My Simple Blueberry Jam is made with just 3 ingredients and no added pectin. It tastes out of this world good, no wonder it’s so popular!
I have never made blueberry jam before but I’m thrilled to bring you my Simple Blueberry Jam recipe today after a freak bargain find at the weekend!
I managed to find 4 trays of blueberries priced up at £3 each for 3 p each, there was a whole crate that were on their sell by date.
We ate one tray but the rest were destined for jam, although I did have to throw away just over a third of the remainder as they were soft and over ripe (which is not good for eating or jam making).
However, I’m really not complaining at that price, I’ve never seen blueberries so cheap nor so many of them reduced before!
I can’t remember the last time I had blueberry jam! But I have never had home-made blueberry jam!
I can’t tell you how amazing this Simple Blueberry Jam is. The depth of flavour is just incredible and totally delicious.
The Pectin Debate
I was reading about the pros and cons of pectin use in jam the other day.
The point was made that although by using pectin you achieve a shorter cooking time and a slightly higher yield, you don’t get the intensity of flavour that you get with a longer cooking time where more moisture is evaporated away.
I had never really thought about this before as I never use pectin or jam sugar in my recipes.
Well, apart from my first ever jam where I used jam sugar but I didn’t like the stiff texture.
Also, looking back, the flavour was not a patch on my One Punnet Strawberry Jam which just uses lemon juice to aid the setting.
Blueberries are naturally low in pectin so apart from using only the firmest just ripe or slightly under ripe fruits you need to add pectin or lemon juice which aids the gelling process by interacting with the sugar.
If you’ve never made jam before it’s never too late to learn, I only started making jam in the last 4 years and just got hooked.
Jam making Tips
The important things are to sterilise your jars, freeze some saucers for testing set and always stir your jam or you will burn it to the bottom of your pan.
If you get the set too runny you can always pour back your jam and boil it up again until it reaches setting point.
You get better at judging this as time passes, but I’ve only ever got it wrong once.
I like a soft set jam but I pushed the boundary a bit far that time.
How long will Blueberry Jam keep and how should it be stored?
As with all homemade jams, it’s best eaten in the first year but jam will last years and be safe to eat as the sugar acts as a preservative.
Just store it in a cool, dark, dry place (I keep mine in a cupboard in my garage).
Once opened, keep in the fridge and eat within a few months. Using a clean spoon to serve it will preserve its shelf life.
Can you use frozen blueberries to make Blueberry Jam?
Yes, just use them in place of fresh blueberries, they will thaw when you heat them with the sugar and lemon juice.
How much jam will this recipe make?
This recipe makes 1 large jar (450 ml) of Blueberry Jam like in the photograph.
More inspiring Recipes for a glut of Blueberries
Here are some more delicious blueberry recipes from myself and other bloggers!
- Apple & Blueberry Tarte Tatin – Fab Food 4 All
- Rhubarb & Blueberry Tarte Tatin – Fab Food 4 All
- Blueberry & Lemon Soda Bread – Fab Food 4 All
- Blueberry & Banana Pancakes – Fab Food 4 All
- Fresh Blueberry Flapjacks – Tinned Tomatoes
- Blueberry Banana Buckwheat Layer Cake – Domestic Gothess
- Blueberry & Rose Almond Bars – Tin & Thyme
- Blueberry Custard Ice Cream – Kavey Eats
- Blueberry Brioche – Patisserie Makes Perfect
- Blueberry Orange Upside Down Cakes – Family Friends Food
More Blueberry Jam Recipes
Once you’ve made my Blueberry Jam check out the following delicious jams!
- Blueberry & Lime Jam – Fab Food 4 All
- Tutti Frutti Jam – Fab Food 4 All
- Summer Fruits Jam – Fab Food 4 All
Can you Scale up the Recipe?
You can always scale the recipe up if you have more blueberries but remember it will take longer to reach the setting point! It’s best to use a jam or long digital thermometer to help you decide when to do the chilled plate test. The temperature to aim for should be 104 – 105.5C
If you grow your own blueberries or ever see a bargain like mine, try my Simple Blueberry Jam, which makes one good-sized jar.
Pin for later!
Leave a comment and rating below when you’ve made this recipe; I love getting your feedback! You can also share your pictures by tagging @FabFood4All over on Instagram.
Simple Blueberry Jam – no pectin, just 3 ingredients!
Ingredients
- 600 g firm blueberries stalks and mushy ones removed
- 400 g granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
- Wash the blueberries in a colander.
- Put the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice into a preserving pan.
- Place the pan over a gentle heat to slowly dissolve the sugar crystals, stirring with a wooden spoon from time to time.
- As the sugar starts to melt and the fruit warms up, take a potato masher to mash the blueberries, leaving some whole if desired.
- Once the sugar has completely dissolved turn up the heat and bring the pan to a rolling boil and time for 15 minutes, stirring all the while (to prevent the sugar burning on the base).
- Take the pan off the heat and test a few drops of the jam on a frozen saucer and place in the fridge for a minute. If when you push your finger through it the jam forms a crinkle and is gel like then it’s ready. Otherwise boil for another couple of minutes and repeat process until ready.
- Pot up the jam in a sterilised hot jar using a small ladle or jam funnel.
- Screw on lid immediately.
- See notes for storage instructions.
