Blueberry Jam Recipe

By NiteSki

Ingredients

• 6 cups of crushed Blueberries
• 4 cups of Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons of Lemon Juice

Details

Servings 6
Preparation time 60mins
Cooking time 120mins
Adapted from tasteofsouthern.com

Preparation

Step 1

We’re “Saving Summer In A Jar” with this recipe for Blueberry Jam.  Talk about easy to make…how about only 3 ingredients to make this quick and easy jam that is just bursting with flavor.  Seriously, home canning and food preservation just doesn’t get much easier than this.

This is another quick and easy recipe to use for getting started in your home food preservation projects.  Seriously, all you really need are just Blueberries and Granulated Sugar.  No pectin is needed, nothing else, zip..zap…zadda….just TWO ingredients.  Of course, we did manage to complicate the recipe just a little by adding one more ingredient.  It’s just our way it seems.  I added a Tablespoon of freshly squeezed Lemon Juice to the batch.  It’s not needed at all but, its like adding a little Lemon zest to your other recipes….it just knocks it all up a punch.

Growing up as a kid, we often would find Blueberries growing in the wild along the edge of a dirt road or out in the edge of the woods.  They were so delicious to just stand there and pick them off the bushes and pop them into your mouth, eating them fresh off the bush.  Then, you’d run home to grab a bucket and go pick some more for mama.  You just knew that if you could gather enough of them, she would make a Blueberry Pie or Blueberry Cobbler.

It didn’t even matter…at the time…that you were probably going to be scratching little bumps for the next several days.  Somehow, we always seemed to forget that little part from one summer to the next.  Red-bugs…or chiggers, must love Blueberries as well.  In the wild, you almost always got “eat up” with red-bugs when picking fresh Blueberries.  They are very irritating and we’d scratch them for days trying to dig them…or whatever it was…out of our skin.  It makes me itch just thinking about.

These days however, you can find numerous Blueberry Farms with neat rows of bushes that make picking a lot more easier…and….pretty much red-bug free.  Gotta love that.  I get mine at a place not too far from home called

has 9 different varieties of berries and, they had their first small crop of Strawberries this year.  They also have a small retail center on-site that sells about anything Blueberry.  From Jams to Jellies, Salsa to 100% Blueberry Juice…you’ll find it available during the growing season.  I picked about 2 pints this past Friday and bought a few more to make this Blueberry Jam.  I also picked up my first loaf of Blueberry Bread that is made fresh for the retail store.  I couldn’t wait to spread on some of my homemade Blueberry Jam.  Talk about something good for breakfast, toast up a slice of bread and then spread it all over with a heavy layer of fresh Blueberry Jam.   You’ll start scratching right away……your head that is….wondering why you’ve waited so long to make your own Blueberry Jam.  Ready to give it a try?   Let’s Get Cooking!!!

We’ll begin by washing our canning jars and the jar bands in some hot soapy water.  You can reuse canning jars and the bands for the tops but, you can NOT reuse the lids.  Just place the jars and bands in your sink and give them a good scrubbing to make sure there aren’t any leftover food particles inside.  Also, be sure to check each jar…even new ones…for any cracks or chips.  Carefully inspect the top of the jars to be sure they haven’t been chipped anywhere.  After washing, rinse the jars and set them aside.

Setup your stove for the canning process.  We’ll start at the back left burner.  It’s hard to tell it from the photo but, that smaller sauce pan on the back left is where I place my bands and lids.  The larger sauce pan on the back right burner is where I keep extra water heating to add to the canning pot as needed.  The left FRONT burner is the pot where I’ll actually be cooking the blueberries for the jam..and…the large pot on the right FRONT burner is my enameled canning pot.  It’s already about 3/4ths of the way filled with water that is heating up to sterilize the jars.

The lids and bands are placed in warm water in a smaller sauce pan.  I keep this on my lowest heat setting for the stove top.  The lids only need to warm up a bit and should never be placed in very hot or boiling water.  I always set this up at the beginning and just leave them in water until I’m ready to place them on the filled jars.

