Strawberry Jam
Here in Ohio, strawberry season is over, which means summer is well underway and strawberry jam is nice and stocked up again! This recipe is simple and sweet with not a dash of pectin in sight. Personally, I love that delicious, rich flavor of slow simmered berries.
If you didn’t get out to the berry patch this year, you can definitely make this jam with strawberries from the supermarket and not miss a beat. The great thing about buying them there is that during strawberry season, (late spring and early summer) you can find them well stocked and cheap.
Because this recipe doesn’t call for added pectin, I realize that might be a turnoff for some because of the added time. But I promise you that it’s TOTALLY worth it! Cooking the jam for a longer time means more water evaporates from the berries, and you get a deeper, more rich tasting final product. No crushing the berries, either. The cook time takes care of that for you.
Also, wanted to throw a quick note in here about a handy dandy tool that I can’t live without when going through lots of berries. This hulling tool is amazing if you don’t want to use a paring knife. Not sponsored, just a fan.
As if there wasn’t enough merit to this strawberry jam, it also gets points for being versatile when it comes to storage. You can use this recipe for canning, refrigerating and freezing. Canning will give you the longest shelf life, followed closely by freezing. Refrigeration will allow you to keep it around for 3-4 weeks, although I doubt it’ll last that long before you eat it all π
Strawberry Jam
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour + 15 minutes
- Yield: 2 pints 1x
- Category: Condiments, Canning
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Description
Fresh picked strawberries make the most amazing jam!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds strawberries (hulled)
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 1 TB unsalted butter
Instructions
- Add the strawberries and sugar to a large pot and stir to coat well, and place over medium high heat. Stir the berries and sugar occasionally until the mixture comes to a boil. Add the lemon juice and zest.
- Continue to maintain a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down for about 30 minutes, or until the jam reaches 220 degrees. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. This will remove the rest of the foam and give the jam a nice shine.
If canning
- Fill hot, clean half pint or pint size jars with ΒΌ inch of headspace. Make sure the rims are clean before placing a lid on each jar. Secure lids with bands until fingertip tight. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes (half pint jars) or 15 minutes (pint jars). Remove from canner and allow seals to pop down. This can take several hours, don’t worry if they don’t pop immediately. Canned jam may be stored indefinitely (check for freshness before using).
If refrigerating
- Add finished jam to either jars or other storage containers, and seal. Jam may be refrigerated for 3-4 weeks.
If freezing
- Jam may be stored frozen for a year.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 88
- Sugar: 19.6 g
- Sodium: 6 mg
- Fat: 0 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 23.1 g
- Fiber: 0.6 g
- Protein: 0.1 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
