Easy Homemade Jam
It’s incredibly easy to make your own jam, and if you follow this recipe, you’ll get a product that’s 100% natural and tastes better than store-bought.
I got the idea to make jam from having Delmar, my other half, ask around at work to see what people would buy if someone was selling it homemade. His manager suggested bread and jam, and since I’d already made fresh sourdough bread this week (blog post coming soon!), I figured I’d try jam-making.
Note: this recipe is not for seed haters or diverticulosis sufferers. In my opinion, the best fruit for jam is berries, and berries have seeds. You can use fresh fruit juice and make jelly instead if seeds are a dealbreaker.
You could also try to strain everything after mashing the berries to get the seeds out, but that’s an awful lot of work and you risk losing too many of the fruit guts, and the guts make the jam. #cookingscience
I ended up with 5 half-pints of jam, so I decided to can my jars using a water bath. Canning isn’t too tricky when you’re just boiling jars in water for a while, so I recommend it if you’re not making a small batch.
That said, you don’t have to can this recipe. You can freeze the jam and store it in the fridge. Just keep in mind that this recipe makes quite a bit, so you’ll have a lot to store unless you adjust the proportions.
Another note: you’ll notice this is a longer recipe with a tip at nearly every step, requiring a larger time commitment. Still consider giving this a try when you have the time!
P. S.
I sell this homemade jam if you don’t want to go through the trouble of making your own. Reach out if you’d like to place an order! Website orders will be live soon!
Alright, let’s get into it.
Easy Homemade Jam
Original recipe credit: Alison Roman’s recipe for stovetop jam.
Time commitment:
Prep - 10-15 minutes
Cooking time - 30-90 minutes
Water bath canning - 15-30 minutes
Ready in less than 1-3 hours!
Equipment list:
Manual/hand juicer (I have ones like this and this, both work great for the little amount you need to juice)
Small plate placed in the freezer
Potato masher (I love this style of masher) OR wooden spoon OR silicone spatula to mash the berries
Cutting board and knife, if chopping instead of mashing
Large bowl for mashing berries
Spoon for stirring jam
Soup or other medium to large-sized pot (nonstick, not cast iron)
1-2 cup measuring cup, and a 4 cup if you have one
1/8 cup measuring cup, or tablespoon
TIP: To measure 1/8 cup, fill up half of the ¼ cup. Easy peasy, no need to buy a measuring cup you won’t use very often.
Jars or other container to store
TIP: Grab a funnel if you’re using jars.
For canning:
Canning pot
Tongs or jar grabber
Funnel
Jars, bands, and lids
Enough water to submerge the jars, with at least 1 inch of water over the top of them
Ingredients:
4 cups mashed fruit, fresh or frozen
TIP: If using frozen, let thaw for a bit at room temp. I used a mix of fresh and frozen.
TIP 2: I used a mixture of blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and a few strawberries. You can use any fruit you’d like! Experiment with flavor combos or do a single fruit batch. All you need is 4 cups of mashed fruit!
TIP 3: How much fruit you need to get 4 cups depends on the fruit you’re using. Examples: 1 pound of apples is about 3 cups sliced, 1 pound or quart of berries is 3-3.5 cups. To play it safe, you can get 1-2 pounds of fruit and then buy a bag or two of frozen fruit as a failsafe!
2 cups sugar
TIP: It should be possible to use honey, agave, or another sugar substitute, but I have not tried it and don’t know if it causes issues with canning. If you try an alternative, please do your research first! This site has a lot of great info that can help you determine what’s safe for canning.
Juice from 1-2 lemons (about 1/8 cup or 2 tablespoons)
NOTE: If you want to cut this recipe down, just reduce it by a half or a third. Make sure you have 1:1:2 sugar, lemon juice, and fruit proportions. So if you want to cut this in half, you’ll need 1 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 2 cups of fruit to get 2-3 half-pint jars.
Steps to get your homemade jam:
Gather all your equipment and ingredients. Put your plate in the fridge for later! If you’re canning, get your canning pot (aka bathtub) filled with water and on the stove at medium-high heat.
Mash your fruit up well in a bowl or roughly chop it. You want it to be really smashed and not big chunks so it cooks down better, unless you’re going for chunky jam. Keep in mind what consistency you want, and chop/mash accordingly.
TIP: If you’re using blueberries or other small berries, give them a rough chop, or they stay mostly whole in your jam. They’re small and don’t cook down as well as fruits like blackberries and raspberries.
Juice your lemons and put the juice aside for later.
Get your pan on the stove at medium heat, then add the fruit and sugar, stirring until it’s mixed.
