Mumbai loves Jams!

Mumbai, the city of dreams or that’s what everyone said when one day in September 2006 my husband decided to take up a job in Mumbai and we moved here from our home town Delhi. Living here for nearly 10 years now, it’s given us more than our fair share.

Jam3How the idea came about…
It was a trip to Mahabaleshwar in December last year (2014) when the strawberry season was just beginning that got us going. Mahabaleshwar is the jam and strawberry capital of Maharashtra, so we came home with tons of both and decided to make our own strawberry jam.

We were amazed with the results – the flavour, the aroma, the consistency of the jam was all unbelievably good for a starting. My husband, Rajat and myself, Radhika are self-proclaimed foodies and together we experimented with a lot of fruits and recipes, and were equally happy with the results. So we decided to share it with our friends and family. All who ate our jams and tasted the unique flavours we were coming up with encouraged us to move forward and share our delicious product with the people around.

Lejion Kitchen
Thus came about the birth of Lejion Kitchen, a name coined by our children and sent to us by God.

Jam4

Jams have been positioned in the market as a children’s product as they are thick and gooey and just too sweet for the adult taste buds. They are also full of preservatives and fillers and colours and actually have very little or no fruit at all. So, here are our jams with real fruit, no colour or preservatives. The flavour changes along with the flavour of the fruits available with no fillers or additives that give the same stereotype taste.
The sugar content has also been reduced by nearly half of what you will find in the market. So they are not too sweet or thick and are more of a spoonable consistency rather than a butter knife consistency.

We wanted to change all that we know of regular jams in the market today, especially the perception that jams are only for children. So, we have a range of jams that can be enjoyed by both adults and children and also a range which is called ‘Jams with a Twist’ which are made to suit the adult taste more.
The simplest way to bring about that change was to add a little alcohol to jams and wow the flavour becomes awesome and the aroma mind blowing. As they say, finger licking good.

First came the Whisky Marmalade, an orange marmalade with some whisky for added zing. It is our best selling product today. The Banana Rum was also lapped up by our customers well. Then we have a Peach Brandy and a Kiwi Pineapple White Rum from our spiked variety.
The other jams with a twist include Pineapple Chilli Relish which is spicy as well as sweet and a Spiced Apple jam for all cinnamon lovers.
So today we have 2 selections to our jams – Classics and Jams with a Twist.

Fungus on food
Are you ever surprised when your home made food gets spoilt even in the refrigerator? No. But jams, ketchups and chutneys bought from the market never seem to get spoilt or grow fungus even in the heat and humidity of Mumbai. They remain the same with no effect on them of the weather. Is it food or is it plastic? Well our jams would grow fungus if not treated well as it is as real as the food you cook at home. They are made in small batches with less sugar (sugar increases the life of the product), just fruit, lemon juice and some spices and a whole lot of our love.

Food pairing
Jam is not just about a jam sandwich for your child’s tiffin. It’s a lot more. Can be included in all meals with our innovative food pairing tips. Can be used as a ready filling is some desserts and cakes too. Here are some interesting tips:

Click on image to enlarge

So we encourage you to explore jams and have a lot more fun with your food.

Future plans
Ketchup, a must have, in all homes is going to be launched soon. A preservative and colour free tomato ketchup to be enjoyed guilt free by all. This will be followed by a lot more sauces and dips in the future. So stay tuned and follow us on our Facebook page Lejion Kitchen.

Contact Us
Shop Online: http://www.yummade.in/collections/fresh-fruit-jams-by-lejion-kitchen
Order on phone: +91-9920575682
Social media: https://www.facebook.com/lejionkitchen
Email: lejionkitchen@gmail.com

Media coverage
http://www.mid-day.com/articles/jams-fit-for-the-bar/16439174
http://www.mid-day.com/articles/battle-of-the-jams-two-new-brands-with-offbeat-flavours-to-choose-from/16376162

Radhika Mathur

About Radhika Mathur
Radhika Mathur (Mumbai, New Delhi) is a mother of 7 year old twins, tarot card reader, Access bars practitioner, Angel healer and also a self-proclaimed Home Chef. Her children go to a Waldorf school which provides a well-rounded holistic form of education.

Her spiritual path together with her association with Waldorf has awakened her inner creativity and passion for cooking and given rise to the first line of her products ‘Jams’. She, along with her husband, Rajat, hope to spread awareness about the fact that ‘packaged food’ such as jams, sauces and butters can also be homemade rather than always being factory made. They hope that their endeavour will encourage people in urban cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru where everything has to be quick and fast, to benefit from easily available and healthier ‘packaged food’ items.