This jam works better with smallish, slightly under-ripe strawberries as they have more pectin. You could still have a problem though so it may be as well to use jam sugar or add about 7 fluid ozs of pectin stock
Ingredients for Strawberry Jam:
- 4 lbs (1.8 kg) strawberries
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 4 lbs (1.8 kg) sugar
Method for Strawberry Jam:
- Hull the strawberries, wash and drain well.
- Put into a preserving pan with the lemon juice..
- Simmer gently until the fruit is soft.
- Test for pectin.
- Add the sugar, stirring until it has dissolved.
- Bring to the boil and boil rapidly for 5-10 minutes until the jam sets when tested.
- Remove the scum and leave to cool slightly so that the fruit will not rise in the jars.
- Pot and seal while still warm.
Makes around 6 lbs (2.7 kg) of jam.
General Information on Jam Making
How to Make Jam, Jellies & Marmalade
These articles cover the basic methods and rules for making jams, jellies and marmalades. Once you have mastered these, it is far easier to adapt and alter recipes for your own tastes.
The first people to record some of their methods were the Romans...
Preserving Jars, Labels and Covers
Store, preserve, label and cover your home grown fruit and vegetables with this extensive range of products. You've made it so it is only fair to show it off at its best!
Jam and Preserve Making Equipment
All the equipment you need to easily make your own jams, chutneys and preserves. Say goodbye to mass-produced supermarket jams and preserves and start producing your own unique accompaniments to meals using your own produce.
What is ‘test for pectin’?
Thanks, Doug
You’ll find out all about pectin etc in the general jam making articles – Making Jam and Jelly at Home – Introduction and Equipment, Making Jam and Jelly at Home – Ingredients, Fruit and Pectin, Making Jam and Jelly at Home – Methods
Hi just wanted to share with you that i have made the strawberry jam,plum jam and blackberry jam (twice) so far to date.
All enjoyed by family and friends.Thank you for easy to follow instructions,and great recipes.
regards
Mel
Help! I made strawberry jam yesterday with the recipe above. I have made it successfully in previous years but this year it won’t set! I did put it in jars and put it in the fridge but no joy. Can I rescue it soemhow?
Thanks
Sue
Try tipping it out of the jars, re-heating and stirring in a sachet of powdered pectin (Silver Spoon). Don’t forget to wash and re-sterilise the jars before you put the jam back in.
Where does it tell you how to test your jam for pectin?
Bev
Click on the Making Jam link. It’s all explained!
Thanks Val! That worked wonderfully.
Help! I have today made strawberry jam for the first time.
A friend told me to turn the filled jars upside down, but didn’t say for how long! I left them upside down and now have an air pocket at the bottom of each jar.
What do I do now? Will this affect the jam?
Apart from this, I was amazed how easy it was to make.
Karen
I can’t think why your friend said to turn the filled jars upside down. Perhaps it was to re-distribute the fruit and prevent it coming to the top. However, the usual method for doing this is to allow it to cool for about 10 minutes and stir before potting into the jars. The air pocket could cause a problem. Is the jam still “pourable” or very set? If you can tip it out of the jars, re-heat, and then return to the jars (don’t forget that you must re-sterilize them though) you may be able to rectify it. If not, I suggest that you keep it in the fridge and eat a lot of jam quickly!
okay this maybe won’t rescue the jam but try it in future batches. When making the jam try putting in a couple of green/unripened strawberries. This is supposed to help thicken it. Do this myself and the jam always seems to come out thick enough.
I have made strawberry jam many years ago and we always had the pectin problem, sometimes lucky, sometimes not.
I followed your very simple recipe today and success !
Back to the pectin. I don’t know if I can name the brand of jam sugar which contains the pectin.(a piece of cutlery..silver) It made an easy recipe easier.
Margaret
Silverspoon. But it is cheaper to buy ordinary granulated sugar and silverspoon dried pectin sachets.
I’m struggling to find dried pectin sachets in the shops. Do you know where these can be sourced ? I too need to rescue my strawberry (and redcurrant juice for added pectin) jam this year although it’s worked fine in the past.
Morrisons and Asda stock the Silver Spoon dried pectin, along with some Co-ops. Sainsburys and Tesco usually have the liquid pectin (Certo) or their own equivalent.
I’ve made strawberry jam in the past with Certo pectin. It had in the instructions to turn jar upside down instead of processing it in a bath. I recently bought some Certo, but it no longer has that instruction. Anyone out there know how long to keep the jars upside down?
i have just made my first batch of strawberry jam and i have to say its lovely…couldnt keep the kids and hubby from trying to eat it out of the pan…lol
It didnt set at first then i cooked it again and it set no problem…..cant wait to have some on some crusty bread yummm…thank you for your recipe it helped me lots
just made dason jam with ordinary granulated sugar and it is perfect now i am going to make strawberry jam .do i need to use special sugar and why?
Damsons are full of pectin and do not require jam sugar. Strawberries, however, are not. You’ll find it easier to get Strawberry Jam to set if you either use jam sugar (which has the pectin in it) or use ordinary sugar and add liquid or dried pectin.
Tate and Lyle jam sugar is fair trade.
Am about to try and make jam for the first time – will this recipe work as well if I half everything as I don’t quite have the 4lb of fruit required?
Quick answer – Yes!
Is there a way of testing for pectin without using methelated spirit?
Not that I’m aware of. With strawberry jam in particular it is likely to be lacking. You could just go for adding pectin stock, dried or liquid pectin, or use jam sugar.
