We’ve been drowning in blueberries the last several days… we went blueberry picking and have since made blueberry pie, blueberry muffins, and lots of blueberry jam. I thought I’d take a few minutes to share with you how we make our blueberry freezer jam. It’s really quite simple to do!
My recipe is a reduced-sugar recipe, so you can enjoy more of the fresh berry taste. It also doesn’t require Sure-jell or any kind of pectin; you really don’t need to use it with blueberries. This is how we love it — less sugar, no pectin, just fresh blueberry jam.
It tastes amazing on top of these breads:
One thing to keep in mind is that you want to work in small batches, or your jam may not set properly. I’ve had good results doing six cups per batch, so… here we go!
Low Sugar Blueberry Jam Without Pectin
Rinse six cups of blueberries and pour them into a large, heavy pot (mine is like this Calphalon pot); set pot to medium high.
As blueberries come to a simmer, mash them with a potato masher (this is the style of masher I use) until they are a bit soupy in consistency. Let them simmer for 2-3 minutes, then slowly add in three cups of white sugar, stirring constantly. This is much less sugar than other recipes I’ve found.
Bring to an even boil, where the pot is still bubbling although you are stirring, and let boil gently for about 5-7 minutes.
When you think the jam has thickened a bit, put a tablespoon or two of the jam on a small plate and place it in the freezer for one minute. When you pull the plate out and tilt it diagonally, does the jam try to hold it’s shape a bit, or is it runny? If it tries to hold a shape, you are ready to remove the pot from the burner.
Ladle the jam into clean jelly jars (you’ll need six of them, although I used larger jars here since I was out of jelly jars), put on the lids and rings, and let sit on a cooling rack until they’ve reached room temperature, which may take a few hours. Amazon has low prices on these pretty 4-ounce jelly jars, and they’re my favorite ones to use when I’m giving some jam away as gifts.
Once the jam is ready, I put one in the fridge to use right away, and the others in my deep freeze for later.
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| Blueberry jam over my cinnamon raisin walnut bread |
What’s your favorite kind of jam? Have you made blueberry jam without pectin before?
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Your jam looks absolutely delicious – blueberries are my favourite fruit.
Drowning in blueberries? What a happy place to be! 🙂 I'm with you – I prefer less sugar in my jam – it allows the fruit flavor to really come up!
YEA!! I love that there is no pectin in this recipe 🙂 Thank you for giving me a jam recipe I can make!!
I have never had blueberry jam, I need to try this out!
http://www.kathiesculinarykreations.blogspot.com
Love blueberry jam! So this is a freezer jam recipe? Sounds delicious! – http://www.delightfulcountrycookin.com
This looks so pretty! I will give it a try! I popped over from Tasty Tuesday!
Wow! This looks absolutely delicious!
Maybe one day I will be talented enough to do something like this, right now I am just getting use to this full-time Mom gig!
My sister makes this every year and gives me some. I make the strawberry 🙂
That looks really simple to make, not to mention delish!
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I like the reduced-sugar version, too. And we are going to have peaches to use any day. Thanks for the idea, and thanks for linking up at {Dish It!}. c-: ~ Katie
Is there any reason why this couldn’t be processed in a water bath or pressure canner instead of the freezer? We are trying to get away from the freezer as we move toward off grid. I DO hope you will say yes! 🙂 Since it is small batch, I could always just try it and see!
I don’t see why not. I’d check (google?) the acidity of blueberries first – if they aren’t quite acidic enough for a water bath canner, I’d add a tbsp of lemon juice.
I actually went blueberry picking myself this weekend, so this is perfect! I do have a recipe for blueberry jam that contains pectin, so I’m going to have to try this out! 🙂
What a great simple recipe!! It will be blueberry season here really soon, I will have to add this to my list of things to make- looks yummy!! Great post! Thanks~April
Thanks for the easy recipe! I tried a second batch with two more cups of berries and one less cup of sugar and it was little less sugar sweet with more berry flavor.
Since it’s wild blueberry season here in Maine we, too, are awash in blueberries (about 18 gallon bags worth!). This is just the ticket for taking care of that bounty. Thank you for the post!! Between the zucchini, blueberries, and wild raspberries and blackberries, I have a feeling I won’t be getting out of the kitchen any time soon! What a bountiful blessing!! How abundantly the Lord provides!!
With no pectin jams…do you have to freeze them or do they have a shelf life? If so, how long is the shelf life?
Mary, I usually freeze what I won’t be using within a couple of weeks. You can use a water bath canner and can them, though.
Can one add lemon juice, and/or spices to this recipe? My grandma made the most delicious blue grape jam you would ever want to eat. However, she cooked it, (I believe) w/o pectin. I was too young to notice whether she used pectin or not. The jam was never too thick. I can still smell the aroma of it cooking. Sure miss the jam. I’ve made strawberry freezer jam, but, I always used liquid pectin. Ciao, Luccia
Followed your recipe, 6 cups berries, 3 cups white sugar, and a pinch of salt to help bring as much flavor out of the berries as possible. Reused 3 salsa glass jars and lids. washed jars and let them dry some what in dishwasher, but ended up putting them in a preheated over at 400f. ( turn off as jars are put in ). I Put clean lids in boiling water that I had just turned off, Make sure the jam is still at boiling temp. and fill jars uo to 1/2 in. from to , place lid and tighten (lightly). place inverted on a T-towel or cooling rack. and wait for the sound of the lids popping, always check for proper lid seal, vaccume. and don’t for get to wipe off the rim of the jar after filling to make sure that it will make a good seal,clean paper towel works good. I don” think that if your careful and clean that a hot pack is neassery if just to seal for a week or two, besides it neaver lasts more than a couple days. love you all. Dan T.
I agree Dan. T. I just had cup of blueberries and a cup of mixed rasberries. Followed the directions and only added one cup of sugar. Turned out great and I too did not use super hot jars, because I knew it would not be around for long in this home plus giving a small jar to a friend…
Super jam!
Thanks, Elizabeth! So glad you enjoyed it!
Simple, delicious & so very easy! Thanks for sharing this recipe!! :o)
This week, I’ve made raspberry jam – low sugar, no pectin in sterilized jars and a water bath- and it turned put great. Tried blueberry jam today, jars sealed, but didn’t put them in a water bath…the jam is runny in the jars…does that mean I have to eat/share that jam quickly or it will spoil?
Sandi
Blueberry jam is so, so good! Yours looks delicious. I’d say my favorite is raspberry jam 🙂
Is 1/2 cup per 1 cup of blueberries the lowest taste-worthy ratio you’ve tried? I’m wondering if it would be ruining a batch to try less sugar.
LOVED YOUR RECIPE, but I am lazy and just wanted to make enough for me and my husband for a few days, so I tweaked it a bit. 1 cup of blueberries + 1/3 cup of Stevia (he has diabetes so I needed to limit the sugar), + 2 shakes of salt (to bring out the flavor of the blueberries) + 1/4 of a squeezed lemon. I cooked it on the stove longer than you suggested. The jam tastes fantastic. WONDERFUL RECIPE. Thank you so much for sharing. This has really helped us, especially with my husband’s health issues.