Easy Grape Jam is the easiest grape jam recipe you’ll find – no peeling grapes here and no added pectin! With a taste that’s out of this world, this really is a jam recipe you have to try!
I can’t tell you how excited I am about this Easy Grape Jam recipe that I developed this week.
My local supermarket was selling boxes of multi-coloured grapes and obviously bought in too many! Hence I found myself picking up a couple of boxes reduced to 90 p each from £3 (which was already a bargain for a kilo of grapes).
When I got home I washed one of the boxes of grapes and soon realised that we wouldn’t be able to eat them all before they started to perish.
So what was I going to do with the rest? Well hello, Crazy Jam Lady here, of course I decided to make jam; it’s what gluts of fruit were made for!
So I started researching recipes for grape jam and the majority were American. Some suggested peeling the grapes, “hello, I don’t do faff” I thought to myself. Peeling near on 2 boxes of grapes would have taken an age!
Then there was a more sensible solution I came across where you used a stick blender to pulverise the skins so no need to peel. That sounded far more sensible I thought.
I didn’t find one recipe that told me all I needed to know, many used pectin and none said how long to boil the jam for, it was either “use a jam thermometer” or “boil until it looks right” and many recipes added water. I decided this wasn’t necessary as grapes are basically water in a skin!
I’m a pedant for detail when it comes to writing jam recipes so I love it when I can put out a recipe that is missing from the internet!
I plotted out my Easy Grape Jam recipe and used my Simple Blueberry Jam recipe as a guide because blueberries and grapes are quite similar after all. Grapes just have tougher skins which is why the blending is necessary.
Well blow me down the recipe worked to perfection! I’d also bought 3 Mason jars I’d found going cheap (79 p each can you believe) and the Easy Grape Jam filled the 3 jars exactly, I couldn’t believe it! It was like this jam was just meant to be.
I waited until the next day to try the jam and having heard so much about peanut butter and jelly I decided to give the family a cracker each with peanut butter and my Easy Grape Jam.
They all loved it and hubby who had doubted that grape jam was even a thing was gushing with compliments!
I do love it when I’m right about something, don’t you? He kept saying he’d never had grape jam before and how wonderful it was. Well I’ve never had it either and I have to say it is fabulous!
As I realised this recipe will have wider global appeal I did think about converting it to cup measurements as I’ve been getting quite a few requests from across the pond for these lately.
However on testing out an online conversion chart which said 100 g of whole grapes was equal to 1 cup I found that it was in fact 142 g and I’m sure depending on the size of the grapes one could get many differing results.
So don’t think me mean when I don’t rush off to do the conversion for you, I just don’t want to be responsible for misinformation which could lead to inaccurate results.
Not all cooking is a precise science but jam making really is. So instead I have converted the recipe to pounds and ounces and suggest if you want to achieve perfect results then a set of electronic scales really is the way forward.
More Grape Recipes
- Pork in Grapes
- Chicken Fiesta
- Coronation Chicken Salad
- Chicken Salad for One
- Grape & Red Onion Chicken Drumsticks
- Seared Paprika Salmon with Rosemary Grapes
- Grilled Pork Chops with Orange & Grape Salsa
- Spinach, Grape & Blue Cheese Salad
- Fried Halloumi Salad with Baked Pomegranate Grapes
- Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Lentils & Grapes
- Red Grape & Rosemary Focaccia
- Fat Free Greek Yogurt Fruit Brulee
- Frozen Grapes on a Stick (Easiest-Ever Grape Popsicles)
- 2 Ingredient Instant Frozen Yogurt(vegan)
- Lemon Panna Cotta with Grapes 2 Ways
I’m sure you’ll love my Grape Jam, it’s actually my most popular recipe! Do tag @FabFood4All when you make it and leave a comment and star rating below! I love hearing from you!
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Easy Grape Jam - just 3 ingredients and no pectin!
Ingredients
- 1.7 kg / 3 lb 12 oz seedless grapes I used equal quantities or red, black & green grapes
- 1 kg / 2 lb 3 oz granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Place grapes, sugar and lemon juice into a preserving pan or similar.
- Using a gentle heat dissolve the sugar slowly, stirring frequently.
- As the mixture heats up break up some of the grapes with your wooden spoon or use a potato masher in order the release the grapes’ juices.
- Once all the sugar has dissolved fully (around 20 minutes) take the mixture off the heat and use a stick blender to blend the grapes to a juice like consistency.
- Put pan back on the heat, bring to a rolling boil and then time for 25 minutes, stirring continuously. (You could start with 23 minutes as depending on freshness and variety of grapes the setting time can vary a little).
- Take the pan off the heat and test for set by placing a few drops of the jam on a chilled saucer and place in fridge for a minute.
- The jam should form a crinkle when you push your finger through it.
- If not then boil for another 2 minutes and re-test until set is achieved.
- Pot up in hot jars and place lids on immediately.
- Store in a cool dry place and once opened keep in fridge.
Notes
Put 2 - 3 saucers in the freezer.
Sterilise 3 x 0.5 ltr jars by washing in hot soapy water (or take straight from dishwasher), fill with boiling water, empty and then place in oven for 20 minutes at 140°C where you leave them until the jam is ready. Washed lids should be sterilised with boiling water and then left to drain.
