I am getting requests from people wanting to know about the how to's for strawberry jam, so decided to post. I want to thank Tracy for getting me started with this, I have had a lot of fun putting up jam for the fam. I also have a pdf version if anyone is interested, just leave a comment and I will email you a copy. I have also made the recipe on the back of the SureGel pectin box and it works out just fine. It was just a little more “solid” than the recipe Tracy had me do, and I like the consistency of her recipe better. I did add a little more pectin to it, but it is still a nice, kind of loose jam that spreads really well. Tracy and I canned my first attempt at her house and it was so much fun I decided to try some more on my own. 252 (or so) pints later I am still loving the whole thing. Tawna, Taya, and Jade now have the “fruits” of their labor on their shelves and I have enough for a year also. Here is the recipe I did:
I doubled Tracy's recipe, and used a bigger stockpot to cook in so I could do bigger batches and cut out some of the cooking time. The doubled recipe below will yield about 11 pints. As the first 8 pints process in the canner, I cook another batch and that way can have a second load ready for the canner pretty fast. This leaves about 6 jars to process in a third round for the canner and when these are processing I start cooking another batch of jam.
Use ripe fruit, not over-ripe for best results. I used a 10-12 quart stockpot. As the mixture cooks it does “grow” a bit and so the pan needs to be large enough to accommodate the process. A 6-8 quart stockpot will do a single recipe (half the one below) just fine and yields about 5 pints.
- Preparing Fruit
- Rinse and stem your berries. In small batches, process them in a food processor using the pulse function to the consistency you want. Most of my girls like a smooth jam, I like it slightly chunky. If you do all your fruit at once it makes it easier to just cook and process your jam one batch after the other. If you don’t have a food processor, a potato masher will work.
- I did about 32 lbs. of strawberries and got about 52 pints. The boxes I got were supposed to be 4 lbs, give or take and yield will depend on size and spoilage in your fruit. 52 is a jar a week for a year and that is what I like to do for my pantry.
- Preparing Lids
- Prepare lids by putting them into a pan of hot, simmering water (that's what the manufacturer's recommend) for 5 minutes, and use the magnetic "lid lifter wand" to pull them out.
- Cooking the Jam
- In your large 10-12 quart stockpot combine:
- 12 C. Mashed strawberries
- 1/2 C. Fresh squeezed lemon juice (Tracy has a lemon tree so we had lemons, and she sent me home with a bunch. Thanks Tracy.)
- 3 boxes of Pectin, I used the Sure Jell Brand and Ultra Gel works too. The powdered pectin is about 1/3 C. per package. I use the same measurement for the Ulra Gel. (Ultra Gel does not require cooking to thicken, so may be added after the cooking process and after the foam is skimmed off.)
- 1 t. butter (the sure jell package recommends this to reduce the foaming as it cooks.)
Place on burner and set to Hi. Stir constantly until mixture comes to a full rolling boil.
(This means it still boils well even when you are stirring.)- Add:
- 16 C. Sugar (I used 14 cups in mine and it seemed to work fine.)
- Stir constantly, sugar will dissolve and allow to return to a full rolling boil. Time for one minte (Tracy and I timed for 5 minutes and it seemed both times worked fine.)
- Remove from heat and after a minute skim foam from surface using a slotted spoon.
- Processing Jars
- Ladel into pints allowing at least a 1/4” headspace. Wipe rims and threads clean and place prepared lids on top. Fasten bands and place into steam canner. (Prepare steam canner according to manufacturer’s directions.) Most steam canners will take 8 pints at a time.
- Steam Canner Method (May also use a Water Bath Method to process)
- Turn steam canner to Hi on burner and wait for steam to stream from side holes in a steady plume. This plume is usually about 8” out from the side and is sort of a soft plume. Time for 5 minutes and remove from heat. Remove lid taking care to open away from you as the steam can burn you. Using a jar lifter, remove jars onto a kitchen towel a few inches apart and allow to cool. Jars will probably “ping” as you are removing them from the canner. In the event you have one that doesn’t ping, refridgerate and use, or reprocess the jar using a new lid.
- Label and date lids on jars and store in a cool, dry place. Once opened, keep in fridge and jam should be used in about 3 weeks or so.
* If jam is a little on the thin side as will sometimes happen, it makes great syrup for pancakes, topping for ice cream, etc.
Cost of course depends on the price per pound, but in our calculations this was a thrifty way to supply our pantries with jam. The taste is great, and is so much fresher than the commercially produced jars. I love it. I can't wait to try peach, apricot and maybe even some green grape.
