Not too long ago, my family picked a gallon worth of wild raspberries from the forest on our property. As anyone knows, picking raspberries is usually not that fun- as you get constantly pricked and in Alaska the fun includes multiple mosquito bites on your fingers and ears..
I recently pulled out the freezer bag and thought the time had come to make some good wild raspberry jelly. I boiled, strained, added lemon and sugar-- it was looking really good. As it was cooking I noticed it had boiled over a bit--no problem, I skimmed the top, added some more sugar and set the heat on low. Or did I?
At the same time I set a pot of water to boil on high and went outside for five minutes...at least that's what I though. But oh crap--I came back in and the jelly was set on high and the pot of water was actually on low!
My beautiful raspberry sauce was now a thick brown goop. I couldn't stand to throw it out so I sealed it in a mason jar. The next day I forced myself to actually eat a peanut butter and burnt goop sandwich--yuck! It sort of tasted like weird molasses.
So I went on the oracle that is the internet and asked "what now??"
The first two articles I found seemed to imply: "tough luck, throw out the burnt jelly." I wasn't ready to give up and scrolled down further to a more optimistic idea: "use it for BBQ sauce."
So that's what I tried--cooked it lightly, adding vinegar, and ketchup--basting all over some broiled chicken. Holy doodles! It tasted great! Not like BBQ, but like Chinese food...
So now I call it my "secret sauce base". We have used this "burnt jelly goop" for fajita sauce, sesame chicken and other homemade concoctions. Sometimes adding some molasses or fish oil, even garlic. But I still can't believe that my "burnt jelly mistake" turned into one of the best sauces I have ever made (and I am not even a good cook).
Like lemonade out of lemons....
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