fruit jam recipe

Homemade Grape Jam – Step-by-Step Recipe

Canning & Preserving

Grape jam is a delicious way to preserve your grape harvest. It’s full of flavor, pleasantly sweet, and has a beautiful color that depends on the type of grapes you use. Whether you have blue, red, or white grapes — they all make wonderful jam.

Ingredients

  • 2.2 lb (1 kg) grapes, preferably seedless
  • 1.1 lb (500 g) special gelling sugar (2:1)
  • 7 oz (200 g) granulated sugar, or to taste
  • 3.4 fl oz (100 ml / ⅓ cup + 1 tbsp) water
  • 5 sterilized jars

Choosing the Right Grapes

You can make grape jam from all kinds of grapes — white, red, or blue, with or without seeds. Personally, I prefer seedless grapes, since the seeds tend to give the jam a slightly bitter taste.

If your grapes do have seeds, you can easily remove them: cut the grapes in half and lift out the seeds with the tip of a small paring knife. It goes quite smoothly, especially if the grapes are fully ripe.

Red grapes give a lovely red-colored jam, even though their flesh is light. The color comes mainly from the skins. Blue grapes create a deep, dark purple jam, while white grapes make a soft, light-green jam.

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Why Use Special Gelling Sugar (2:1)?

For this recipe, I use special gelling sugar (2:1). It contains more pectin than regular jam sugar, so you only need half as much to achieve the same firmness. The result is a jam that’s less sweet but still perfectly set.

Because you’re using less gelling sugar, you can adjust the sweetness yourself by adding a bit more or less granulated sugar. That’s especially useful for naturally sweet fruits like grapes, or if you simply prefer a jam that isn’t overly sugary.

Grapes naturally contain very little pectin, so this type of sugar is ideal. You don’t need to add apple or lemon juice to get a good set — the gelling sugar does the job for you.

How to Make Grape Jam

  1. Prepare the grapes: Remove the grapes from their stems and rinse them. Place them in a large saucepan with the water.
  2. Cook the fruit: Let the grapes simmer gently with the lid on for about 30–45 minutes, until completely soft. Make sure too much moisture doesn’t evaporate. If the mixture becomes too dry, add a splash of water.
  3. Add the sugar: Stir in the gelling sugar and the granulated sugar. Bring the mixture back to a boil and cook for 1–2 minutes, or follow the instructions on the sugar package
    .
  4. Test the jam: To check if it’s set, do the wrinkle test. Drop a little jam onto a cold plate and gently push it with your fingertip. If the surface wrinkles, it’s ready.
    If the jam is still too runny, add a few extra spoonfuls of gelling sugar and briefly boil again.
  5. Fill the jars: Pour the hot jam into sterilized jars, seal them tightly, and let them cool completely.

Your jam will keep for several months in a cool, dark place.

Tips for Best Results

When using gelling sugar, it’s important not to extend the cooking time once the sugar is added. Boil the jam briefly — usually just 1 to 2 minutes. Longer boiling can break down the pectin and prevent the jam from setting properly.

If you prefer a thicker texture, let the grapes simmer a bit longer before adding the sugar. This allows some of the liquid to evaporate and intensifies the flavor. You can then slightly reduce the amount of gelling sugar if you wish.

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Serving Ideas and Flavor Variations

Homemade grape jam tastes wonderful on toast, pancakes, or stirred into yogurt. It’s also a great addition to a cheese board, especially with soft cheeses like Brie or Camembert.

For a richer flavor, add a small splash of red wine or port while cooking — perfect with blue grapes. You can also add some lemon zest or a pinch of cinnamon for freshness, or a hint of rosemary or thyme for a more aromatic note.

These small adjustments make it easy to create your own favorite version of grape jam.

Preserving and Canning the Jam

Would you like to store your jam for longer? You can easily can the jars after filling them. This extends the shelf life up to two years — without the need for extra sugar or preservatives.

After sealing the jars, place them in a water bath or canning kettle and heat them according to standard canning instructions. In my detailed guide on How to Can Jam and Jelly, you’ll find step-by-step directions.

More Grape Recipes

Still have grapes left over? Here are some other ways to make the most of them:

This way, you can enjoy your grape harvest all year long.

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A jar of grape jam with visible pieces of grapes, placed on a wooden surface next to a cluster of fresh grapes.

