Easy homemade strawberry jam
Homemade strawberry jam is surprisingly easy to make and really delicious. It’s much nicer than shop bought jam and so most definitely worth the effort.
There’s nothing nicer than some jam and this homemade strawberry jam is no exception. I think this strawberry jam is just so much nicer than shop bought jam and with only a few ingredients it really is worth the effort.
If you’ve made raspberry jam before, then homemade strawberry jam should be no problem for you. I find it only a little bit harder to find the setting point but if you follow the tips and have a jam thermometer you’ll be fine.
We go fruit picking every summer and always end up with loads of fruit and making a big batch of jam is my favourite thing to do with them.
How can kids help to make strawberry jam from scratch?
This is really a simple recipe that kids should be able to help with. The jam gets quite hot so it’s best to get kids involved at the beginning before the sugar is boiling as that is a bit safer.
I always enjoyed making jam when I was younger and my kids are the same. They enjoy measuring and mashing the fruit and pouring the sugar into the pan.
Testing the jam is ready is also an interesting job – it feels like a bit of a science experiment especially if you do it the old fashioned way. I remember my granny using a cold saucer and waiting to see if the jam wrinkled and it’s something we still do today even though we have a thermometer.
Which sugar should you use in strawberry jam?
When I make strawberry jam I like to use jam sugar. There’s added pectin in the sugar and I find that it helps it to set.
If you don’t have jam sugar, use granulated sugar.
How long does strawberry jam last?
If you store homemade jam properly and use sterilised jars it will keep in a cool dark place for a year or so. Once it’s opened it will keep for a few months in the fridge although ours never quite lasts that long!
How do I know if the jam will set?
You need to boil the jam for long enough to make sure it sets as it cools. Normally you’ll need to boil it for around 5-10 minutes or until its temperature reaches 105C (220F).
As I mentioned earlier, if you don’t have a food thermometer or just want to do it the old fashioned way, you can check its ready by putting a little jam on a chilled plate and pushing it with your finger. If it wrinkles, the jam is ready and should set.
How do you sterilise jam jars?
Preheat your oven to 160C / 140C Fan / 320C. To sterilise jam jars, start by washing them in hot soapy water. Don’t dry them, but you can rinse the soap suds off.
Put the wet jars into the oven, with their lids, for around 15 minutes or while you cook the jam.
Remove the jars one at a time from the oven and ladle the jam into them, before putting the lid on. This isn’t a job for kids to help with as the jars and the jam will be hot.
What can I make with the jam?
There’s nothing I like more than some strawberry jam on fresh homemade bread but we’ve also got lots of fun and easy bakes that will taste great with homemade jam:
Jam tarts
Jam thumbprint cookies
Viennese whirls
Empire biscuits
Jam heart biscuits
Victoria sandwich
Easy homemade bread
Tiger bread
English muffins
Useful equipment
You might need the following baking tools/gadgets to make this raspberry jam
Digital scales
Strawberry corer
Preserving pan
Jam jars
Jam thermometer
Wax discs
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Difficulty: Easy
Serves: 6 jars (approx)
Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
2kg strawberry (approx)
2kg jam sugar (approx)
Juice from one lemon
Knob of butter
* You want to use roughly the same weight of fruit and sugar. I don’t tend to be too accurate – if I have 2.2kg of fruit I’ll still just use 2kg of sugar.
How to make strawberry jam
Pop a small plate or saucer into your freezer to chill and sterilise your jars (see above if you’re not sure how to do it).
Prepare the strawberries
Start by weighing your strawberries then give them a quick rinse. Get your kids to help hull the strawberries. You can get tools to help you do this, but if you don’t have one, just use a knife to cut out the green bits and the hard core.
If you don’t want to have lumps of strawberry in your jam, get your kids to chop them up a bit.
Cook the strawberries
Get your kids to tip the strawberries into a large preserving pan. Pop it on your hob and turn the heat on.
Let the strawberries warm for a few minutes. You can let your kids mash them with a potato masher until you have a nice strawberry pulp. Leave them to cook for five minutes.
Add the sugar and lemon juice
Get your kid to tip the sugar into the strawberries and squeeze in the lemon. Stir the sugar and lemon in then bring it all to the boil.
Boil the strawberry jam for 5-10 minutes, then remove it from the heat and test it to see if it’s ready.
If you have a kitchen thermometer you can use that to check whether the jam is ready. It’s setting point is when it reaches 105C (220F).
If you don’t have a jam thermometer, or if you’d like to double check the jam, pop a little bit of jam onto your chilled plate. Put it back in the freezer for a minute. Now push your finger through the jam – if it wrinkles when you do this its ready. If it doesn’t wrinkle on top and still looks a little runny, boil the jam again for a few more minutes then check again.
When your jam is ready it might look like it has some scum or sediment on top. I find an easy way of getting rid of most of this is to melt a little knob of butter on the top. I find this gives it a nice shine. You can also use a large spoon to scoop some of the scum off the top if you prefer.
Put your jam in the jars
The last job is one for grown ups as the jars as well as the jam itself will be hot.
Pour or ladle the jam into your jars – this is easier if you have a little jam funnel. If you don’t have a funnel, you might prefer to ladle some of the jam into a heatproof jug then pour it into your jars from there. Pop a wax disc on top if you have them, the put the lid on and leave them to cool.
Strawberry jam
Equipment
- Strawberry corer
- Digital scales
- Preserving pan
- Jam jars
- Jam thermometer
- Wax discs
Ingredients
- 2 kg strawberry approx
- 2 kg jam sugar approx
- Juice from one lemon
- Knob of butter
Instructions
- Pop a small plate or saucer into your freezer to chill (unless you're using a jam thermometer) and sterilise your jars.
Prepare the strawberries
- Start by weighing your strawberries then give them a quick rinse Then hull them and chop them into smaller pieces, unless you like pieces of strawberry in your jam.
Cook the strawberries
- Tip the strawberries into a large preserving pan. Pop it on your hob and turn the heat on.
- Let the strawberries warm for a few minutes. Mash them with a potato masher until you have a nice strawberry pulp. Leave them to cook for five minutes.
Add the sugar and lemon juice
- Tip the sugar into the strawberries and squeeze in the lemon. Stir the sugar and lemon in then bring it all to the boil.Boil the strawberry jam for 5-10 minutes, then remove it from the heat and test it to see if it's ready.
- If you have a kitchen thermometer you can use that to check whether the jam is ready. It's setting point is when it reaches 105C (220F).If you don't have a jam thermometer, or if you'd like to double check the jam, pop a little bit of jam onto your chilled plate. Put it back in the freezer for a minute. Now push your finger through the jam – if it wrinkles when you do this its ready. If it doesn't wrinkle on top and still looks a little runny, boil the jam again for a few more minutes then check again.
- When your jam is ready it might look like it has some scum or sediment on top. Use a spoon to skim as much of the sediment off the top as you can. An easy way of getting rid of any remaining scum is to melt a little knob of butter on the top. I find this also gives it a nice shine.
Put your jam in the jars
- Pour or ladle the jam into your jars – this is easier if you have a little jam funnel. If you don't have a funnel, you might prefer to ladle some of the jam into a heatproof jug then pour it into your jars from there. Pop a wax disc on top if you have them, the put the lid on and leave them to cool.
Pin strawberry jam for later
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If you liked this recipe for strawberry jam, you might also like our easy homemade raspberry jam.
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