Michelle
Can I use splenda instead of sugar
Camilla
Hi Michelle, sugar acts as a preservative as well as helping with the jelling.
MJ
I have made grape jam following this recipe and it has turned out great! Husband loves it.
Second attempt at making jam, initially made blackberry jam after acquiring to many when we went fruit picking!
Managed to get some 200ml jars on amazon so planning to share the grape jam with family and friends.
Camilla
Excellent Mu, so glad you like my recipe. Hopefully you’ll try some of my other jams too. My blackberry & apple jam is amazing so maybe one for next year:-)
Saeah
I’m making at present. Can’t get it do set. Homegrown grapes. East Sussex
Camilla
Hi Saeah, sorry I’m only just seeing your comment. Hope you got to setting point. It is just a matter of continuing to boil until you reach it and it can vary depending on the grapes you use etc.
Stephanie Gianchetta
Just tried this recipe today. Followed it to the T and it worked perfectly. Thank you so much for sharing!
Camilla
Excellent Stephanie, so glad to hear that:-)
Connie Royster
I have a couple of questions. Please feel free to respond via email. 1. My grapes are local and with seeds. I will use a mouli, But should I also use a hand chopper for the skins? I’m asking because I don’t understand if the skins chopped up make a difference to the jam or the setting. 2. Should I just put all the grapes in the mouli and just use the juice, or try to separate the grape skin and juice from the seeds and then shop again? 3.. Do I understand that this jam just needs to be potted up and no boiling bath is needed? Thank you so much!
Camilla
Hi Connie, I have been trying to think of ways to help people who have seeded grapes with ideas but thinking through the moulie idea I hadn’t thought about the skins getting caught up in there too! You don’t need the skins for set but they do add bulk and probably colour so I would mouli or sieve after heating up the grapes as that will soften the skins and allow more skin to pass through. This seems to be what others have done if you read the comments, others just liquidise the whole lot and eat the minced up seeds which is another option. Regarding boiling bath, that’s not something we do to jam in Europe as Botulism isn’t an issue here. The jam will be shelf stable for many years in a cool dark place.
Elsje Cameron
Made this today also from our own grapes.
Put the grapes when they were soft through the strainer because there were so many seeds.
Ended up with perfect grape jam !
Will also be making some more tomorrow.
Camilla
Excellent Elsje, so envious of your grapes, I must get a grape vine:-)
Julie cutrer
Hi!!!! I just made your grape jam but is it suppose to be very watery after I put them in the jars? Or are they suppose to get thicker upon standing?
Camilla
Hi Julie, if it crinkled on the chilled saucer then it will be fine and will firm up once it cools.
Fiona
Superb! Delighted to find this recipe as our grape vine has thrived this year and there are only so many grapes you can eat! Ours are red grapes, and they do have seeds, but it still comes out less seedy than raspberry or blackberry and tastes amazing! Quite sweet overall but a gorgeous flavour. About to make a second batch…
Camilla
Aaw, thank you Fiona, so glad you like the recipe, grape jam is so delicious isn’t it:-) You’ve reminded me that I want to get a grape vine for next year!
Sharon MATTHEWS
I followed the recipe exactly and it won’t set. I am very upset because I didn’t buy the grapes I grew them. What a waste of my time
Camilla
Hi Sharon, we have spoken via e-mail and I am dumbfounded as to why the jam didn’t set, as you can see from the dozens of comments here this recipe does work, indeed it’s the most popular recipe on my blog. So I wish I could travel back in time and see what you did. I’m guessing it’s not an altitude issue or you’d have had that with other jams too. I didn’t ask you if you’d made jam before though come to think of it.
Colleen
Hello, I followed your recipe with exact timing etc but the jam has become hard and resembles a kind of chewy toffee – delicious but not what I expected. What do you think might have happened? I should add the grapes I used were small and had quite a lot of seeds, more than I could easily remove.
Camilla
Hi Colleen, what has happened here is that the grapes I used had a high water to skin ration and the grapes you used were lacking in water as had more skin, therefore the jam wouldn’t have needed to boil for as long to reach setting point. If you go outside of any of my recipes with slightly different ingredients then a thermometer would be handy to see when you get to a temperature of 104C and start testing from there, often setting point is nearer to 105C. You could try adding water to your jam to thin it down and boil again but I haven’t actually done this myself. When it’s that bad I tend to put it down to experience.
Joyce Leitman
This is the best jam I have ever made. I added a few plums, but otherwise followed your recipe and instructions.
This jam is over the top delicious! Thank you!!!
I keep buying more grapes and canning jars – I have made it 4 times in the last 2 weeks!
My last batch did not set enough. I waited until the thermometer was 118 degrees but it is a little too thin.
I read another comment that you answered and you said to put the jam back in the pot and cook it a little more.
Does this hurt the quality of the jam at all?
I found your web site when googling red seedless jam and I hit the jackpot! Thank you! I will be checking out all of your recipes.
Camilla
Hi Joyce, I am confused about your temperature of 118C as jam usually sets at around 104 – 105C. Reboiling shouldn’t affect the quality of the jam.
Joyce Leitman
Camilla, I meant 218 Fahrenheit!
Camilla
Ah well that works out at 103.3C so that would be too low and hence why the jam didn’t set. Always check with the plate test for a crinkle as you can use a thermometer as a guide but it’s not a replacement for the plate test.