Homemade blueberry jam- nothing beats the fresh taste of these delicious preserves! Recipe includes instructions on how to can jars for long term storage!
Have you ever had homemade blueberry jam on a piece of toast, English muffin, or biscuit before? Well, I have… and it tastes exquisite on all of them! I love to make homemade jam! For years now I have been making our own jam. I’ve made strawberry, orange marmalade, boysenberry, blackberry, rhubarb-orange, peach, apple butter, raspberry, bing cherry, and this blueberry jam. Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve bought jam at the grocery store for at least 5 years!
I think blueberry jam tastes even better knowing I handpicked the berries right off the bushes! Even though I have three blueberry bushes in our backyard, I still go each summer to a local U-Pick farm and pick as many blueberries (and other berries) as I can carry (for only $1.25 per POUND!).
Blueberries are so easy to preserve. I freeze a lot of them, and use them year-round! It’s much less expensive to pick my own (about 20 pounds in about an hour of my time), than to pay so much at the store (around $4 for a tiny basket of berries)!
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
I’ve been making many varieties of jam for years, but this was my very first year for making BLUEBERRY jam. Boy, is it good! There’s nothing like spreading homemade blueberry jam on a hot, buttered piece of toast in the morning!
How To Make And Can Blueberry Jam
Here’s how to make blueberry jam (after getting the canning jars and lids ready according to canning guidelines):
Crush the blueberries (I used some of my frozen, but thawed berries) and place them in a large saucepan (6-8 quarts), then add lemon juice and water. Add a 1.75 ounce box of powdered fruit Pectin and 1/2 teaspoon butter into the mixture, then bring the mixture to a full, rolling boil.
While the berries, etc. are cooking, let jars simmer on a rack in a canner, in hot (but not boiling) water, to keep them hot before filling!
Once the blueberry jam mixture reaches a full rolling boil, add the sugar all at once, and stir well to combine.
Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil again, then boil it for exactly 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat, and skim off any foam that has collected. Carefully ladle the blueberry jam into hot canning jars, using a canning funnel to avoid a mess.
Filling Jars With Blueberry Jam
Fill the jars up to 1/8 inch from top of jar (1/8″ headspace) with the hot blueberry jam, and clean the rims. Place the hot, flat lids and screwbands onto jars, and screw the bands on, to fingertip tightness.
Place the filled jars of blueberry jam onto a canning rack and lower them into canner. Make sure jars are covered completely with water (add boiling water, if necessary, to make sure the jars are covered by at least 1-2 inches of water).
Cover the pan, bring the water to a gentle boil, then process the jars of blueberry jam for 10 minutes.
When the processing time is done, carefully remove the HOT blueberry jam jars to a dish towel on kitchen counter, to cool completely. It’s fun to watch the hot water on the lids evaporate, and to listen for the jars to “ping” as they seal.
Let the jars sit on the counter (upright and undisturbed) for 24 hours at room temp. After they are done “resting”, check to make sure all jars have sealed, then wipe clean. Put a label on the blueberry jam jars, and place in pantry to use throughout the year OR give as gifts to friends.
Storing Jars Of Blueberry Jam For Long Term Storage
When I store jars, after making sure they are clean, labeled and sealed correctly, I unscrew the rings for long term storage. I also store the jars in single layers.
TIP: Did you know that stacking jars on top of each other can sometimes lead to breaking the good seal on the jar. You sure don’t want THAT to happen to your beautiful jars of homemade blueberry jam! Stack those gorgeous jars of jam in a single layer!
That’s it! It really didn’t take very much time at all to make this delicious jam, and I ended up with 7 half-pint jars (8 oz. each) of delicious, homemade blueberry jam!
Hope you’ll give this blueberry jam recipe a try… it’s delicious! By the way… you can find all of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. Have a GREAT day! Thanks for stopping by- come back soon for more delicious recipes!
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Recipe Source: MCP Fruit Pectin (instruction page inside box)
- 6 pints of ripe blueberries (will need 3 3/4 cups of crushed berries)
- 6 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (approx. 2 lemons)
- 1 cup water
- 1.75 ounce powdered fruit pectin (small box)
- 1/2 teaspoon butter (optional, to help reduce foaming)
- 7 half-pint canning jars , flat lids, and rings.
- Fill water bath canner (filled half way with water) to a simmer. Prepare jars, flat lids and screw bands according to manufacturer guidelines. (i.e. Wash jars and screw bands with hot, soapy water. Rinse well. Place jars on rack into simmering water to get hot (but do not boil water). Let them stay in hot water until ready to fill. Drain well. Place flat lids in a small bowl. Cover with boiling water and let them sit (off heat) for about 5 minutes (time this so that flat lids are ready when jam is being ladled into jars).
- Crush berries (1 cup at a time-it's easier that way-I use a potato masher). If you are going to use a food processor, do not puree. just lightly pulse ... you want little pieces of fruit!
- Measure the EXACT amount of crushed blueberries into a LARGE saucepan (6-8 quarts). Add the lemon juice and water, and stir well to combine.
- In a separate large bowl, measure out the EXACT amount of granulated sugar; set aside. (You want this pre-measured so you don't have to mess with it when you need to add the sugar at just the right moment).
Stir a 1.75 ounce box of pectin into the blueberry mixture in the saucepan. Add 1/2 teaspoon butter (this will help cut down on the foaming).
- Bring blueberry mixture to a FULL, ROLLING BOIL on high heat. (A full rolling boil is when the boiling doesn't stop, even when it is being stirred). Stir the blueberry mixture constantly.