Not you wait. Cook the fruit mix, stirring occasionally, keeping an eye on progress. Also, give the mix a taste as it cooks. If you think it’s not sweet enough after the fruit has cooked down a while, feel free to add in more sugar, a tablespoon at a time, to get to the sweetness you want.
TIP: The lemon juice will give it a nice tang and bring out the sweet flavor a bit more, and as the fruit cooks, its natural pectin and sugars will release, providing more sweetness, so you may not need to add more sugar. It’s an option based on what you prefer!
TIP 2: This is a great time to prep your jars, bands, and lids if you’re canning. Also, check in on your canner. If it’s not boiling enough, turn your heat up a bit. If it’s boiling too much, turn the down just a tad to make sure that you’re not boiling all of your water out too quickly.
As you watch its progress, be sure to increase the frequency that you’re stirring. As the mixture cooks, it will get thick and start to stick to everything: your spoon, the sides and bottom of the pot, maybe your walls… Just don’t let it burn to the bottom of the pan!
TIP: You could try an automatic pot stirrer to avoid standing at the stove! Let me know if you do, I’ve always been curious how well these things work.
After about 30-45 minutes (possibly a little longer), your mix should be at jam consistency. Go with your gut - if it looks like jam and is getting really thick, it’s probably ready for lemon juice.
Add in the lemon juice once the mix is pretty thick. Cook for another 10 minutes and then do the plate test.
TIP: To know if you’re ready for the plate test, hover at your pot to constantly stir and monitor. If you see the top of the mix developing a thick film, like when making gravy or cream sauce, you’re there!
Plate test: grab a small spoonful of the fruit mix and line it up on plate. Put the plate back in the freezer for a few minutes, then grab it and swipe your finger through the fruit. If it leaves a trail through the mix, you have jam! If it’s still runny or not quite the consistency you want, let it cook a bit longer and repeat the plate test.
If you’re canning, take the temperature of the mix. If it’s at 220F or higher, you’re good to can! That’s the safe temp for avoiding botulism.
TIP: You can take the temp with a meat thermometer, just be sure it’s cleaned off before and after you use it.
TIP 2: I used this recipe as a guide for canning, and it’s based on Ball’s recommendations.
Turn off the stove and carefully ladle your jam into jars or whatever container you’re using (it will be VERY hot! Use your funnel if you have one.). If you’re not canning, let it set at room temperature until completely cooled, enjoy it on a PB&J or a piece of toast, then pop it in the fridge. This will keep in the fridge for several months.
TIP: Do you see any foam on the top of your jam? If so, scoop it out! You don’t want that in your jars.
TIP 2: If canning, be sure to leave at least 1/2 inch of space at the top of the jar, between the lid and the jam.
TIP 3: Also, make sure that your jar rims, lids, and bands are cleaned. No jam, water, or anything else should be on them as you fill the jars and process them. You won’t get a seal if they’re not clean.
If you’re not canning, you can hop off here. If you are canning, make sure your canning pot is ready.
TIP: Your water must be at a good rolling boil. This is high-intensity bubbles, not gentle pops.
TIP 2: When canning, be sure to get your jar lid on properly, and screw your band on to “finger tightness” as the pros say. The band will not be completely screwed on.
Carefully drop your jars in when the pot is ready and process for at least 15 minutes.
TIP: I processed for 30 minutes because of my higher altitude, and because I’m paranoid about not getting a seal. I also leave my pot lid on while the jars take their bath.
After bath time is up, carefully use your jar grabber or tongs to pull the jars out and set them on a towel (protect your countertops, this stuff is HOT!) to completely cool, at least 12 hours.
TIP: I always end up with water inside my band since it’s not screwed on tightly. Grab a dry towel and carefully (again, this stuff is HOT!) remove the band and wipe the inside of it out, also wiping the lid and jar down. This helps prevent rust from forming on the inside of your band or lid.
As the jam cools, check your seals. If the lids are not popping up when you press down on them, you have a seal. If they do pop up and don’t set by the time the jam is cool, the jar should go in the fridge since there isn’t a proper seal. The product won’t be shelf stable, unfortunately, and can’t be stored at room temp. #botulismisbad
TIP: Don’t panic like I did if your jam looks runny after it comes out of the bath. This is normal due to the heat from the water bath keeping the fruit hot and liquidy. It will settle as the jars cool, and even if you have a jar or two of runny jam, don’t sweat it. As long as it tastes good, texture is negotiable!
TIP 2: If you are ever in doubt about the quality of your jam or any other food in your fridge, pantry, or freezer, use this handy rule of thumb to avoid getting sick: if it looks, smells, or tastes bad, get rid of it!
