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.
Limor Herb
The recipe is excellent. This is the second time I’ve made it. I added two tablespoons of lemon juice, zest from the lemon, and a pinch of salt. It turned out great.
Camilla
Awesome Limor, so glad you like the recipe and made it your own:-)
Barbara Riley
Florida, blueberry farm just opened for this season, I made with 4lbs of blueberries, took almost an hour to get to setting point, did add extra lemon juice in the last 15 minutes, has set well, tastes awesome.
Camilla
Awesome. Perhaps another time you might consider cooking in 2 batches so that the jam sets quicker.
Cathy
I have made this jam three times with frozen blueberries and once with frozen peaches. I boiled my first batch a little too long and ended up with something more chewy than jammy – but now I cook it for less time and it’s perfect. I think the difference is that the pan I use is a 14″ skillet so the liquid evaporates more quickly.
Camilla
So glad you like the recipe Cathy and yes, using a different sized pan would alter the cooking time. A digital thermometer can be useful when going slightly off piste.
sharon
If I leave my jars of jam out on the counter overnight will it still be ok. or do i need to re boil it?
Camilla
Hi Sharon, do you mean with the lids on? If so, no you wouldn’t.
Jasmin
This recipe is amazing.
I picked 3 kilograms of my own homegrown blueberries today.
I’m always nervous making jam due to some previous failed recipes but this was so easy to follow. I tripled the recipe which meant an extended boiling time but I kept testing with the chilled plate method and eventually it set. It’s so delicious!!
1.8kg of blueberries = 5 jars of jam.
Thankyou so much for sharing your recipe ☺️.
Camilla
Excellent Jasmin, so glad the recipe worked for you as often people get a little lost when increasing the weight and give up before its set. Would be interested to know how long it took you.
Jasmin
I was initially using a really large pot but the surface area was too big and I couldn’t get it to a rolling boil. I persevered for about 20 minutes with that pot, and although the jam was thickening and reducing it just wasn’t setting. I then decanted it into a smaller one which came to the boil very quickly. It probably took another 15 minutes until the jam was ready. I’m glad I didn’t give up!!
Camilla
That’s interesting, I use the largest pot I own which is similar size to a preserving pan.
Mark Singleton
I just did this recipe as we have a glut of Blueberries it turned out fantastic ..thanks
Camilla
Lucky you Mark, so glad you like the recipe:-)
Andrea
Hi Camilla!
I have fresh picked blueberries that I froze. Can I use those? Also, since I was diagnosed as diabetic (am no longer though!), I’m uber careful about the use of sugar. Can I use stevia in this recipe? Thank you so much!
Camilla
Hi Andrea, yes you can use frozen blueberries, just allow them to thaw in the pan over a gentle heat with the sugar and lemon juice and don’t forget to crush them. I’m afraid I don’t use artificial sweeteners so couldn’t say what effect adding would have but I’m sure it would be to the detriment of the shelf stability but OK for a jam you eat quickly and keep in the fridge.
Diane
I have just completed my blueberry jam and had to in the end add pectin to get recipe to firm up enough to call a jam and not blueberry syrup. I cooked berries following the recipe and even added extra lemon juice when the jam didn’t pass the freezer plate test. After cooking for over 35 minutes with minimal sign of setting I turned off went to bed and in the morning determined to have jam heated up small batches of my blueberry mixture and added to 2 cups of the mixture a tsp of pectin, stirred well, let set on the counter for approx 10 minutes, refrigerated, checked and not set so repeated process with another tsp. Finally, 3 tsp to 2 cups I got a jam consistency. Bingo! Completed process with the balance of the cooked but not set blueberry mixture for a total of 10 pints. I will say, the extra cooking time of 35 minutes definitely increased the blueberry flavor intensity. It is delicious. Next time I will do the same
process as I was happy with the outcome with the changes I added.
Camilla
Hi Diane, the clue I’m getting in all of this is your mention of cups. Did you use digital scales for measuring out the ingredients or did you do an online conversion to cups? If it’s the later, then this is exactly why I refuse to give out cup measures. You cannot accurately convert a weight to a volume. I even did an experiment in my kitchen with 2 different sized batches of blueberries (one batch tiny, one batch large sized blueberries) then I weighed a cup of each. There was a marked difference in the weight and when you scale that up for the amount of blueberries for a jam recipe then the margin of error is big and would throw out all the ratios to sugar and lemon juice and timings. This is my most popular jam recipe and everyone has success making it as written so I can only assume that this is what has happened. Alternatively you mention you cooked the berries, they have to be on a rolling boil in order to get to setting point in roughly the time I state. If I did a rolling boil of this jam for 35 minutes I’m sure I’d be left with something akin to glue.
Francesca
This looks so good and i cant wait to make it. I have a pack of berry mix in the freezer and was wondering if i can use that instead of having 100% blueberries? Also just to clarify, the jam has to boil for 15 minutes once the sugar dissolves and berries heat up? thank you!
Camilla
Hi Francesca, I think you’d be better off following the instructions for my Tutti Frutti Jam which is probably more in line with the fruits you have. If you’re unsure of the length of time to boil then you could use a digital thermometer to guide you – start testing jam once it reaches 105C. https://www.fabfood4all.co.uk/tutti-frutti-jam/
connie
well that wasn’t very nice
Camilla
Hi Connie, I’m confused? You’ve left a 5 star review and then said it wasn’t very nice?