Plum Butter (Traditional Romanian Magiun de Prune)
Romanian plum butter (magiun de prune) is a thick, dark fruit preserve made by slowly cooking ripe plums until they reduce to a naturally sweet, rich and caramelized fruit spread. This recipe yields approximately 6 cups of plum butter (1.5 liters). Assuming a serving is 2 tablespoons, then it will give you 48 servings.
Servings 48 servings
Calories 46kcal
Ingredients
- 4 kg European plums about 9 lbs
- 0.5 cup sugar optional to kick off osmosis
Instructions
- Wash, halve, and pit the plums (no peeling needed).
- (Optional) Sprinkle with a small amount of sugar and let sit 1-2 hours to release juice.
- Transfer plums to a large, heavy-bottomed pot and cook over medium heat until softened and juicy, stirring often (15-20 minutes).
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cook uncovered, stirring regularly to prevent sticking, until plums fully break down (3 hours plus).
- The plum butter is ready when it is very thick, dark, and glossy and a spoon dragged through leaves a line that does not quickly fill with liquid.
- Cool slightly, then store in fridge/freezer or hot-pack into jars (see recipe post for details).