As the water begins to heat up in the canner, carefully add the jars to the water.  I just lay the jars on their sides as I place them into the water.

The jars must be totally submerged at all times through the sterilization process.  Once the jars are under water, let the pot come on up to a boil and boil the jars for at least 15 minutes to sterilize them.  Just leave them in the canner until you’re ready to begin filling them with the jam mixture.  Keep a check on them throughout the next steps.  Add more of the water you’re keeping heated on the back burner as it’s needed.

You’ll need to sort through your Blueberries and remove any bad berries, leaves, little stems or other objects.  I’d suggest you stop up your sink, place a bowl and a colander inside and just sort through them a handful at a time.  Or, you might place them on a cookie sheet that has a lip all around…otherwise….you’ll be playing pickup as berries roll off your counter top.  These little things can be amazing once they get in motion.  It may be weeks later before you find that one that got away.  Trust me on that one.

Next, you’ll want to measure your crushed berries.  I scooped them out of the cooking pot into a 2 cup measuring cup and then poured them into another bowl.  My 5 one pint baskets of Blueberries yielded 6 cups of crushed berries.

Pour the berries back into the pot you want to cook them in and place it over medium heat on your stove top.

To the 6 cups of crushed berries, I’m going to add 4 cups of sugar.  You may need to adjust this a bit based on the final amount of crushed Blueberries you end up with.  Jam needs to be made in small batches for best results.

WOW…that’s a lot of sugar in that pot.  4 cups of sugar completely covered my berries when I added it all in.  But, just go ahead and add it all at one time.  The berries beneath the sugar are already starting to heat up and the sugar has started to dissolve around the back edge as you can see.

While the sugar is starting to melt, squeeze the lemon.  I’m adding 2 Tablespoons of fresh squeezed lemon juice to my recipe.  While it’s NOT required, I think it just gives a little “punch” to the flavor of the berries.

Add the lemon juice to the sauce pan.  Keep a close watch on the mixture and keep stirring down the sugar as it dissolves.

You just need a little space on your table or counter top to set everything up.  Once the berries have cooked, you’ll want to move as quickly as possible to fill the jars, add the lids and bands and get them ready for the water bath process.  The proper tools will also help make the job go a bit smoother.  I’ve got my jar lifter on the left, then my funnel, bubble remover and magnetic lid lifter all ready to go.  I also have found that placing my empty jar in a plate next to the cooked jam aides in clean up after I’m finished.  After canning a few items, you’ll find your own little way of doing things that will work best for you.  If you’re like me however, a little more SPACE in the kitchen would be very nice.

Once the sugar is fully dissolved, RAISE the heat on the sauce pan and cook them as quickly as possible.  You’ll need to be able to stay with them pretty much all the time at this point.  You’ll want to stir them often as they cook to prevent any sticking to the bottom and scorching.  They would also boil over the edge if you let them.  That’s one MESS you don’t want so, avoid the possibility of that ever happening and just stay with them from here on out.

Here they are at a pretty good rolling boil, one that can’t be stirred down.  You may need to adjust the heat back a bit to keep them from boiling over the top of the pan.

There are several ways to test the jam for proper “gel.”  I hope to do a more in-depth article on that one day that you can use for reference.  Here, I’m using a saucer that I had placed in the freezer of my refrigerator earlier so it could get cold.  I’m constantly lifting juice up with my stirring spoon to watch how it drips off the spoon.  As it begins to thicken, you can tell the difference and will learn to SEE that difference the more you make jams and jellies.  The purpose of the cold saucer is to drip a few drops of the hot liquid onto the cold surface.  Watch how it reacts after a few seconds as the jam begins to quickly cool down on the cold saucer.  After about 20 seconds or so, pull your finger through the juice.  If it leaves a trail and doesn’t quickly run back together….your jam is ready.  If it does run back together, you need to continue to let it cook.

When the jam has reached the “gel point,” remove the pan from the stove and get ready to fill the jars.  I didn’t have any foam on my jam at this point.  Any foam should be removed though if you see it.  It will just make for a better presentation of the finished product.  Just use a spoon to scoop it off and discard it.

