Blackcurrant jam is really easy to make and get to set as blackcurrants are full of pectin and have enough acid. Be careful to not cook the fruit too quickly or the skins will toughen.
Ingredients for Blackcurrant Jam:
- 4 lbs (1.8 kg) blackcurrants
- 2 pints (1.15 litres) water
- 6 lbs (2.7 kg) sugar
Method for Blackcurrant Jam:
- Remove the stalks and wash the fruit.
- Put into a pan with the water, bring to the boil and simmer gently until the fruit is soft.
- Test for pectin.
- Add the sugar and stir until it has dissolved.
- Bring to the boil and boil rapidly for about 5 minutes until the jam sets when tested.
- Remove the scum.
- Pot and seal at once.
Makes about 8 lbs (3.6 kgs) of blackcurrant jam.
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How do you test for pectin?
See the advice section mentioned above in the recipe for how to test for pectin
Help have just bought a tefal jam maker but no recipe for blackcurrant jam. Can I use the gooseberry recipe
I haven’t got a jam maker but would be dubious with black currants.They need to be cooked long and gently for 20-30 minutes before the sugar is added or they will turn out like hard buttons in the jam. Once the sugar has been added, it toughens the tissue and no amount of boiling will soften the fruit.
Worked a treat and I shall certainly use it again – often!
do you have a recipe for diabetic black currant jam?
I’m afraid I don’t. Have you tried a Google search?
Hi,
Did you try blackcurrant jam in the jam maker as I have just bought one and want to try the same!
Thanks,
Lesley
I’ve never tried as I haven’t got a jam maker but someone else may come along with the answer.
Hi
If I boil until they are soft first can I use Jam Sugar the
one with added pectin.
Thanks
It shouldn’t be necessary as blackcurrants are high in pectin – you could end up with a very solid jam!
hi making blackcurrant jam for the first time, what sugar should i use
Ordinary granulated sugar.
No need to check for pectin with Blackcurrants – they have naturally high levels.
The advice in the completely wonderful and indispensible Marguerite Patten book on jams and chutneys is that when you’re softening the fruit do not let it boil too hard when softening the fruit (or at all, if it can be avoided). You’ll just lose flavour and colour. (Incidentally the Mrs Beeton recipe you’ll fine online is quite hopeless – after the 30 minutes of boiling it advises you’ll end up with something pretty tasteless.)
Patten advises (off the top of my head) between 1/4 and 1/2 pint of water per lb of fruit, depending on level of ripeness. And it’s the standard 1lb sugar to 1lb fruit. (The high pectin levels mean you can add more sugar – 1lb 2oz per lb of fruit – for a slightly firmer jam.)
I use caster sugar – slightly finer than granulated so easier to disolve. Don’t bother with jam sugar – waste of money for blackcurrant.
Finally, wash the jars and lids in plain hot water and then put them in the over at 110C for the 5 minutes of fast boiling after the sugar has disolved and then jar the jam immediately. Then you’ll never get mould and the jam will keep for 2 years or more.
To avoid jam with very hard currant it is essential to simmer the currants until tender before adding the sugar.
I have made this jam every year for at least 20 years and have found this works. Simmer the berries for an hour if needs be. You will not be disappointed with the results
Add a nice knob of butter to it 🙂 maz 15g
Make all my own jams as did my mother. In the winter blackcurrant jam makes a really soothing hot drink, particulaly good if you have a sore throat. Put 2 good teaspoons of jam in a mug add boiling water to top of cup. Stir with care until it partially dissolves, allow to cool slightly so you do not burn your mouth. Full of vitamin c and much cheaper than buying blackcurrant drink.
@Will Duffay: Do I put the lids on straight after putting the jam into the jars
Yes.
help my blackcurrant jam hasnt set made some last week set fine.
I am after a recipe for Blackcurrant and red currant (combined) jam. If you can’t mix why not?
Any help would be appreciated
Wow what a useful website! Thanks all for the great advice, off to make my black currant jam know for the first time. Thanks again
Please advise … I have forgotten to test the jam first and it has not totally set, can i reboil it to make it set completely?
I have seen recipes that say to remove the leftover dried up blossom before making the jam. Do any of you do this?
@Norman: I make jam with three currants, white, red and black, following the recipe for just blackcurrant and it works fine
Can you use Frozen Blackcurrants in this recipe.
Great recipe set first time. Would have made more as the family love it but the blackbirds got to the crop first. Can’t blame the website for that!
Yes just use 10% more fruit to sugar to allow for the loss of pectin caused through freezing.
Just made 11 + jars . All set well. Our bushes are 40 years old and have not cropped for a few years but a good helping of horse manure and double the usual rainfall for November and we got a good crop. There are still some left to pick but they may be left for the birds.
This year was a bumper crop for our 4 blackcurrant bushes. Prune back every year and add mature manure to aid a good harvest. I’m adding blueberries to my jam to cut down on amount of sugar used.
I froze most of the berries this year due to a trip abroad. The tip about pectin loss is a good one!