Blackberries are big, sweet, and relatively easy to find. I grow them on my property, and they’re also easy to find in forests and parks near my home.
In the summer, these tasty berries are everywhere!
Once you learn how to can blackberries in syrup, you can fill your pantry with shelf-stable sweetness you can enjoy all winter long.
How to Can Blackberries in a Water Bath Canner
This sweet recipe makes a tasty sauce for springtime desserts (like slices of cheesecake). But can enough of this treat, and you can use them in all sorts of ways.
Equipment Needed
- Colander
- Two saucepans
- Water canner with lid
- Five pint jars with lids and rings (for a whole canner load)
- Jar lifter
- Lid lifter
- Canning funnel
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 6 pounds of blackberries (for a full canner load)
- 2½ cups of water
- 1 cup and 2 tablespoons of sugar
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
5 minutes
Canning Time
15 minutes
Step 1: Choose Your Blackberries
This recipe works best with blackberries plucked directly from the vine. Berries like this are large and firm, and they don’t break down quickly when inside the jars.
If you don’t have enough pure blackberries, you can add hybrid berries.
I often use a mix of blackberries, marionberries, and loganberries with this recipe.
Pick 6 pounds of fruit for a full canner load. Scale down the syrup amount if you don’t have enough fruit.

Step 2: Prepare Your Jars and Lids
You’ll need five half-pint jars for a full batch of this recipe. Start by inspecting all of the jars you’re hoping to use, and set aside any jars that are chipped or cracked.
Wash your approved jars with soap and hot water. Rinse them well, and put your jars in the canner. Fill the canner with water, put the lid on, and turn the heat on medium.
Simmer the jars until you’re ready to use them.
Place your lids in a saucepan and cover them with water. Put the saucepan over low heat and let them warm while you prepare your recipe.

Step 3: Wash Your Berries
Blackberries have deep cracks that can hold plenty of dirt, bugs, and debris.
If you don’t wash the fruit, these contaminants can enter your final product and make it unsafe to eat (as well as not very tasty). Thankfully, blackberries also hold up to cleaning with ease.
Place a thin layer of blackberries in your colander. Rinse them with a stream of cool water and let them drain.
Repeat this step with thin layers of blackberries until they’ve all been cleaned. Don’t be tempted to dump all of your berries in the strainer at once, as you may not get them clean enough.
Step 4: Make Your Syrup
Blackberries taste best when they’re preserved in a medium syrup. With a nice ratio of sugar to water, a syrup like this can nicely combat the tang of blackberries.
For a whole batch, mix 2½ cups of water and 1 cup and 2 tablespoons of sugar in a saucepan.
Bring the liquid to a boil over medium-high heat. The sugar will dissolve quickly, and your syrup will be ready to go.
Step 5: Fill Your Jars with Berries
I’m using a cold-pack method for this recipe, as it allows me to put up a lot of berries really quickly. This method also ensures that I don’t heat my berries more times than I need to.
Remove your hot jars from the canner with your jar lifter. Place your canning funnel in one jar and fill it with the berries you’ve rinsed and prepared.
Don’t poke or press your berries into the jar to make them fit. I like to shake the jar instead to help the berries nestle together.

Leave ½ inch of space at the top of the jar for the fruit to expand inside the canner. Remove berries if you need to.
Repeat this step until all of your jars are filled with berries.
Step 6: Top Your Berries with Syrup
Place your canning funnel in one filled jar, and use your ladle to spoon prepared syrup into your jars. Preserve the ½ inch of headspace at the top of your jars.
I like to pour the syrup in very slowly, as it allows the liquid to trickle past the berries very slowly so air bubbles can slide to the surface and out of the jars.

No matter how slowly you pour in your liquid, trapped air pockets may remain. To get them out, run a spoon around the edge of your jars very slowly.
Inspect your jars when you’re done to ensure you don’t leave any bubbles behind.
Step 7: Apply Lids and Rings
After filling and manipulating your jars, you may have spilled some liquid. Remove it by dampening a paper towel and running it around the edge of each jar.
This step ensures your jars are ready to latch to the lids.
Use your lid lifter to remove the lids from the water bath.

Put a lid on each jar and secure it with a ring. Screw the lid down until it’s finger-tight. It should be loose enough to allow air to escape inside the canner.
Step 8: Process Your Jars
Put your prepared jars inside the canner. Ensure they’re covered with at least an inch of water and that water should be boiling.
Put the lid on the canner, and process your jars for 15 minutes. Adjust for your elevation as needed.

