Comments on: Strawberry Jam

By: Renee

Renee — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 00:49:34 +0000

LOVED THE JAM! We tried it and it made roughly six 8 ounce jars….do not double the recipe to make more. Instead make two small batches. We are currently trying it mixing strawberries, blackberries and black raspberries….I hope it turns out half as good as the plain strawberries! This is well worth the extra effort and wait….and who could argue about using so much less sugar! Enjoy

By: Shannon

Shannon — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 21:05:09 +0000

Love this recipe – will try it this weekend. Quick question though – about how much jam does this make? Would like to have the right aize/quantity of jars ready. Thanks!

By: Early

Early — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 23:10:20 +0000

Great, looks like a great recipe. I just canned 20 llbs of strawberries. For the first time, I used “SureGel”. I wanted to see what the results would be. Less cooking time, finshed jam rather fast. Set real nice. Taste, well…… I felt every filling in my mouth scream from the ton of sugar required.
I am getting more strawberries next week, and will try this recipe.
Thanks Stephanie for pointing out, that, it’s all about the fruit, not the sugar. Lesson learned.

Early (de-throned jam queen)

By: Vanessa

Vanessa — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 22:50:36 +0000

I made jam for the first time, and used this recipe. I was looking for one that used less sugar than ‘normal’ recipes. My jam turned out really well! The consistency was very good – quite thick, but nicely spreadable. I think I might have reduced the syrup a bit much (it took a long time), mostly because I wasn’t sure about id’ing ‘thick and sticky’ drops. I think I might use the gelling technique (put a plate in the freezer and put a dab of jam on it – look to see if it firms up) next time. I mashed the strawberries a bit (kept some chunks) because a thicker jam sounded good, and I also thought my 2 young daughters might not like huge chunks of strawberry. I also processed the jam in a hot water bath at the end, just because I’m a paranoid first-time jam maker. Thanks for the recipe!

By: Glenn

Glenn — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:35:11 +0000

Lemon juice contains very little pectin, but the acidity works with the sugar to gel the pectin. Strawberries are low in acidity, so the added lemon juice will help increase the acidity. The membranes and peel of the lemon are high in pectin and will help to raise the pectin concentration. Too much pectin will make the spread too hard. Too much sugar will make the spread too sticky. The greater the acidity the lower amount of sugar required to form a gel.

By: Renee

Renee — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:56:04 +0000

Can you substitute other berries? Or mix and match berries? Do you have to alter the lemon juice and sugar? Thanks in advance

By: sara

sara — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 23:19:29 +0000

I am going to try this right now. I have been waiting for good berries and finally they are here! I agree, the Albions, (at least this week) are delicious! Thanks for sharing this technique.

By: Christine

Christine — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 22:23:30 +0000

I also found this technique years and years ago, in one of Lee Bailey’s cookbooks. He does refrigerator strawberry jam like this..and it is truly wonderful.

By: Haggie

Haggie — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 17:39:33 +0000

If you are in the Bay Area, I highly recommend driving to Swanton Berry Farms u-pick fields on the coast between Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz. I was there on Saturday for opening day. Big, fat, juicy, perfectly ripe, ORGANIC strawberries at only $2.50/lb. Plus you get the joy and satisfaction of picking them yourself.

Canning 32lbs of strawberries today! Thanks for the advice on reducing the juice. It will help since these perfectly ripe strawberries need very little added sugar.

Also, Swanton will have olalaberries in a couple of weeks and blackberries in July for u-pick.