I shared with you my 4-Ingredient Strawberry Apricot Jam recipe last week and today I’ll show you a quick and easy Blueberry Jam recipe. Again no food preservatives, pectin or any other artificial flavors and colors are needed… just 3 ingredients! I wasn’t kidding when I told you it was jam making season in our house! If you want me to stop canning one week just don’t send me to the farmers’ market LOL. I’m so tempted to buy a lot of fruit, the taste is amazing, prices are awesome so why not?!
Although we eat fresh blueberries and enjoy them in salads, smoothies, parfaits or baked goods, I must admit this is the first time I’m making blueberry jam. Not sure why it took me so long to try it since it’s super easy to make. If you can find wild blueberries out in the woods, that’s even better; they have a more intense sweet and tangy taste than the cultivated ones… plus you don’t have to spend a dime to get them! If you know any good place to pick wild blueberries in Ontario / around GTA, I’m all ears : -)!
Time: Prep: 20 min. Cook: several hours until your jam sets well
Yield: 5 jars of 250ml
Ingredients:
- 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg) fresh blueberries
- 3.5 cups (700 g )sugar
- Juice from 1/2 lemon
Equipment:
- Jars & lids. Lids should have a gum binder that seals them against the top of the jar.
- 1 large heavy pot for boiling the jam
- Wooden spoons for stirring
- Ladle for distributing jam into jars & a canning funnel
Directions:
Wash blueberries and remove any bad ones, leaves and stems.
Place the drained berries into a large pot, alternating with sugar. If you don’t want to see your jam overflow down the stove make sure you don’t fill the pot more than two-thirds.
Then get your hands dirty and mash them up a bit to let some of the juices out! You can use a potato masher as well.
Add the lemon juice and bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Stir occasionally and skim the foam once in a while.
Reduce heat to medium-low and let the jam simmer, stirring constantly to prevent any sticking to the bottom.
Test the thickness of the jam periodically (spoon some jam onto a plate and let it cool). If it’s runny and saucy you need to let the jam cook for some more time.
While your jam is simmering, wash the jars in soapy water and rinse them thoroughly. Allow them to drip-dry for 15-20 minutes and then place them in a pan (or right on the rack) in the oven set to 225F (100C) to sterilize the jars. Leave them there until you are ready to pour the jam. Make sure the lids are clean and dry as well before using them.
Carefully remove the jars from the oven. Pour the jam into hot sterilized canning jars. It’s better to pour half a ladle of jam in each jar to allow the jar to reach almost the same temperature as the jam. Then fill all the jars leaving 1-1.5 cm headspace. This is very important as overfilling can result in a jar that doesn’t seal properly.
Wipe the jars with a clean damp paper towel to remove any residue. Place lids on top and cover the jars with a blanket until they are completely cooled. The purpose of the blanket is to allow the jars to cool slowly and help the lids seal properly.
I stopped processing the jars in a water bath last year and my jam is still perfectly fine. But remember you need to sterilize them using the blanket trick instead. If you want to sterilize them using the water bath feel free to do so. You can check out how to do this in one of my previous recipes for strawberry jam or apricot jam.
After the jars are completely cooled if you can press the center of the lid down, it did not seal. If any jars have not sealed, you can either try processing them again in a water bath or just refrigerate them.
Can you cut down the sugar? 3.5 cups is a LOT of sugar. Just saying.
I’m a new foodie. I tried making jam this morning and right now it’s almost solid. Please help!
Hi. Could you substitute the blueberries with strawberries or blackberries? Thanks! 😊
I noticed people keep referring to frozen fruit… my mom and I used to boil down our muscadine juice and freeze berries to make the jellies in cold weather. Living in the deep South, we didn’t want the kitchen heated up during the hot months. Always had more down time too after the holidays were done and with no garden going. Sorry, had to share my walk down memory lane.
Thanks for sharing, Ginger 🙂 !
Nice recipe, it worked very well with my frozen berries. Also, I dont skim my jam, unless making jelly for a competition. My mother taught me to stir in a nob of butter approximately the size of a large walnut. This incorporates the ‘scum’ , gives the jam a lovely gloss and intensifies the flavour slightly
Thanks for sharing the tip. I’ll give it a try next time as well.
Love this recipe. I didn’t skim off the scum though. My mother taught: When the jam reaches gel stage take it off the element and stir in a generous walnut sized piece of butter. Keep stirring til fully melted into the jam….exit scum.. and it gives a lovely gloss. unless you are making jelly for competition. 😊😊
Glad you like it and thanks for sharing the tip. I’ll give it a try next time for sure!