Just before I removed the jam from the stove, I removed my jars from the boiling water in the canner.  I set them on a clean towel and have them easily accessible for the filling process.  Here, I’ve placed one jar on a plate next to the pot of jam and, I’ve inserted my funnel.  Let’s fill some jars OK?

Stir the jam in the pot one more time.  Then, use a ladle or large spoon and begin filling the jar.  Careful….it’s HOT.

As we’ve mentioned in our other posts about canning, headspace is the amount of space between the top of the product IN the jar and the TOP of the jar.  This neat little tool, that hard to see blue thing up there….has sections measured off to check the headspace.  For the Blueberry Jam, the recommended amount of headspace is 1/4 of an inch.  The headspace needed will vary from one canning project to the next so always check for the proper amount needed.  I was a bit short on this one and just took a Tablespoon and added a bit more until I had the proper amount in the jar.

The other end of that notched tool can be used to remove any air bubbles from your jars.  I prefer to use these wooden skewers for that task.  You can buy them in packs of about 100 for just about a dollar.  They make great testers for cakes and I find them also very well suited for removing bubbles from my jars.  Just insert the skewer in the jar, run it around the edges and around through the middle a couple of times.  Any bubbles at the bottom of the jar, will follow the skewer up to the top and burst.  Work out as many bubbles as you can see.  It’s one of the things the judges look for at fairs and competitions so I try a little harder to eliminate them than most folks do I’m sure.

You’ll need a damp cloth for this part.  Use the cloth to carefully wipe around the top outside edges of the jars and the very top rim itself.  Any jam on the outside could affect the proper seal.  Any jam on the top rim could cause the rubber part of the lid to not make good contact and could also prevent a proper seal.  Make sure it’s good and clean.

Use your magnetic wand to lift one of the lids out of the warm water.  Gently shake off the water but, don’t try to wipe the lid clean.  Just place the lid on top of the jar and center it into position on the jar rim.

Use the magnetic wand again to retrieve one of the jar bands.  Gently lower it over the lid and make sure that it screws on without resistance.  Just use a gentle finger tight pressure to secure the band.  Don’t force it down tight.   Repeat these steps until all the jars are filled.

When the jars are filled, place them in the rack of your canner.  The racks are made so their handles will hang onto the top lip of the canner itself.  Place it in this position first and fill the rack with your jars.  Use the jar lifter to add them to the hot water and to keep them sitting up straight.  Try not to let them fall over as you do this but…don’t fret if it does.  It happens to me all the time it seems.  I think it’s the quality of the rack I’m using.  It only has one wire under the jar and they just don’t want to sit up correctly on that rack.  I’ve looked for a new one locally but haven’t found it.  Guess I’ll be ordering one off the Internet…about the time I’m finished needing one this season.  Wait…wasn’t I going to do that LAST year?  Yeah…I think I had intended to do so.

The process we’re using to make our Blueberry Jam is called the Water Bath Method.  It’s fine for most jams and jellies.  Another process uses a Pressure Canner to can the jars under pressure.  For safety reasons, some produce and meats being canned require the Pressure Canner Method.  We could go into a lot more detail about it but, I suggest you seek more info from your local Cooperative Extension Service or your local library…or hey…maybe here on the Internet using some reliable sources.

Carefully lift the handles and the rack and lower the jars into the canner.  The jars need to be covered by about 2 inches of water at all times.  That’s why I keep another pot of water heating on the back burner.  It only takes a few seconds to get back up to a rolling boil after adding more hot water.  I just keep filling up the smaller pot as I use up the hot water.  It boils away kind of quickly so keep a watch on it.

Once the water is back to a rolling boil, place the lid on the canner and start counting the time needed to process the jam.

Using the jar lifter again, remove the jars from the canner.  Set the jars on a towel spread over your counter top and in a location away from drafts.  You certainly wouldn’t want to set one of those hot jars on your bare Granite or Marble counter top.  The jar might burst open if you did so, make sure you have a towel handy to set them on.