I tried to make some summer fruit jam yesterday with my daughters. We used an old recipe where it said use juice of a lemon and 14oz sugar and 14oz of fruit. We used strawberries and raspberries and as I hadn’t got a lemon squirted a generous amount of lemon juice in. I think we put in too much as it tastes lovely but is still runny at the top of the jar and this is after 24 hours. Do you think it won’t set and also there are a load of seeds would you normally strain it if the fruit is very seedy.
Thanks for your help.
It isn’t the lemon juice that is preventing it setting. I suspect it is lacking in pectin or you haven’t heated to the setting point. You can always tip it back out of the jar, re-boil for a minute, stirring continually to prevent sticking and then re-test. If this doesn’t work, add some pectin. The commercial pectin, either bottled or powder, is the easiest for this. Do remember that you must thoroughly wash and re-sterilize the jars before re-potting.
Hi Folks,
Just a quick tip on the pectin front- I swear by adding apple* or lemon pips to the mix before boiling, to add pectin to fruit that’s lacking- for jelly just throw in the pips (say 6-12) and they’ll be left behind when you strain it or for jam wrap them in a little pouch of cloth and remove before putting into jars.
I used an old recipe which recommended this and now if I’m not sure the jam is going to set then I prefer that to adding sachets of powders as apples and lemons are cheaply and readily available (+I’m never really sure what’s in there!)
*crab apples work especially well which is why its a good idea to mix these in whole, pips, skin and all to really tricky jelly such as elderberry which never seems to set otherwise!
I have just made my Strawberry jam and forgot to put the pectin in. Can I add it now ? if not what should I do.
Joan
If it is runny and looks as if it is not going to set, tip back out, re-heat and add the pectin. Make certain that you wash the jars thoroughly and re-sterilise before you put the jam back in.
Hi,
just a quicky. new to jam making and did a little plum jam the other day. superb! problem is how long will it keep for when seeled in a jar with wax disc over jam? same question for strawberry jam too. want to make some but don’t want to over do it and end up with too much. can’t eat sugar at the moment till after baby born so hoping to have some to look forward too. thanks
The “official” line is 12 months but I’ve jam that is far older than that and it is still fine. The important thing is to make sure that you have sterilized the jars.
Needed some advice, found it all here! Thank you
I have just made some strawberry jam with fruit that was going for 35p for 400g in the Co op. Panic…. I didn’t have pectin, halfway through process I drove back to shop for some and now I am hoping for the best by tomorrow morning lol
Upside down: When I make jam I never sterilize the jars – just wash them thoughtfully. Instead, after after screwing the lid on I turn the jar upside down so that the hot jam sterilizes the lid and seal. Use a cloth so you don’t burn your hands. Turn it the right up again, and unscrew the lid enough to release pressure before finally tightening it. You get a very good seal and jam lasts for years.
an old fashioned way of adding pectin instead of the commercial stuff is to add a few gooseberries especially good with strawberry jam
Hi,
We picked a load of fresh strawberries recently, but I didn’t have time to make into jam immediately so I froze them, will they still be ok for jam making once I defrost?
Thanks
Gem
@Gill:
Asda’s stock silver spoon dried pectin..but ring and check with your local branch that they have some in first!
@Joanne:
I am, SO GLAD that other poeple are as disorganised as I am . Had same problem but thought to try putting some unripe( half – ripe) strawberries into the mix as – having driven to my local shop – found that they had no pectin
It worked!
Jam making using frozen fruit.
I’ve not tried it, but you can make jam from frozen fruit. The following info comes from a very good book I’ve got on preserving.
The pectin content of the fruit decreases in frozen storage. To counteract this use about one-tenth more fruit than is specified in the recipe.
To use the frozen fruit place it, still frozen, in the pan with no water for strawberries. Heat gently until the juices run then proceed as usual.
If you try this hope it works.
Good method but added butter to prevent scum which seemed to work
Hi, I’ve read through all the comments on here … thanks for a great website! So … I’ve been to PYO today and have masses of strawberries and plums and am geared up for making some jam … am I right in assuming if I make strawb jam following the receipe above I don’t need to add commercial pectin because it contains lemon juice? Also, if I make strawb and apple (cooking apples) jam do I still need the lemon juice?
Thanks,
I made strawberry and rhubarb jam, it is delicious 1lb of strawberries, 1lb of rhubarb, juice of half a lemon and 2lb of granulated sugar. I thought you might all like this recipe. This a great webside I am getting lots of info.
Tip out re-heat and add more lemon juice – 1 more should do it or try grated apple.
It should be fine using frozen fruit. I recently made peach and raspberry jam with fruit I’ve had in the freezer for about 3 years!
Up to 4 years apparently so long as the jars are sterilised though.
Emma, I have been making jam for about 10 years now, the general rule is if you add cooking apples redcurrants or lemon or other fruits high in natural pectin then you dont need to add pectin.
For strawberrys on their own, I find that adding slightly more preserving sugar (ie same weight of sugar to fruit) boiling a little longer, adding lemon juice works fine.
If you have high pectin fruit then just add the tight amount of sugar and add nothing else.!!
I do a 4 fruits recipe adding some of the fruits towards the end of the boiling time to keep them whole and slightly al dente. I use strawberrys, raspeberrys, blackberrys and redcurrants, the redcurrants have enough natural pectin to set the whole fruit just fine.
I always try to use four and a half pounds of fruit (or moltiples of) then a 2kg bag of sugar is exactly right amount, just saves time and effort.
@kirsty peirson: I have plum jam in my cupboard that I made 4 years ago and its lovely. I also have cherry, damson, plum jelly and plum chutney that is 4 years old. If you are meticulous with your cleanliness and sterilising your home preserving will last for a long time. Keep them in a dark , dry place. Chutney improves year on year!! Yummy!