Love this recipe can you use any kind of fruit. I have raspberry and rhubarb this year in my garden
Oh wow, sounds yummy. I love blueberry ice cream. Thanks,
Simon
Hi Roxy,
Just made my 1st ever blueberry jam & so glad i found your recipe! Love love it! ???
Just picked blueberries this evening. Can you tell me how long i can keep the filled jars on the shelf? I want to give as gifts. Thanks
I made this last year and I still have some jars. You can keep the jars in the shelf for years if sealed properly.
My brother is diabetic & this looks easy.:) Can it be stored on shelf or does it have to be kept in refrig???
It can definitely be stored on the shelf with no problems.
Your brother is a diabetic… he can’t eat this Jam! It’s loaded with sugar!
Hey Roxy i have 2 questions. Can I sterilize the lids in the oven as well? Can I store all my filled jars with the jam in the fridge even if the jar didn’t pop? Thank you
Yes, I’ve sterilized the lids in the oven before with no issues. And you can definitely store your jam in the fridge.
I love this recipe. I have frozen blueberries, will this work with frozen?
I’m glad you like it, Robin! Frozen blueberries are fine as well 🙂
I’m a new co-host for the Create and Share Link Party, and I just love this recipe so much that I’m going to be featuring it at tonight’s party!!! Hope to see you there (starts at 6:00 pm MST)! 🙂 http://designsbymissmandee.blogspot.com/
YAY thanks so much for the feature & for stopping by to let me know :)! I’ll join the party later today for sure!
Good morning! We’re featuring your blueberry post on our blog today! Come grab a button 🙂
http://www.ourminifamily.com/2014/08/bewitchin-projects-block-party-week-4.html#more
xo Cathy
Thanks so much for the feature! Looking forward to the next party 🙂 !
I’ve never tried blueberry jam either. I usually stick to strawberry, but I think I must now try it out. Love that you shared a no pectin recipe. Thanks for sharing at Gingerly Made!
Love all natural jam like that! Thank you so much for linking up at Tasty Tuesday! Your recipe has been pinned to the Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board! Please join us again this week!
Love blueberry jam, it’s one of my favourite flavours. Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!!
If I can get hold of enough blueberries I’m giving this a go. I’ve not made blueberry jam before and it’s nice to see one that uses less sugar than most.
Yum! I’ve never tried making jam before, but I just may have to give it a go now. I wish that i could get to the blueberries on our bush before the birds though! Pinning! Thanks for linking up with us at FoodieFridays!
I love blueberries and your recipe looks amazing! I’d love for you to share and link up with us. Thanks! http://partypatisserie.com/2014/08/party-time-linky-7/
This looks great Roxy! We have already picked our blueberries here, but I have lots in the freezer that I can thaw for this recipe. I’m trying it soon. Thanks for sharing at Wake Up Wednesday!
I’ve only made my own jam once before & the pectin put me waaaaaay off. Especially since it was freezer jam, so it was double the pectin! But I love the look of your THREE INGREDIENT blueberry jam! That’s just amazing:) Followed you here from Treasure Box Tuesdays. Would love it if you shared the pin from this recipe at my Pinterest food party; every pin gets repinned to a massive board! Here’s this week’s party: http://www.anyonita-nibbles.co.uk/2014/08/call-for-blog-contributors.html
Thanks for stopping by Anyonita, I’m glad you like the recipe! I’ve just stopped by your party to share this recipe and some others 🙂 ! Thanks for hosting the party!
This looks great…all natural…love that! It looks delicious and easier to do than I thought…thanks for sharing!
I try to stay away from using food preservatives / pectin … it’s healthier and I love the taste!
You have just transported me back to my childhood…. this is how my mom used to make strawberry jam after we went strawberry picking. Thanks for the trip down memory lane! Recipe is pinned!
another awesome recipe roxy. i’ve never made my own jam before but if its this easy i definitely will be trying too! thanks for the inspiration!
Thanks Thalia! It’s definitely super easy to make, there is no peeling, coring, pitting or cutting like with other fruits… mix everything up & simmer it! Let me know how it goes if you decide to try out the recipe 🙂 .
Hi Roxy. I have plenty of frozen blueberries in the freezer and this is the first time to ever make blueberries jam. I like a smooth jam so can I put my berries in a food processor first?
Yes, you can purée them in a food processor.