Strawberries are both sweet and fragile.
When they’re in season, you can eat them straight from the garden.
Canning strawberry jam allows you to preserve that taste and enjoy it all year long.
How to Make & Can Strawberry Jam in a Water Bath Canner
This recipe is easy and appropriate for both seasoned and inexperienced cooks. You’ll create a shelf-stable product your whole family will love.
Equipment Needed
- Colander
- Sharp knife
- Stainless steel pan
- Small saucepan
- Water canner with lid
- Potato masher
- Nine 8-ounce jars with lids and rings (for a whole canner load)
- Jar lifter
- Lid lifter
- Canning funnel
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 4 cups crushed strawberries
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 7 cups sugar
- 1 pouch liquid pectin
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Canning Time
10 minutes
Step 1: Choose Your Strawberries
This recipe is designed for ripe and juicy strawberries. Look for varieties that are fat and large enough to cover the palm of a child’s hand.
If you grow smaller strawberries (like Alpine versions), don’t use them for this recipe. This fruit is too small and seedy to provide a good product for your shelf.
Step 2: Clean Your Berries
Strawberries grow close to the ground, and they often pick up dirt and debris as they ripen. Berries can also be tasty treats for worms, flies, and bees.
It’s smart to look at every berry carefully and set aside any that are bruised or otherwise too contaminated to be safe.
Put your approved berries in your colander and use a stream of cold water to rinse away any debris on your berries. Leave them in the colander to let them drip dry until you’re ready to use them.
Step 3: Prepare Jars and Lids
This jam comes together quickly, so it’s smart to prepare your jars early. You’ll need nine jam jars for a full batch of this recipe, and all of them should be free of nicks and cracks.
Damaged jars can fall apart in the canner and dump out your delicious jam.
Wash your jars with hot water and soap. Place them inside your canner and fill it with water. Put the lid on the canner, and simmer the jars over medium heat until you need them.
Place your lids in a saucepan and cover them with water. Warm them over low heat while you work on your recipe.
Step 4: Stem, Chop, and Crush Berries
With your sharp knife, cut straight down into each berry and remove the green stem.
Work carefully and ensure you don’t leave any green leaves or stems behind, as they might taint your jam with a grassy flavor.
Chop all of your berries into small pieces and put them in your large stainless steel pan. Use your potato masher to crush them into a fine pulp.
This step ensures that your jam will have a very smooth consistency when it’s placed inside your jars.
Step 5: Combine Fruit and Sugar
You’ll need 4 tablespoons of lemon juice for this recipe. Lemons provide a bit of acidity to the strawberries, making this jam safe to store inside jars for long periods.
Stir your juice into the berries and mix well.
Next, add 7 cups of sugar to your jam. Stir it very carefully to ensure that it mixes well with the juice from the crushed berries.
Step 6: Bring to a Boil
Over high heat, bring your mixture to a boil. Keep stirring the entire time, as the sugar and fruit in the pan will burn if it’s left in close contact with the jam for long periods.
Ensure that you scoop up the berries and sugar as you stir, and don’t step away from the pan for more than a minute or two.
Step 7: Add Pectin
This recipe calls for liquid pectin. This product is typically sold in a foil envelope, and the contents can be squeezed into the jam in one quick step.
Don’t substitute powdered pectin for the liquid version called for in this recipe. Your final product won’t gel if you make this substitution.
Step 8: Cook Jam
Once you’ve added pectin to your jam, stir the product very carefully to ensure that it’s mixed throughout the entire batch. Keep the heat on high as you stir.
Keep stirring until the jam comes to a rolling boil that doesn’t get smaller when you stir it. Boil it hard for a minute while you keep stirring.
Step 9: Perform a Spoon Test
Take your pan off the heat and test it before you fill your jars. This step takes just a minute, and it ensures you don’t put up jam that hasn’t cooked long enough to gel during processing.
Dip a cold spoon into the jam and hold it up to the light. Run your finger through the center of the liquid.
If the two centers don’t reconnect, the jam is complete.
Step 10: Fill Jars
Remove your jars from the canner with your jar lifter. Place them on a cutting board or towel (not the cold countertop) to ensure they don’t break due to the temperature change.
Place your canning funnel inside one jar, and dip your ladle into the hot jam to fill the jar.
Leave at least ¼ inch of headspace at the top of the jar. This space is critical, as it allows the jam to expand inside the canner.
Resist the urge to pack your jars with too much product. If you do, the jars could spew out jam during processing.
Step 11: Apply Lids and Rings
Strawberry jam is sticky, and the fruit’s seeds are speckled throughout the jam. Debris on the edges of the jars could keep the lids from sealing.
Dampen a paper towel and wipe the edge of the jars to remove any contaminants.
Use your lid lifter to pull lids from your saucepan. Put one on each jar and affix it with a ring. Tighten the rings until they’re finger-tight.
They should be tight enough to keep the lids in place, but don’t screw them don’t too hard.
Air needs to escape from the jars inside the canner.
Step 12: Process Your Jars
Your jars will be really hot at this stage, so don’t touch them with your fingers. Instead, use your jar lifter to pick up the jars and place them in the canner.
Ensure they’re covered with at least an inch of water.
The water in the canner should be boiling, as you’ve warmed it to sterilize your jars. If it’s not boiling, don’t start the timer until it is.
