There’s something astonishingly pleasing about creating a jam by yourself. As I see lively, red strawberries boiling on the stove, my kitchen fills with a sweet fruity smell. It is matchless happiness to spread a spoonful of homemade strawberry jam over a slice of warm bread and realize that I have done it on my own.
Making homemade jam not only connects me with timeless traditions but also lets me enjoy the taste of ripe strawberries throughout every season. Today, I am excited to tell you about how Sure-Jell Strawberry Jam is made. This recipe balances sourness and sweetness so well that the resultant preserve becomes both an excellent addition to your cupboard and a nice handcrafted gift for someone else.
Whether you are skilled in making jams or just starting, this recipe will take you through all the necessary stages of making Homemade Sure Jell Strawberry Jam, until yours turns out flawless. So let us begin this delightful journey to make easy homemade jelly that brings flavors into our kitchens!
Sure Gell: Heart of Perfect Jams
When it comes to fruit pectin, an important ingredient in jams and jellies, Sure-Jell pectin is the best choice for me. Pectin is found in fruits, where it serves as a natural carbohydrate that helps them gel or set properly during cooking with sugar.
With every batch, this gel provides me with a reliable and consistent setting that always ensures the perfect texture for jam. Every time I make jams using Sure-Jell, it guarantees success even if I am starting.
Recipe Card
Homemade Sure Jell Strawberry Jam Recipe
Ingredients
- 5 cups / 800 g Strawberries (Crushed)
- 1 sachet SURE-JELL fruit pectin
- ½ tsp / 3 g Butter
- 3 cups / 600 g Sugar
Instructions
Get Your Jars Ready (Sterilize)
- Fill a big pot halfway with water and heat until the water simmers. This will save you some time when you are ready to sanitise the jars.
- Wash jars and the lids in hot, soapy water and rinse with warm water. I usually look at each jar for any chips or cracks before sealing it right later on. Place the jars flat in the hot water we prepared before. Cover the lid and boil the jars for at least a few minutes to sanitize them properly.
- Once boiling is done, remove the jars from the water with a tongue and place them on a flat surface to cool them. Make sure you do not touch the inside of the jars to prevent bacteria from going inside again. Be very careful when doing this step because the jars will be super hot.
Prepping the Strawberries
- Remove stems and crush strawberries thoroughly one layer at a time. To ensure even texture I use a potato masher at this stage. For smoother jam, pulse strawberries using a food processor but be careful not to puree them entirely—some small chunks should remain for texture.
- Measure off exactly five cups of prepared fruit into a saucepan. Accurate measurement is important if you want your jam to have just the right consistency when cooked. Too much fruit could cause jam not to set up properly.
Cooking the Jam
- Put the saucepan on a stove and start with medium heat
- Add pectin to the fruit in your saucepan while stirring constantly. I prefer sprinkling my pectin evenly over the entire content of my pot as it helps avoid any clumping of pectin together with fruits. Add butter which helps reduce foaming. By adding some butter, you make it an easy job for yourself when skimming foam from your mixture.
- Bring mixture to full rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly. A full rolling boil is that which doesn’t stop bubbling even after stirring and this is very important for activating pectin. Make sure you boil for at least 1 minute, this will kill all the bacteria also thus making it last longer. Keep an eye on it and adjust the heat to prevent boiling over.
- Remove pot from heat after 1 minute. Skim off the foam with a metal spoon. I like collecting foam in a small bowl nearby and tasting the warm jam!
Canning the homemade Jam
- Ladle hot jam into prepared jars at once, filling to within ¼ inch of tops. This headspace is needed for proper sealing. You can use a canning funnel to make this step cleaner and easier. But make sure you sanitize the canning funnel too.
- Wipe jar rims clean using a damp cloth to remove any food residue that might be remaining on them. This ensures a good seal. Cover with two-piece lids; screw bands tightly.
- Place the jars in the hot water pot again to sterilize them again. Add some more water and make sure the water level is at least one to two inches above the jars. Cover the pan with a lid and boil for at least 10 minutes to fully sensitize them. I set a timer and use this time to clean up my workspace.
Cool and store
- Remove from the hot water pot, and set aside uprightly on a dry towel until they completely cool. Then stand at room temperature before refrigerating. Avoid putting them on cold surfaces like marbles or tiles because they may break. Check if seals have formed by pressing down on the lids in the center. If it springs back that means it’s not sealed properly and must be refrigerated.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can use frozen strawberries for jam-making, but remember that they should be thawed out completely before being crushed and measured.
If your jam doesn’t set—sometimes it takes more time to cook—you may want to add extra pectin while re-cooking it; also ensure you have measured accurately, as the amount of pectin and sugar is crucial for setting the jam or jelly.
Jam that has been properly sealed and processed will keep well in a cool, dark place for up to one year also you can store it in the refrigerator. Once opened, store it in the refrigerator, where it should last for a few weeks only.
Adding some butter or margarine during the cooking session will prevent or minimize foam formation on top of the jelly, hence making its preparation easier and smoother.
Sugar provides sweetness, contributes towards preservation, and helps set jam. Reducing amounts may alter the texture or shorten storage time; alternatives such as low-sugar-specific pectins could be considered instead.