Notes
Sterilise 1 x 450 ml jar by washing in hot soapy water or take straight from dishwasher, filling with boiling water, emptying and then placing in oven for 20 minutes at 140°C then leave in oven until jam is ready. Washed lids should be sterilised with boiling water and then left to drain. Once cool in the jar this jam is ready to eat. Store in a cool, dark, dry place and consume within 12 months for best colour and flavour although will be safe to eat for many years. Once open keep in fridge and use within a few months.
Mickey Hunter
I have made your blueberry jam a couple of times now. I plan to make it again as soon as I go to the store and get some lemons. The jam is soooo delicious! We love it. I even gave the recipe to our niece yesterday. She tried the jam, and wanted the recipe, so she could make some when she got home. Thanks again. It’s the best!
Camilla
Aaw, that’s so wonderful to hear. So glad you and your niece like it! I need to make some soon as it is lush!
Diane
Hello,
It seems like the qty of berries and sugar should make more than 1 jar. A 450 ml jar is just shy of 2 cups. 400 grams of sugar is almost 2 cups. 600 grams of blueberries is about 3 cups. Does it really reduce that much?
Camilla
Hi Diane, please invest in a set of cheap digital scales (about $6 on Amazon) if you wish to make this recipe as you cannot convert a weight to a volume accurately and 3 cups of blueberries sounds wrong to me. Yes the recipe and jar size are correct. Imagine liquidising the blueberries, you immediately lose all the air spaces between them and then you’re boiling off and reducing the jam until it reaches setting point.
Ella
I love the simplicity of this recipe, but I found it was just too sweet even for jam, so the second time I made it I used the 600g (or 4 cups) of blueberries but lowered the sugar to 1.5 cups (150g) instead of the 200g (or 2 cups) called for.
I did have to boil it for two or three extra minutes to thicken up, but well worth it for us. This of course is just our personal preference on sweetness. Like most recipes, we tweak them to suit personal tastes and preferences.
On a different note, I used an immersion blender just before it came to a full boil to make the jam smoother. Again, this is just personal preference. Some might like it chunkier and the masher will do a great job for that.
Thanks for this simple and delicious blueberry jam recipe! 🙂
Camilla
Hi Ella, I do not convert my recipes to cups as you can’t convert a weight to a volume. I once tried weighing out cups of blueberries but depending on whether the punnet had small or large blueberries there were large difference in weight as you can pack the smaller ones into a cup more tightly than the big ones. However, I digress, you can get a pretty accurate conversion for sugar as it doesn’t vary in size and you used twice as much sugar as the recipe called for. 200g is equal to 1 cup of sugar. It did surprise me that you found it too sweet as I don’t like overly sweet things and usually cut down on the 1:1 weight ratio that is usual for jam making. I would seriously recommend buying a set of digital scales, I’ve searched on Amazon and they don’t cost much more than a Starbucks. Then you can bake and jam make accurately as conversions will never be accurate.
Lana
I don’t know how much blueberries cost where you are, but here in Australia, at approximately $37 per kilo, that’d be 1 expensive jar of jam! lol
Camilla
Wow, that is a lot! I just did the conversions and the supermarket basic range ones I often buy are $13.49 per kilo and frozen are $10.41 per kilo. I only make jam when fruit is either reduced at the end of the day, I grow my own or as I suggested tonight on Instagram, use frozen for economy. I bought 2 blueberry bushes last year so am hoping for a crop of my own at some point.
Ella
Fortunately they are not nearly that pricey here in the US. But I grow my own anyway (just three bushes and we get more than we can eat all year round – I freeze most of them to eat throughout the year). So maybe buy a few bushes and in a couple of years your blueberries will be free! All the best! 🙂
April Chase
Does this recipe make just one jar of jam?
Camilla
Hi April, yes. For some reason it wasn’t displaying in the recipe card, only in the notes so have fixed that now. Thank you for drawing it to my attention. Happy jam making.
Barb
Can u convert the measuring into cups
Camilla
Hi Barb, the long and the short of it is no as unlike something like sugar or water that has the same size per level cup (and therefore weight), a cup of fruit eg blueberries can differ a lot and once you scale up the error it becomes a very big one. I love my jam recipes too much to give out misinformation as fruit isn’t cheap. I’ve been on US Amazon and for a few dollars you can get a set of digital scales which will make all your cooking and baking more accurate.
Garry
Hi!
Great recipe. It turned out really well.
Thanks for sharing.
Camilla
Thanks Gary, hope you try some more of my jam recipes:-)
Erica
This is the most simple and delicious recipe. No need to purchase from the store when you can pick your own berries and turn it into jam.
Camilla
So true and so very glad you like the recipe:-) Hoping I get enough blueberries for jam next year:-)
gloria
can this jam be frozen
Camilla
As this jam is shelf stable I’ve never frozen it. I would use a freezer jam recipe if you want to freeze your jam.
Lois Thurston
This method of canning is very dangerous. It is outdated and proven unsafe. Either waterbath your jelly or steam can it. NEVER in the oven!
Camilla
Hi Lois, I don’t can my jams, it’s not something we do in the UK or Europe as far as I’m aware. There are no recorded cases of anyone ever having fallen ill with Botulism (or anything else) from homemade jam. Indeed the last case of Botulism in the UK was over 100 yrs ago from some manufactured pate. However I fully respect that in the US Botulism is a problem and that some people prefer to take extra precautions and carry out canning. So I expect those readers to take my recipes and adapt them to their own preferred method accordingly. So we’ll have to agree to differ on this tried and tested method being very dangerous in the UK as there is no evidence to back up that claim.