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Jam-making may be the easiest way to preserve. Other than the fruit, all you need are two additional ingredients. Yes, there’s sugar, which is one of the most important ingredients in jam. Eaten as a treat on plain yogurt, a slice of good bread, or oatmeal, you only need a small amount of this French-style strawberry jam to go a long way.
Note – This French-style jam, using the Christine Ferber method, is not thickened with powdered pectin and will result in a thinner consistency preserve.
Food safety tip – Home canning is safest when you follow research-tested recipes and proper processing times. Improper canning can risk botulism. New to canning? See my Canning 101 Guide and consult the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning.
More Preserving Recipes
- Hot pepper jelly
- Peach chutney
- Curtido relish
- Preserving sour cherries
- Canned apples
- Make sure to check out my canning 101 guide for more.
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Canned French-Style Strawberry Jam
Equipment
- 5 jam jars
Ingredients
- 3 lb fresh or frozen strawberries hulled and washed
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- In a large heavy-bottomed kettle, combine the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to a rolling boil on the stove. Remove from the heat and strain the liquid from the strawberries. Return the liquid to the heat and gently boil until the liquid reaches 221°F. Add in reserved strawberries and continue to boil for 5 minutes.3 lb fresh or frozen strawberries, 3 cups granulated sugar, 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Prepare boiling water in a large pot for canning.
- Remove the foam from the strawberries. Remove from heat and mash or blend strawberries to desired consistency. This French-style jam is not thickened with powdered pectin and will result in a thinner consistency preserve.
- Pour in sterilized jars leaving ¼-inch headspace. Wipe off the rim of the jar with hot water.
- Prepare lids to the manufacturer's instructions on the package and place them on each jar with a ring, turned finger tight.
- Boil in a water bath for 10 minutes, making sure to adjust for your location's altitude.
- Remove from the water bath and cool at room temperature for 24 hours. Make sure the jars are sealed. When you press down on the center, there should be no flex.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
I’m not sure what happened, but mine is more like sauce than jam. I followed your instructions exactly. I used fresh berries instead of frozen.
Hello! Jam can be a different texture for each preference and this jam has no added pectin. As described, the resulting jam is a texture of a preserve that is different than many store-bought jams. Fresh or frozen berries should have no difference in the resulting jam but the jam will be more spread-like.
Kaleb, I would very much like to make habanero Strawberry jam, the fields by me are advertising picking time now, but I want the sweet heat, have you ever done this,? and if so would you cook the peppers longer or the same amount of time as the strawberry’s this would be a first, but absolutely love they idea of giving as homemade gifts this year.
I just made the Strawberry Jam, it turned out GREAT! Thanks!
Canned in the past, retired now and needed a refresher. Thanks, Peggy
what are reserved strawberries
Can I substitute frozen raspberries for the strawberries in this jam recipe
How long should it take for the strawberry jam to gel? It’s only been a couple of hours since I made mine but it is still very watery inside the jars.
Thank you in advance for your help. I have another 10lbs of strawberries to go but I don’t want it all to be for nothing.
Colleen
Hi Kaleb. I love your shows and recipes. They are great. I had a problem with the canned strawberry jam setting. I followed your directions exactly and the result was very liquidy. Good for topping ice cream but not so good for toast. I did a second batch and kept the strawberry jam at a rolling boil for about 8 minutes. This was soft set but still not really jelled. I noticed that the cooking directions for canned blueberry jam calls for keeping the rolling boil going for 12minutes. I haven’t tried the blueberry recipe but I am wondering if the cooking directions for the strawberry should be a 12 minute boil also? Can you get back to me bbn on this? Strawberries are
expensive. I want my jam to set! Thanks very much!
Hello!! Sorry the jam isn’t turning out well. This jam does not use packaged pectin (like the sure-jel brand) and instead uses the fruit syrup cooked to 221 degrees F which is the key to thicken. This is a French method for making jam but will never be the same consistency as a more solid sure-jel type from packaged pectin. The cooking time once the fruit is added back of 5 minutes after at a rolling boil is the time I use. Strawberries break down quickly and with too much cooking can lose flavor. Cooking them longer can condense the liquid more but will lose flavor. I tried to explain in the video the consistency. In the jar this jam will be thinner than ones with pectin added but I have always found it spreads also. I am sure you checked the consistency by dipping some of the jam on a frozen plate while cooking. As the hot jam hits the cold plate it will show the consistency once cooled down. Hope this helps!
Hi does anyone remember a video he had making jam or when he picked blackberries, he said that he soaked his berries in salt water to draw out an little tiny bugs. What is the salt to water ratio?
Making this for the first time. Can I refrigerate and skip the canning process? We will eat pretty fast.