This Homemade Mixed Berry Jam canning recipe is so delicious you’ll want to put it on everything from pancakes and toast to waffles and ice cream. Or eat it right from the jar!
And make sure you sterilize your jam jars correctly!
Table of Contents
Homemade Mixed Berry Jam
This time of year is one of our favorites!
Sweet fresh fruit is in season! It’s a family tradition to pick fresh berries on Father’s Day from the local farms around the area. We have our favorites for different kinds of fruit. One farm, in particular, has blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and even marionberries all ripe at the same time! That’s why we had to make Homemade Mixed Berry Jam!
With all the strawberries we picked this year (in 90-degree heat, mind you), we made Strawberry Chia Seed Jam. Without any added refined sugar, this stuff is healthy and amazing!
Traditional jam making is so wonderful because you get to enjoy fresh fruit all winter long!
This jam is actually amazing on everything from pancakes and waffles to toast and ice cream. Not to mention yogurt parfaits!
Please note: Since this is a pectin-free jam, it doesn’t set like a jam that uses pectin.
Giving Homemade Jam for Gifts
We make a big batch because it’s also great for homemade gifts.
- Christmas gifts.
- Hostess gifts.
- Teacher gifts.
- You name it, this jam makes a great gift for it 🙂
To make your gift pretty and functional include a tag with the name of your jam and the “made on” date!
How To Make Homemade Fruit Jam
This recipe doesn’t use pectin. We saw so many recipes that didn’t call for it, so we decided to give it a try. We prefer to keep the sugar to a minimum, so I went with a recipe with a high ratio of berries to sugar.
It turned out perfect!
You can totally experiment with different ratios of berries depending on your preference and what’s ripe at the time.
Step 1: Get Your Canning Jars Ready
Have ready 6 hot, sterilized half-pint jars and their lids.
Here’s how to sterilize jars for preserving.
Step 2: Marinate Your Berries
Place your washed and dried berries and sugar in a large bowl. Gently stir together and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Having the berries marinate in the sugar prior to cooking really brings out the flavorful fruit juices.
Step 3: Cook Your Berries
In a large nonreactive saucepan, gently stir together the berries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently and removing any foam*, until the jam has thickened, about 15 minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
*The foam forms because the berries are being filled with a lot of air from the boiling.
Step 4: Place in Sterile Jars
Ladle the hot jam into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace (space at the top of the jar). Remove any air bubbles. Get the lids warming in hot (but not boiling) water. Wipe the rims clean and seal tightly with the lids.
Step 5: Seal Your Jars
Put the jars in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. Make sure the jars are covered in water. The sealed jars can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. If a sealed has failed, store the jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Makes 6 delicious half-pint jars.
Cooking Notes:
- The fruit tends to bubble up while cooking. Just remove the foam with a spoon.
- Since this is low sugar, pectin free jam recipe, it tends to be a little runnier than traditional versions.
- DO NOT increase or try to double the recipe because the jam won’t “set” (jell, thicken).
- You place jar lids in a pan of hot water for several minutes to soften up the gummed surface and clean the lids.
Can you Make Jam out of Frozen Summer Fruit?
Frozen fruit has a higher water content than fresh fruit, so it tends to make homemade jam runnier. For best results, we recommend fresh fruit in this recipe. However, you can use frozen berries if you increase the sugar to 4 cups.
You Will Love These Easy Homemade Jam Recipes:
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Homemade Mixed Berry Jam
Equipment
- canning jars
Ingredients
- 4 cups raspberries
- 4 cups blackberries
- 4 cups blueberries
- 3 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Have ready 6 hot, sterilized half-pint jars and their lids.
- Place the berries and sugar in a large bowl. Gently stir together and let sit for 10-15 minutes.
- In a large nonreactive saucepan, gently stir together the berries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently and removing any foam, until the jam has thickened, about 15 minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
- Ladle the hot jam into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims clean and seal tightly with the lids.