The jars need to remain undisturbed in this location for 24 hours.  Do not pick them up or move them if at all possible during this time.  And, DO NOT press down on the top of the jar to see if it has sealed until 24 hours have passed.  When the time is up, you can press the middle top portion of the jar to make sure it’s properly sealed.  The top should already be down and not make any movement or noise when you press the center of the lid.  If it springs back up, the jar didn’t seal.  The product inside is still good but the jar will need to be refrigerated and used first.

After I started my adventure into home food preservation, I quickly realized that any time someone shared a jar of their labors…they must really think a good deal about me.  It’s fun and rewarding to make your own products like this…not to mention that you know exactly what goes INSIDE each jar.  Still, it does take some time and effort to complete the process so, next time someone hands you a jar from their home pantry….give them a BIG HUG and say Thank You Very Much.

You can “Save Summer In A Jar” by making your own homemade Blueberry Jam.  These little jars make great gifts for any time of the year.  Decorate them with cloth or paper jar toppers, labels, etc. and show someone just how much you appreciate them.

Blueberry Jam Recipe - No pectin added.

We're "Saving Summer In A Jar" with this recipe for Blueberry Jam. Talk about easy to make...how about only 3 ingredients to make this quick and easy jam that is just bursting with flavor. Seriously, home canning and food preservation just doesn't get much easier than this.

Place washed jars in canner filled with water and boiling slightly.

Jars need to boil for 15 minutes to sterilize.

Place berries in a large sauce pot, mash with a potato masher.

Place the berries on your stove over medium heat.

Add the sugar.

Add the lemon juice.

Stir until sugar is dissolved.

Bring heat up and cook berries as quickly as possible.

Continue to stir the berries as they boil, don't let them boil over.

Check for proper gel. When ready, remove from heat.

Place the closed jars in your canner rack, lower the rack and make sure the jars are covered with about 2 inches of water.

Any jars that do not seal are still safe to eat but should be refrigerated and used first. Properly sealed jars should be stored in a cool dark place. Sealed jars should be good for at least a year or slightly longer. Enjoy!

What’s your favorite jam or jelly to make?  Have you been wanting to give home canning a try but still just can’t seem to muster up the nerve to jump in?  I’d love to hear your Comments in the section below.  It will only take a moment for you to let us know that you stopped by.  Actually, it’s the ONLY way we have of knowing that you’ve seen our recipes.  All the comments are moderated so it may take a day or so for your comments to appear.  I personally read each and every one and try to reply back as often as I can.  So, share some of your home canning experiences with us below.  Thank you in advance.  I hope you’ll tell your friends about Taste of Southern and help us spread the word about our home on the Internet.  At the present time, we’re adding a new recipe each Monday morning.  Please visit with us again soon.

The steps listed in our canning and freezing section are to be used as guidelines to help you make your own Homemade Blueberry Jam.  The Water Bath canning process has been around for a long time.  Times change, procedures for safety change.  This information is the best we can provide at the date it was first presented.  I highly suggest that if you have an interest in preserving foods for you, your friends and/or your family, that you seek out more information than just what we’ve presented here.  Stuff happens.  Things go wrong, errors are made, sometimes jams and jellies don’t set.  There’s more information available than what we have given here.  Seek it out and learn all that you can about safe and proper home preservation of foods.  If your jam doesn’t set, it could possibly be processed again and given a second chance of doing what it’s suppose to do.  More information, even classes, are readily available through your local Cooperative Extension Service location.  You’ll find one pretty close to just about anywhere you live.  Even though I’ve won some awards for my Food Preservation, I do not hesitate in encouraging to learn all that you can and proceed with safety….knowing you’ve done all you can to protect anyone that you share your goodies with.  Thank you once again.

How To Make Strawberry Jam

How To Make Strawberry Jam

Cassie’s Ruminations » Blog Archive » No Pectin Added Blueberry Jam

Hi Helene, You could certainly freeze the jam if desired. Ball Corporation makes a special pectin for freezing jams that you might want to check out. Once opened, you should refrigerate your jams. They will keep for several months in the refrigerator, if not even longer. I hope you’ll give canning a try. It’s a lot of fun, and you might even find yourself getting hooked on it. I did. Thank you for the question, I hope you’ll visit with us again… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

What goes in those jars? Lots of stuff! Ice cream sauces, small spice mixes, etc. So you don’t have to buy more lids, reuse those that have done their jam, jelly and other preserving duty.

