Yun Hai's Taiwanese fruit preserves are just that — Taiwanese fruit and not much else. Extremely fresh, they're closer to a fruit sauce than to jam or jelly. They feature large chunks of fruit, are lower in sugar than conventional versions, and are prepared in micro-batches to ensure the gentlest of processing.

Yun Hai works with jam makers in Taipei, who make these by hand in small quantities to preserve the nuances and aroma of the fresh fruit.

This Mulberry Jam tastes as close to freshly crushed mulberries as you can get: tart, sweet, and almost blackberry-like. This preserve retains the texture of the entire fruit, complete with juicy flesh and crunchy seeds. Mulberries may not get as much attention as mangoes or guavas, but in Taiwan, they grow easily — and are found everywhere. Taiwan even has its own varietal of mulberry, from which this jam is made.

Yun Hai's jam maker shines a spotlight on the singular beauty of the mulberry, which makes for a gem of a preserve. If you hold it up to the sun, the dark colors of the jam reveal a spectrum of jewel-toned reds and purples glistening under the light.

Tasting notes and usage

• Deeply sweet with a slight sour pucker, like crushing fresh mulberries between your fingers and eating them
• Yun Hai's jams are not as sweet as conventional jams in the U.S. so don't be shy with the amount you use, especially when mixing into yogurt or drizzling on ice cream
• Spread it over a toasted slice of rustic bread, bake it into a thumbprint cookie, or stir it into seltzer with fresh lime juice. Or, make a mulberry sauce to drizzle over sous vide chicken.

Ingredients and instructions

• Mulberry, lemon juice, sugar
• No artificial preservatives
• Best before printed date
• Chill before using. Refrigerate after opening. Best consumed within one month of opening.

Size

• Jar dimensions: 2.75 D x 3.75 H inches
• Net weight: 280 g / 9.9 oz