- Once blueberries reach a full, rolling boil, add the granulated sugar ALL AT ONCE. Stir well to combine; bring the mixture to a FULL ROLLING BOIL once again, and boil for EXACTLY 4 MINUTES, stirring constantly. Remove pan from heat. If any foam formed, just skim it off the top with a spoon and discard.
- Quickly ladle hot jam mixture into prepared, hot, drained canning jars. I use a canning funnel to avoid a lot of drippy messes. Fill each jar, leaving 1/8-inch headspace at the top. Wipe the jar rims and the threads carefully to make sure any drips are removed before adding lids. Cover with the hot, flat lids and tighten on the screw bands. Put the jars on an elevated rack (do not let jars rest on bottom of saucepan); lower rack and jars into the simmering water in the canner. Make sure all jars are fully covered by at least 1-2 inches water above top of jar. Add more boiling water, if necessary to fully cover.
- Cover pan; bring the water to a "gentle" boil. Process the jars for 10 minutes (after water reaches the boiling point). Once done, carefully remove lid from canner. Lift jars out with canning tongs and place each jar, upright, onto a dish towel. Let them cool completely, undisturbed at room temperature, for 24 hours. You should hear the jars distinct "ping" sound sometime over the next hour, as the jars seal. After 24 hours, check the seal on each jar by pressing on the middle of the lid with one of your fingers. If the lid "springs back", then the jar did not seal, and must be refrigerated. If jars sealed properly, they can be stored in a cool, dry place (pantry) for up to a year (or more).
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!
So I followed the directions but I had ALOT more than 3 3/4 cups once crushed. I used fresh picked berries. I took 6 pints (12 cups) whole berries and I ended up with 12 half pint jars. It’s still delicious and it still set up but I don’t know what happened. I’ve made this recipe twice and ended the same both times.
Thank you for thus wonderful recipe! I followed the directions and made 13 half pints. I used 6 pints of blueberrie.I used 2 canning pots to get them all processed. My family loves the jam!
Hi. What is the processing time if I wanted to use your recipe to can quarts or pints instead of half pints? Thanks!!
Hi, Jaclyn… you can process pints and half-pint jars of this jam for the same amount of time. I have never canned jam in quart sized jars before (it is too much jam for us and don’t want it to spoil once opened), so I don’t have the amount of time needed to can that size jar. I THINK you would need to can it for a longer amount of time, but again… I have zero experience canning JAM in QUART jars. Have a great day!
I am diabetic as well, follow the recipe but instead using sugar use the same amount of Splenda. You get half the amount of Jam you would with sugar
Thanks for the recipe! Is the 6-8 quarts referencing the size of saucepan, or the amount of blueberries? If it’s referencing to the saucepans, what amount of blueberries would you recommend for this recipe? Once again, thanks!
Hello, Austin… The 6-8 quarts is referring to saucepan size. If you scroll to the bottom of my blog post, you will find the printable recipe card which gives the exact amount of blueberries necessary for this jam. Have a great day.
Hi, do you have a recipe for blueberry jam with out all that sugar.I’m a diabetic but I sure do love blueberries. Thank you for your time
Hello, Ann. Unfortunately I do not have a sugar free blueberry jam recipe I’ve used before. I love blueberries, too, and am sorry I can’t help you with this. Have a great day.
First timer here, do you peel the skin off the blueberries first?
Good morning, Stephanie! Thanks for writing. No… you do NOT have to peel off the blueberry skins when making this jam, thank goodness! Hope you have much success, because this jam is really yummy! Have a great day.
This is my first year making jam. I successfully made strawberry and was so impressed I moved on to peach jam. I must be chanelling my grandmother because who would have thought I could make jam? Certainly not me. Next up blueberry. FAILURE! BUT WHY? I bought freshly picked berries straight from the farm, did everything I did with the strawberry and peach, yet my jars will not seal. Two separate batches and I’m past 48 hours of waiting and still no sealing. Jam has jelled but the jars will not seal. What am I missing when it comes to the blueberry jam that didnt apply to strawberry or peach? Btw, the strawberries and peach were not fresh off the farm. Does that make a difference? Is there something I can do to fix it or do I just need to keep waiting a bit longer?
Hi, Vickie… sorry you are having that problem. Am just now seeing your comment (playing catch up today with lots of comments). Sounds like you did everything right. The only thing I can think of that might explain it would be if there was a bit of residual jam on the rims or if the flat lids/rubber seals were not prepared/softened adequately. That can lead to a faulty seal lots of time. The jars should have sealed properly within 24 hours at the most. It really won’t matter when canning blueberries, if they are fresh from the farm or not. I would suggest (if they haven’t set by now) to search online for easy instructions on how to remake the jam (soft-spread) for the type of pectin that you used (liquid or powdered). It is a bit complicated, but you can find detailed instructions that might help you save all that jam.
I doubled the recipe and got 17 half pints of jam. Thank you
Hi, Jay! That’s awesome. Thanks for sharing. That is a lot of jars to stash in your pantry or give to family and friends to enjoy! Take care- have a great weekend.
Can you use frozen blueberries for this recipe?
Hi, Katelyn! Thanks for writing. Sure you can use frozen blueberries. The first time I made this jam I used some of my frozen blueberries, but I just let them thaw a bit first. Because you will be cooking them, you can throw them in the pan frozen, if you want, because they will quickly thaw while they cook. Either way will work just fine… it just may take a bit longer to cook them if not thawed before using. Whatever works best for you! Enjoy the jam!
What size box of pectin do you use?
Hi, Tena. Thank you so much for writing! I can’t even believe I left the amount of pectin necessary off of the instructions. I have amended the recipe instructions to update this. The correct amount is a 1.75 ounce box of powdered fruit pectin. Thank you so much for asking. I appreciate it!