This is my first time making blueberry jam and I can’t wait to try your recipe. I was given about three gallon size bags of frozen blueberries. Can I use them in place of the fresh berries?

Hi Jo, Thank you for the question. You should have a good consistency even when using pectin. I suspect you may have overcooked it a bit too long, which causes it to get all gummy. I hate when that happens, but I’ve certainly done it myself. You can still eat it, it’s just not as smooth as we would like for it too be. Try cooking it less and see if that gives you what you’re looking for. I can’t go into it all here, but if it turns out to be too runny, you could open all the jars and cook it some more. You’d just need new LIDS to can it with again. I’d suggest you seek out some more information before remaking it though. It’s easy, but you’ll want to be sure you do it right. You might even need to add some more sugar second time around.

Hi! Just wondering what your altitude is – is it between 0 & 1000? That’s what mine is, and I want to make sure I process the jam for the right amount of time.

I made my “very first” canning of your detailed blueberry jam recipe. Thank you for the step-by step direction and this helped a lot particulary being a ” rookie” of canning. The only thing I modified from your wonderful was I added another 1 tsp of lemon juice because it a bit sweeter. In the future I will use less sugar if my blueeberries are sweeter than others. Thanks again, I knew I can always count on Southern recipe:)

You didn’t say just how much head space you actually had. As long as it’s not more than 1/2 inch, it should be OK. I’d just use that jar first, and it wouldn’t hurt to go ahead and place it in the refrigerator until you do get to start using it.

My jam did not set, and I added some pectin to help it along, boiling hard for 1 minute after stirring it in. I still seem to have “Blueberry Soup.”

It’s possible to re-do the jam, but you’ll need new LIDS to reseal the jars. I’d break the amount you made in half, and try heating it up again and proceeding from there. It’s more detailed than that though. I suggest you search out some reliable information on the Internet for how to do that, as it’s just more than I could get into here.

I made this jam and it was horrible! I followed the directions exactly and the jam turned out a super thick, unspreadable blob. What happened. I’ve made other jams and preserves and they came out great.

You have a wonderful site. The instructions and photos makes the canning process simpler to understand for first timers like me.

Planning to make blueberry jam this evening. I dont have a rack to place in the cooking pot to seal the cans. I read your comment that says that a towel can be placed inside the pot. Will that work?

Hello Steve, I am about to make my first batch of blueberry jam using your wonderfully detailed recipe, but I am wondering how to proceed if I’m using frozen blueberries. It was a busy fall and I haven’t been able to get to this project until now. I heard that using frozen berries is fine (especially where blueberries are concerned). Do you have any thoughts on this? Many thanks! -Megan

Hi Megan, Thank you for your question. I think I’ve just found the answer to those two big bags of frozen blueberries that I have in MY freezer. As I understand it, you can use frozen blueberries, as long as they do not contain sugar or syrup already. If you’re like me, you just bag up the berries after picking them and toss them in the freezer without adding any sugar. The rest of the recipe, should be the same procedure.

Thanks so much for that recipe. I’d like to make the blueberry jam next but was wondering if I can halve the recipe to make 3 half-pint jars?

Hi Steve!! First timer here! Wonderful tutorial you have put together! Thank you! I was wondering if I could add some strawberries with the blueberries? Would that still turn out the same or is strawberry jam a different method? Like I said I am a total newbie but I’ve been toying with the idea of canning for a while. I absolutely love giving homemade gifts for occasions and jams would be perfect! Another question, I don’t have all the tools required but I think I can manage with what I have for now. Can I just put the jars right in the pot without a rack?

As for mixing the strawberries and blueberries, I see no problem with that. Just try to keep the final amount of the combined fruit equal to the first amount called for in the recipe. I’ve never mixed any fruits so good luck with it and let us know how it turns out for you.