- Put the jars in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. Make sure the jars are covered in water. The sealed jars can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. If a sealed has failed, store the jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Makes 6 half-pint jars.
- Adapted from The Art of Preserving, by Lisa Atwood, Rebecca Courchesne & Rick Field (Weldon Owen, 2010).
Notes
- The fruit tends to bubble up while cooking. Just remove the foam with a spoon.
- Since this is a low sugar, pectin free recipe, it tends to be a little runnier than traditional versions.
- DO NOT increase or try to double the recipe because the jam won't "set" (jell, thicken).
- You place jar lids in a pan of hot water for at several minutes to soften up the gummed surface and clean the lids.
Nutrition
This article was enhanced with more tips and resources in May 2019.
Canning Basics
No worries, If you’ve never canned anything before, don’t be afraid to start. Once you know the basics, you’ll be on your way to canning all your summer fruit and much more!
The benefits of Canning:
- Gain control of the ingredients, including organic fruits and vegetables.
- Preserve foods at their freshest point, which locks in nutrition.
- The final product is chemical and preservative-free.
- Store-bought brands just can’t match the wonderful flavor of homemade!
This post contains affiliate links. Disclosure policy here.
Basic Canning Supplies:
- Mason Jars – either 1/2 pint or 8 oz jars work well
- Funnel – for filling regular and wide-mouth canning jars
- Jar lifter – easily removes hot jars from canner
- Magnetic lid lifter – removes canning lids from hot water
- Bubble remover – for releasing trapped air bubbles
A great resource to get you started with all the basic of home preserving and step by step instruction is The All New Ball Book Of Canning And Preserving: Over 350 of the Best Canned, Jammed, Pickled, and Preserved Recipes.
We’re excited, blueberries are just about to come into season, so the canning supplies will be coming out again soon!
Have you canned jam before? What other fruits or vegetables do you preserve?
Karabee says
I used your recipe to use some berries (raspberries, blackberries, cherries and a few stray blueberries). Sooo easy and really delicious! Can’t wait to mix a bit in with plain yogurt and spread on croissants!
Erin Henry says
What a good addition with the cherries! It’s perfect with plain yogurt and definitely good on croissants!
Jen says
I’ve made mixed berry jam before but my family is not fond of seeds. Can I purée and strain the berries and how much purée should I use when I do this. I prefer low sugar recipes
Erin Henry says
Hi Jen, we have not tried the recipe with pureed and strained berry, however, it should work. I would keep the proportions the same, but I think the jam will probably turn out runnier.
Riétte de Klerk says
Hi Erin, this mixed berry jam looks delicious and I want to try it. The photos show raspberries, strawberries, blackberries and blueberries, but there are no strawberries in the ingredient list. Should there be strawberries in the recipe as well?
Can’t wait to try this jam.
Regards, Riétte
Erin Henry says
Hi there, you can use whatever mix of berries you like with this recipe as long as they add up to the total amount listed. Thanks! We like it with strawberries, but other berries work great too!
Annette says
Easy and yummy!
Erin Henry says
Yay, so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Annette!
CJ says
My jam tastes awesome but it’s More runny than I anticipated. I thought it would be thick. Very good jam. Spreads like a jelly with seeds.
Erin Henry says
Because this jam recipe doesn’t contain any pectin, it does tend to be a little runny and not as thick as traditional jam. Glad it tastes so good!
Jen says
Simply delicious!
Erin Henry says
Yay! We’re so glad you think so, Jen! Love this jam recipe!
Darryl Reece says
Will saskatoon and raspberries work together?
Erin Henry says
Although we’ve never used saskatoon and raspberries together, the recipe should work. Without knowing how sweet saskatoon berries are, it’s hard to say what the final flavor would be, but it’s worth giving it a try!
Fran says
Hi Erin, just made 2 batches today of your mixed fruit jam and it was so simple, and the benefit of having it for the year it’s great.
The only problem was I can’t print it for some reason but will ask my daughter what I’m doing wrong and of course there’s some jam for her too.
Anyway thank you for the recipe and I will continue to watch for your projects.
