it.
• The cooked ube is soft and can be literally mashed with a fork, or a potato masher, you might not be able to achieve a completely smooth texture, and it can be laborious for your hands. I find using the blender a better option. You can also use a food processor or an immersion blender.
• If you want to further reduce the sweetness of the jam, you can substitute some of the condensed milk with coconut milk, but not too much.

⭐What can you use the jam for?

• You can enjoy this jam on its own as a bread spread. You can also use it as ube flavor in cakes, cheesecakes, ube ice creams and sweet breads like ube rolls.

💭FAQs