Now, about that canning rack. The purpose of the rack is to keep jars up off the bottom of the pot so water can circulate underneath the jars. It also prevents hot spots that might burn the jam inside the jars as they are processing. Some folks take some of the old metal bands and connect them together with string or plastic zip ties to form a makeshift rack in the bottom of the pot. At the very least, fold a tea towel and place it in the bottom so the jars aren’t sitting directly in contact with the bottom of the pot.

Hi Joyce from RI, Greetings from North Carolina. It’s comments like this that make posting our recipes worthwhile. I’m happy to hear that you’ve made our Blueberry Jam and that it turned out well for you. You’re very fortunate to have so many blueberries close at hand. Now you can enjoy them even after the local one’s are all gone. I’ll have another recipe for how to use those Blueberries posted very shortly. I hope you’ll check that one out and thank you for sharing your comments. Do stop by for another visit… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

I have always been too intimidated to try to make jam, but your directions made it seem like I could do it. I made the jam 2 nights ago & had so much fun I decided to make raspberry….before I had even tasted the blueberry. But when I tasted the blueberry….oh YUM! Now I can’t wait to taste the raspberry! I think I’m hooked!

Nice to find this recipe. I made raspberry jam without pectin a few weeks ago and it turned out perfect – really intense flavour. I’ve been getting in the habit of spreading my sugar out in a 9×13 casserole and heating it in the oven at 250 for fifteen or twenty minutes before mixing it with the berries.

When we got home I went straight to the computer to find a recipe, yours was the first one I came to and so after reading it, and the follow up questions and answers, decided to make it.

Thank you for your kind comments and for taking the time to share your experience with our Blueberry Jam Recipe. I’m glad you gave the recipe a try. The addition of honey sounds really good although I’ve never tried that myself. They’re picking blueberries in my area at the present but I don’t know if I’ll get the chance to get some and make more jam this year or not. Maybe I’ll get the chance to try it with honey if I do some. Keep up the good work with your canning projects. I hope you’ll have loads of fun doing it and please stop by for another visit with us… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

Today I am going to try your blueberry jam. (LOVE blueberries!) I have added a jar lifter and measuring tool to my arsenal and got pint jars this time around. I am toying with the idea of strawberry and blueberry jam as well…Fingers crossed!!

Hi Clare, Thank you so much for your kind words and compliments. Its always a thrill to realize someone else is jumping in and trying their hand at doing some canning. And, I’ve warned more than one person that it IS addictive. Lots of fun though. I think I missed all the Strawberries this year and my favorite Blueberry picking place just started picking today. Maybe I can work with some Blueberries myself before they all disappear. I highly suggest that you look for some classes in your area on canning. The Agriculture Extension Service in your area will probably have some and they are very reasonable to attend. Those helped me a lot and I still go to them just to try to keep up to date on any changes. I always meet some of the nicest people as well. Best of luck with all of your canning adventures, I’ll look forward to more reports on some of your other projects. Keep growing that collection of “tools.” Thank you also for the link from your site, best wishes on those books you’re working on. Remember us when you become famous… OK? Thank you again and do stop by for more visits real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

Hi Lidia-Maria, The sugar is just a sweetener and honey can be used instead. Having said that, I have never made any with just honey but I understand it is pretty tasty and works pretty good. As for how much you’ll need, that depends on your personal taste more than anything. Start out with about 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup and as it begins to cook down, carefully taste it (it’s hot remember) and see if you like it or if you need to add more. Just keep a close watch on it as it thickens up so you get that part right and you shouldn’t have any problems. I’d love to know how it turns out for you. Good luck with your canning adventures and do come back and visit with us again… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

My question is, how many cups of whole blueberries makes 6 cups of crushed? Its not that I mind making extra, I just want to make sure I make enough

