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Making and canning your own jam (strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, peach, etc.) is also quite easy.. Here's how to do it, in easy steps and completely illustrated. Would you like directions about how to make orange marmalade? If so, tell me via feedback, and I'll put it up!
Ingredients and Equipment
Fruit - preferably fresh, but frozen (without syrup works, too)
Ball jars (Publix, WalMart carry then - about $8 per dozen quart jars including the lids and rings)
Lids - thin, flat, round metal lids with a gum binder that seals them against the top of the jar. They may only be used once.
Rings - metal bands that secure the lids to the jars. They may be reused many times.
Foley Food Mill ($20) - not necessary; if you want to remove seeds (from blackberries)
Process
Step 1 - Picking the Berries
It's fun to go pick your own and you can obviously get better quality ones!
At right is a picture I took of wild blackberries - they are plentiful in late June throughout Georgia. I usually look in rural north Georgia.
I prefer to grow my own - but that does take space and time.
Above and to the right are blackberries and strawberries that I picked at a pick-your-own farm.If you want to pick your own, here is a list and links to the pick your own farms.
Step 2 - How much fruit?
Jam can ONLY be made in rather small batches - about 6 cups at a time - like the directions on the pectin say, DO NOT increase the recipes or the jam won't "set" (jell, thicken). It takes about 8 cups of berries per batch.
Step 3 -Wash and hull the fruit!
I'm sure you can figure out how to wash the fruit in plain cold water.
With strawberries you must remove the hulls. With other berries, just pick off any stems and leaves.
Then you just mush them up a bit - not completely crushed, but mostly. Most people seem to like large chunks of fruit but crushing them releases the natural pectin so it can thicken.
If you want seedless jam, you may need to run the crushed berries through a Foley food mill (at right). It works well for blackberries, not so well for raspberries, and no one tries to remove strawberry seeds (they're so small). I suppose you could train monkeys to pick them out, but they'd probably form a trade labor union. But I digress....
Step 4 - Mix with the pectin and cook to a full boil
I usually add about 20% more pectin (just open another pack and add a little) or else the jam is runnier than I like. Stir and put it in a big put on the stove over medium to high heat (stir often enough to prevent burning)
Is your jam too runny? Pectin enables you to turn out perfectly set jam every time. Made from natural apples, there are also low-sugar pectins that allow you to reduce the sugar you add by almost half! Get it here at BETTER prices!
Step 5 - Get the jars and lids sterilizing
The dishwasher is fine for the jars. I get that going while I'm preparing everything else, so it's done by the time I'm ready to fill the jars. Lids: put the lids into a pan of boiling water for at least several minutes. Note: everything gets sterilized in the water bath (step 7) anyway, so this just helps to ensure there is not spoilage later!)
Step 6 - Add the remaining sugar and bring to a boil
Add the sugar (about 4 cups of sugar per 6 cup batch of berries) and then bring it back to a boil and boil hard for 1 minute.
Step 7 - Testing for "jell" (thickness)
I keep a metal tablespoon sitting in a glass of ice water, then take a half spoonful of the mix and let it cool to room temperature on the spoon. If it thickens up to the consistency I like, then I know the jam is ready. If not, I mix in a little more pectin (about 1/s to 1/2 of another package) and bring it to a boil again for 1 minute.
Step 8 - Fill the jars and put the lid and rings on
Fill them to within 1/4 inch of the top, wipe any spilled jam off the top, seat the lid and tighten the ring around them. Put them in the canner and keep them covered with at least 1 inch of water. Keep the water boiling. Boil them for at 15 minutes. Some people don't even boil the jars - if you ladle it hot into hot jars, but this helps reduce spoilage!
Step 9 - Done
Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool without touching or bumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight) You can then remove the rings if you like.
Other Equipment:
From left to right:
Jar lifting tongs to pick up hot jars
Lid lifter - to remove lids from the pot of boiling water (sterilizing )
Lid - disposable - you may only use them once
Ring - holds the lids on the jar until after the jars cool - then you don't need them
Canning jar funnel - to fill the jars
Complete Water Bath Canner Kit
This is the same type of standard canner that my grandmother used to make everything from applesauce to jams and jellies to tomato and spaghetti sauce!. This complete kit includes everything you need and lasts for years: the canner, jar rack, jar grabber tongs, lid lifting wand, six pint jars with lids and rings, a plastic funnel, labels, bubble freer, and the bible of canning, the Ball Blue Book. It's much cheaper than buying the items separately. You'll never need anything else except more jars and lids!
Average Customer Review: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Canning books
Canning & Preserving for Dummies by Karen Ward Average Customer Review: Usually ships in 24 hours
Price:
$11.89
You Save:
$5.10(30%)
The Ball Blue Book of Preserving
This is THE book on canning! My grandmother used this book when I was a child. It tells you in simple instructions how to can almost anything; complete with recipes for jam, jellies, pickles, sauces, canning vegetables, meats, etc. If it can be canned, this book likely tells you how! Click on the link below for more information and / or to buy (no obligation to buy)
Price $8.95
Summary - Cost of Making Homemade Jam to makes 18 jars, 8 oz each**
Item
Quantity
Cost in 2004
Source
Subtotal
Berries (strawberries)
1 gallon
$8.00/gallon
Pick your own
$8.00
Canning jars (8 oz size), includes lids and rings
18 jars
$7.00/dozen
WalMart, BigLots, Publix, Kroger
$10..00
Sugar
6 cups
$2.50
WalMart, BigLots, Publix, Kroger
$2.50
Pectin (low sugar, dry)
1 and a third boxes *
$2.00 per box
WalMart, BigLots, Publix, Kroger
$2.70
Total
$23.20 total or about $1.25 per jar
* pectin use varies - blackberry jam needs very little, raspberry a little more, strawberry the most.
** - This assumes you already have the pots, pans, ladles, and reusable equipment. Note that you can reuse the jars! Many products are sold in jars that will take the lids and rings for canning. For example, Classico Spaghetti sauce is in quart sized jars that work with Ball and Kerr lids and rings
Can't find the equipment? We ship to all 50 states! Use our Feedback form!
Why should cooked jelly be made in small batches? If a larger quantity of juice is used, it will be necessary to boil it longer thus causing loss of flavor, darkening of jelly, and toughening of jelly.
What do I do if there's mold on my jellied fruit product? Discard jams and jellies with mold on them. The mold could be producing a mycotoxin (poisonous substance that can make you sick). USDA and microbiologists recommend against scooping out the mold and using the ramaining jam or jelly.
Why did my jellied fruit product ferment, and what do I do? Jellied fruit products may ferment because of yeast growth. This can occur if the product is improperly processed and sealed, or if the sugar content is low. Fermented fruit products have a disagreeable taste. Discard them.
Christmas Tree Farms, Tree Lots, Hayrides, Sleigh Rides and Other Winter Fun