Put the lid on the canner, and process your jars for 10 minutes. Adjust for your elevation as needed.
Step 13: Let Jars Rest
When processing is complete, turn off the heat and take the lid off the canner. Leave the jars submerged inside the canner for 5 minutes to allow the contents to stabilize.
After 5 minutes, use your jar lifter to pull the jars from the canner. Place them on a cutting board or towel to cool for 24 hours.
Step 14: Test Lids
After a full day, remove the rings from your jars. Press on the center of each lid.
If the processing worked perfectly, the lids won’t move or make noise when you press on them.
Properly sealed jars can be labeled and taken to your long-term storage.
Anything that didn’t seal should go into the refrigerator to be eaten in the next few days.
How Long Does Canned Strawberry Jam Last?
The USDA says foods preserved in a water canner should be eaten within about a year. Your jam will be discolored, deteriorated, and not ideal for eating after this timeframe.
Writing the date on the lids ensures you know just when to eat them, so you don’t have to toss anything out.
Ideas for Using Strawberry Jam
Strawberry jam is a great addition to any pantry. Here are a few of my favorite ways to use it:
- Warm jam and pour it over vanilla or chocolate ice cream.
- Make ideal peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with strawberry jam.
- Top waffles and pancakes with a combination of jam and butter.
- Stir jam into muffin mix before baking.
- Mix jam with balsamic vinegar for a flavorful marinade.
- Add jam to cooking oil and use on barbequed meat.
- Stir jam into your yogurt or cottage cheese.
- Sweeten smoothies with a few tablespoons of jam.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 cups crushed strawberries
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 7 cups sugar
- 1 pouch liquid pectin
Instructions
Choose Your Strawberries
- Use ripe, juicy strawberries for this recipe. Opt for larger varieties that are plump enough to cover a child’s palm, such as June-bearing types. Avoid smaller varieties (like Alpine) as they have more seeds and won’t provide the same consistency.
Clean Your Berries
- Rinse the berries in a colander under cool water to remove any dirt or debris.
- Inspect each berry carefully, discarding any that are bruised or contaminated. Allow the berries to drip dry.
Prepare Jars and Lids
- This recipe makes 9 jars. Inspect each jar for chips or cracks. Wash the jars with hot, soapy water and place them in your canner, covering with water. Simmer the jars over medium heat until you’re ready to fill them.
- Place the lids in a saucepan filled with water, and warm them over low heat.
Stem, Chop, and Crush Berries
- Remove the green stems from the strawberries with a sharp knife, being careful not to leave any stems behind.
- Chop the berries into small pieces and place them in a large stainless steel pan.
- Use a potato masher to crush the berries into a fine pulp. You’ll need 4 cups of crushed strawberries.
Combine Fruit and Sugar
- Stir 4 tablespoons of lemon juice into the crushed strawberries.
- Add 7 cups of sugar and mix thoroughly, ensuring the sugar is well incorporated with the berries.
Bring to a Boil
- Over high heat, bring the berry mixture to a boil. Stir constantly to avoid burning the sugar. Ensure that the fruit and sugar are evenly combined and don’t stick to the pan.
Add Pectin
- Add 1 pouch of liquid pectin to the boiling mixture. Stir it carefully to ensure the pectin is fully dissolved.
- Bring the mixture back to a full, rolling boil that doesn’t subside when stirred.
Cook Jam
- Keep the heat on high and stir constantly until the jam reaches a full, rolling boil.
- Boil for 1 minute while stirring constantly. This ensures the jam sets properly.
Perform a Spoon Test
- Take the pan off the heat and test the consistency of the jam.
- Dip a cold spoon into the jam, hold it up to the light, and run your finger through the center. If the two sides don’t rejoin, the jam is ready.
- If the jam is too runny, cook it for another minute and test again.
Fill Jars
- Remove the jars from the canner with a jar lifter and place them on a cutting board or towel.
- Using a canning funnel, ladle the hot jam into each jar, leaving at least ¼ inch of headspace. Avoid overfilling the jars to prevent spills during processing.
Apply Lids and Rings
- Wipe the rims of each jar with a damp paper towel to remove any jam residue.
- Using the lid lifter, place a lid on each jar and secure with a ring, tightening it just until it’s finger-tight.
Process Your Jars
- Carefully place the filled jars into the boiling water bath canner, ensuring they are covered by at least 1 inch of water.
- Cover the canner and process the jars for 10 minutes. Adjust the processing time for your elevation if necessary.
Let Jars Rest
- After processing, turn off the heat and remove the canner lid. Let the jars rest in the canner for 5 minutes.
- Use the jar lifter to remove the jars and place them on a cutting board or towel to cool for 24 hours. Avoid disturbing them during this time.
Test Lids
- After 24 hours, check the seals by pressing on the center of each lid. If the lid doesn’t move or make noise, the seal is perfect.
- Label the jars with the date and store them in a cool, dark place.
- Any jars that didn’t seal should be refrigerated and used within a few days.
Notes
- Storage: Canned strawberry jam is shelf-stable for up to one year.
- Usage Ideas:
- Serve over vanilla ice cream or mix with yogurt.
- Spread on toast or muffins for a delicious breakfast.
- Stir into muffin or cake batter for added flavor.
- Use as a topping for pancakes or waffles, or mix with butter for a sweet glaze.
- Mix with balsamic vinegar for a unique marinade for meats.