Step 9: Let Jars Rest
After processing, the contents in your jars are still boiling. That means air might still bubble out of the lids.
Turn off the heat, remove the lid from the canner, and let the jars rest for 5 minutes.
Then, use your jar lifter to remove the jars from the canner. Keep them completely upright as you move them, and set your jars down on something like a towel or cutting board.
This step ensures your hot jars don’t crack when they contact a cold countertop.
Let your jars sit completely undisturbed for 24 hours. You may hear them pop and snap as the lids seal.
Step 10: Test Your Work
After the rest period, remove the rings from your jars. With your index finger, press on the center of your lids.
If you don’t hear any noise or the lids don’t depress, you have a good seal. Write the date on each jar.
If your lids didn’t seal properly, place the jar in your refrigerator and eat them within a few days.

How Long Do Canned Blackberries Last?
The USDA says foods like blackberries are shelf-stable after preserving in a water canner for about a year.
Writing the date on the lids ensures that you eat these tasty bits before the deadline passes.
Your berries will last longest when the jars are stored in a cool, dark place. I use my basement for jar storage.

Ideas for Using Canned Blackberries
Blackberries in syrup are versatile and tasty. Here are some of my favorite ways to use them:
- Coat slices of Easter cheesecake with blackberries.
- Add preserved blackberries to salads.
- Use your blackberries in muffins.
- Mash blackberries on toast or English muffins for a sweet breakfast.
- Place a dish of blackberries on your next cheese plate.
- Mix blackberries with spices for a tasty marinade.
- Cook down blackberries and their liquid for a tasty ham glaze.
- Add blackberries and the syrup to seltzer.
- Sweeten your smoothies with berries and syrup.
- Use berries and syrup as a sweetener for pancakes and waffles.

Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 pounds whole blackberries for a full canner load; you can mix in hybrid berries such as marionberries or loganberries if desired
- 2½ cups water
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
Choose Your Blackberries
- Select large, firm blackberries picked directly from the vine.
- Use 6 pounds of fruit for a full canner load. If you have less fruit, adjust the syrup amount accordingly.
Prepare Your Jars and Lids
- Inspect five pint jars for chips or cracks and wash them with soap and hot water.
- Rinse the jars well, then place them in the water bath canner, fill with water, cover with the lid, and heat over medium until ready to use.
- Warm the lids in a saucepan over low heat.
Wash Your Berries
- Place a thin layer of blackberries in a colander.
- Rinse them under a stream of cool water to remove any dirt or debris, and allow them to drain.
- Repeat in small batches to ensure thorough cleaning.
Make Your Syrup
- In a saucepan, combine 2½ cups of water with 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of sugar.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves completely.
Fill Your Jars with Berries
- Using a jar lifter, remove the hot jars from the canner and place them on a towel or cutting board.
- Insert a canning funnel into each jar and pack the jars with the cleaned blackberries.
- Do not press the berries; allow them to settle naturally, leaving ½ inch of headspace at the top.
Top Your Berries with Syrup
- With the canning funnel still in place, slowly ladle the hot syrup into each jar, maintaining the ½ inch headspace.
- To release any trapped air bubbles, gently run a spoon around the inside edge of the jar.
Apply Lids and Rings
- Wipe the rims of the jars with a damp paper towel to remove any spills.
- Using the lid lifter, remove the warmed lids from the saucepan and place one on each jar.
- Secure with rings, tightening them until they are finger-tight to allow air to escape during processing.
Process Your Jars
- Place the filled jars into the water bath canner, ensuring they are covered by at least one inch of boiling water.
- Cover the canner with its lid and process the jars for 15 minutes (adjust for your elevation if necessary).
Let Jars Rest
- After processing, turn off the heat, remove the canner lid, and allow the jars to rest in the hot water for 5 minutes.
- Using the jar lifter, carefully remove the jars and place them upright on a towel or cutting board.
- Allow the jars to cool undisturbed for 24 hours. You may hear the lids seal as they cool.
Test Your Work
- After 24 hours, check the seals by removing the rings and pressing down on each lid with your finger.
- If the lids do not depress or make noise, the jars are properly sealed.
- Label each jar with the date; if any jar hasn’t sealed properly, refrigerate it and use within a few days.
Notes
- Storage: Canned blackberries in syrup are shelf-stable for about a year when stored in a cool, dark place.
- Versatility: Use these preserved berries to coat slices of cheesecake, add to salads, mix into muffins, spread on toast, serve on a cheese plate, create a marinade, make a ham glaze, add to seltzer, sweeten smoothies, or drizzle over pancakes and waffles.