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aardbeienjam met stukken

Strawberry Jam Just Like Grandma Made – With Big Strawberry Chunks

Canning & Preserving

There are certain smells and flavors that instantly transport you back to childhood. For me, it’s the smell of freshly cooked strawberry jam—sweet, fruity, and filled with that deep, almost sunny aroma that fills the whole house as soon as the pot hits the stove.

This recipe comes from my grandmother, who wasn’t just a walking encyclopedia when it came to plants and herbs, but also a true master at preserving and canning.

Childhood memories

In my grandpa’s garden, a large section was always reserved for strawberries. He had an enormous vegetable garden, and with it, rows and rows of strawberry plants. Most of them were early varieties, ripening in May and June. When the harvest started, Grandma would fill an entire bucket every day. While she hulled the berries to make something delicious, we kids would often “just happen” to walk past and sneak one. Or two. Or a whole handful.

Spring was always a feast: strawberries with whipped cream, strawberry tarts, fresh strawberries on pancakes… and of course, strawberry jam. That way, we could enjoy the sweet taste of spring all year long. In the cellar, Grandma had an entire shelf dedicated to jars of this jam—so there was always enough.

Grandma always made strawberry jam with big chunks of fruit. And while as a child I didn’t really care for those big pieces and would mostly scoop out the jelly for my sandwich, I’ve come to appreciate them as I got older.

In a world full of smooth, blended jams, it’s sometimes wonderful to go back to how things used to be: to the scent of fresh garden strawberries simmering away on Grandma’s stove. And being allowed to lick the pot afterwards made that smell even sweeter.

So here’s the recipe for delicious strawberry jam that takes me right back to Grandma’s kitchen.

Tips for Picking & Storing Strawberries

  • Harvest on a dry day: wet strawberries spoil faster.
  • Pick with the green cap on: keep it on until just before using to make them last longer.
  • Process quickly: strawberries usually only keep for 1–2 days in the fridge.
Aardbeien

Did you know…

  • Strawberries aren’t actually berries, but “aggregate fruits”?
  • The seeds on the outside are actually tiny fruits themselves—called achenes.
  • Homemade jam often has a much richer strawberry flavor than store-bought, because it usually contains more fruit and less sugar. You can often find the fruit percentage listed on the packaging.

You’ll Need (makes about four 250 ml jars)

  • Sterilized jars with lids
  • 1 kg strawberries
  • 800 g granulated sugar
  • Juice of 1 lemon

Let’s Get Started!

1. Prepare the strawberries
Wash the strawberries, remove the green caps, and cut them in halves or thirds. Smaller berries can be left whole. Don’t cut them too small—they’ll cook down a lot, and we want to keep those big chunks.

2. Marinate in sugar
Place the strawberries and sugar together in a large bowl or pot. Stir well and let the mixture rest overnight in the fridge. This extra step is worth it—it draws out the juices from the berries, mixing with the sugar to create a beautiful jelly around the fruit pieces.

3. Prepare the gel test
Place a small plate in the fridge. We’ll use this later to check if the jam has set.

4. Time to cook!
Add the lemon juice and bring the strawberry mixture to a boil. Let it simmer gently for 20–30 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent burning. Taste to see if it’s perfect for you—add more lemon juice or sugar if needed.

aardbeienjam met stukken
aardbeienjam met stukken
aardbeienjam met stukken

5. The gel test
Drop a bit of hot jam onto the cold plate from the fridge. Wait one minute. If the drop holds its shape and doesn’t run, your jam is ready. If not, cook a few more minutes and test again.

6. Fill the jars
Pour the hot jam into sterilized jars, leaving about 1 cm headspace. Seal tightly. This jam can be stored at a dark and dry place for up to one year.

Preserving and Canning the Jam

Would you like to store your jam for longer? You can easily can the jars after filling them. This extends the shelf life up to two years — without the need for extra sugar or preservatives.

After sealing the jars, place them in a water bath or canning kettle and heat them according to standard canning instructions. In my detailed guide on How to Can Jam and Jelly, you’ll find step-by-step directions.

Serving Ideas

This jam is perfect on bread or toast, with pancakes, or as a filling for cakes and scones.

Variations & Flavor Twists

  • Add a splash of vanilla extract, balsamic vinegar, or a pinch of ground black pepper at the end of cooking for a unique twist.
  • Mix strawberries with other summer fruits—like raspberries, rhubarb, or blueberries—for your own blend.

Other Jam Recipes You Might Like

  • Apple & Cranberry Jam – Cozy and autumnal
  • Robinia Blossom Jam – With a gentle floral flavor
  • Strawberry-Plum Jam – For when you can’t choose