Erin says
Thanks, Fran. You’re so nice to share your jam!! It’s so nice to have it throughout the year! Let me know if you weren’t able to figure out the pricing thing!
Natalie Carnovale says
I love homemade jams. Can I use frozen fruit? I have some in my freezer and want to use it up.
Erin says
Hi Natalie, yes, you can use frozen fruit. It does tend to have higher moisture, so you jam will be slightly runnier, but it will taste amazing. Enjoy!
Tresa says
I just made this jam had a lot of fun . But I’ve noticed after 24 hrs it’s not setting up what can I do
Erin says
Hi Tresa,
Since this recipe doesn’t use pectin, it is a bit runnier than other recipes. However, it tastes just as good! In the future, you can cook it a little longer and see if that helps.
Crissa Clark says
Any chance you could use frozen mixed berries for this recipe? This time of year in Colorado, budget friendly fresh fruit is hard to come by. Many thanks
Erin says
Yes! Totally Crissa. That will work!
Tiffany says
What happens if you follow the recipe and it is still too runny? What do you suggest was done incorrectly?
Erin says
Hi Tiffany. You likely didn’t do anything wrong. Since this is a low sugar, pectin free recipe, it tends to be a little thinner than a traditional recipe with tons of sugar. You can try cooking the berries a little longer to see if that helps. Also, it thickens as it cools, so hopefully once it was in the refrigerator, it became thicker.
Shirley Wood says
Homemade jams and jellies are the best! Pinned it for later. Thanks for partying with us at Merry Monday.
Erin says
Homemade jam is one of my favorite things about summer! And then you get to enjoy it all winter long!
Nikki Frank-Hamilton says
Both these jams got me! Right in the taste buds. YUM! I need to try both versions. I’m really interested in the chia seeds, but the mixed berry combo is my favorite. Decisions, decisions! You’ve really made this hard for me! I can see this on my waffles or pancakes, and ice cream! It’s on!
Erin says
I thought of you Nikki when I scooped it on some ice cream! Why not add a little super food yumminess to your treats 🙂 I think you should definitely try it on your pancakes and waffles!
Debra C. says
I make tons of jams & jellies in the summer, they are such a yummy treat and super fun to give as gifts through-out the year! This looks delicious! Stopping by from #FoodieFriDIY to share some love!
Erin says
Yes, I too give them as gifts throughout the year. They make such yummy and personal gifts. Thanks for stopping by, Debra!
Sarah says
This looks delicious and seems to have less sugar than is usually called for.
Erin says
Yes, that’s why I love this recipe, Sarah. It has less sugar than most recipes call for, but still tastes amazing especially if you use fresh berries. Enjoy your jam making!
Scarlet says
Hi Erin, I cannot wait to make this delicious sounding Jam !! I made fresh Cherry preserves last week and will be getting fresh peaches in August to can and to make Peach jelly. I love canning , even in our 100+ summer temps here in Phoenix !! Thanks for all the great recipies !!
Erin says
Thanks, Scarlet! I love making jam and preserves to enjoy all year long. Your cherry preserves sound great! We just picked 50 lbs of peaches off to preserve those! Stay cool!
Melissa Ruddy says
So jealous. It is to hot here in South FLorida to grow a good batch of berries. My dad always use to make grape jelly every September in NY. It is a process that holds some great family memories for me. Maybe I will try your canning directions on a orange marmalade? I always wanted to give canning a try. Thanks for the inspiration.
Erin says
I can imagine it’s hot! Although fresh berries are the best, you can always try canning with frozen. If you want an easy and healthy jam recipe, you should try this Strawberry Chia Seed jam. https://www.suburbansimplicity.com/homemade-strawberry-chia-seed-jam/
Sharon says
Always made Orange Marmalade when I lived in Fla. 40 yrs ago.
Good stuff
Lindi says
I love jam and this looks sotasty
Erin says
Thanks, Lindi! It just screams summer since it’s so fresh and yummy! I love that I have it all winter long too 🙂