Hi Steve! Thank you for responding. Although I went ahead already and figured it out, (I just needed an extra bowl for the extra mashed blueberries :)I do want to tell you that the recipe worked out great! I did run into a small problem and ran out of regular sugar around my third batch. I ended up using 2 cups regular granulated sugar and 2 cups packed brown sugar. Although it jelled properly when I tested it on the cold plate it didn’t set like my other batches after 24 hrs. Not worried though, the taste was great and so I decided to make french toast for dinner to try it on and YUM! My new recipe for blueberry syrup

Hi Melissa, Glad to hear you got through all of those Blueberries. That was a bunch of them for sure. The brown sugar addition sounds interesting and, it could turn out that even though they didn’t set up right away that, they might do so in an week or so. That happens sometimes. Congratulations on jumping in and doing some canning. I hope you’ll keep me informed of how your future canning adventures turn out for you. Thank you for your comments and please stop by for another visit with us… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

May I ask why you don’t use any pectin in this recipe? I am a newbie and hope to make some blueberry Jam as soon as it comes into season and I have been researching a lot of recipes which most of them do use pectin. Just asking

Hi Linda, Thank you for your question. Pectin is mostly used as a thickening agent to help jams and jellies “set” more quickly. It certainly doesn’t hurt to use it in your recipes but, to some folks, it adds a little different taste to the finished product. It’s nothing highly noticeable but keeping things as minimal as possible, I don’t always use it. The Official Ball Blue Book to Preserving, copyright 2010, Page 32, lists a variety of berries that can be made into jam using just the berry and sugar – no pectin. So, it’s not just something I do myself.

It may take a bit longer to cook the jam down to a gel stage so you just need to study up a bit on how to do that. You may also find that it foams a bit more without pectin and its recommended that you skim that off before you place your jams into jars. I do hope you’ll give the recipe a try and that it will turn out well for you. As with anything, practice makes perfect and learning how to get to just the right gel point is really the main concern when making jams and jellies. Too early and it will be runny and too long and it will come out gummy. But, you can do it and I highly encourage that you just jump right in and give it a go. Maybe try a small batch or two and give it a couple of weeks to set then try another batch. We’ve all been there as beginners and we’ve all made and continue to make mistakes. I hope this helps and I’ll look forward to a good report from you once you get going. Canning and preserving may turn out to be a bit addictive though… but it’s loads of fun and something the family can enjoy year round. Best wishes on your adventures. I do hope you’ll stop by for a visit with us again… real soon. Be Blessed!!! -Steve

Hi, Thank you for this helpful tutorial; it was just what I was looking for. I do have a question about the gelling point. About how long does it take to reach that point? Could you give an approximate time, like 20-30 minutes? I just finished making it, but it never seemed to reach the desired “gel” using the cold plate method. It simmered and I stirred for probably 25 minutes. I probably have blueberry syrup now instead of jam, but it sure is delicious!! Thanks again.

Hi Susan, Thank you for your questions. The cooking time will of course vary from one batch to the other. You’re basically cooking more and more water out of the mixture and getting it down to the point to where it will gel properly. You were about right with your time of 25-35 minutes on average.

If you placed the jam on a cold plate and pulled your finger through it, unless it just immediately ran back together, you’ll probably be good. You can also test by raising the spoon you’re stirring with, up about 12 inches above the pot and watching how the liquid flows off the spoon. You need it to sort of sheet up on the back of the spoon or, as it drops off, watch for the drops to get down to about two drops running together as it drops off the spoon.

Sometimes, jelly and jam doesn’t set up right away. It can even take a week or two weeks for it to set. You’ll be able to watch this in the jar by tilting the jar and seeing if the mixture still looks like water or if it has started to move slowly in the jar and thickened.

It’s also possible to re-do the jam if it just never gels and you don’t want to keep all that syrup around. As long as the jars properly sealed, you can open them, empty the contents back into the pot and cook it down some more. It’s a bit of work because you’ll have to wash and sterilize the jars and go through the whole water bath process again. Just depends on how many jars of jam you made first go around. It’s really a little more complicated than that as sometimes you might need to add some more sugar or even pectin if you used it. The “Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving” has the information you will need to do this. But, as mentioned, as long as the jars sealed, even if its just syrup, it should be safe to keep for a year or longer.