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)!
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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!
