Best Easy Freezer Jam Recipe
How to Make the Best Freezer Jam – Our easy no-cook freezer jam recipe is perfect for making the best strawberry jam, or nearly any flavor of sweet spread with your favorite summer berry or stonefruit. No canning required!
What is Freezer Jam?
I’ll be honest… I’m no canner.
The process of pressurized canning, using a hot water bath, is a classic method that is time-consuming and laborious. I’ve always been in awe of those who are able to patiently and skillfully fill jar after jar with homemade preserves and pickled vegetables. Materials must be meticulously prepared, and there are typically many delicate and time-sensitive steps to follow to ensure not just yummy, but safe, batches are made every time.
Hot water bath canning is a precise science with a big payoff, but, thankfully, it’s not the only way to make delicious jarred goods from scratch.
Today we are going to share with you an incredibly simple recipe for making the Best Easy Freezer Jam, a quicker no-cook alternative to traditional canning of regular jam.
Most jam recipes involve a process that includes first cooking the fruit, canning and sealing in a hot water bath, then cooling for up to a day before storing. Freezer jam, on the contrary, only requires pureeing fruit in a blender, and then briefly cooking a simple pectin syrup before dividing into jars, cooling to room temperature, and freezing.
While both methods are not necessarily quick to make, freezer jam is certainly much easier, super convenient, and overall faster.
Strawberry and Peach Freezer Jam
Not only is freezer jam easier to make than classic pressure canning, many people – myself included – find this version to be tastier than other preserves and spreads. Unlike traditional jam recipes where the fruit is cooked down for at least several minutes, the fruit in freezer jam is not actually cooked and therefore retains a terrifically sweet, fresh, and perky flavor.
Personally, my favorite flavors to make are strawberry freezer jam and peach freezer jam. Both are vibrant and perfectly juicy without being too sweet. Plus, they offer a wonderfully thick and spreadable texture.
This basic recipe is a great way to use up those overly ripe summer berries and peaches from your roadside fruit stand, and then savor the summer flavors all year long!
What Ingredients You Need for the Best No-Cook Jam
- Fresh fruit – We recommend either strawberries or peaches, but you can use any berry or stonefruit.
- Granulated sugar – A must-have for getting just the right level of sweetness.
- Lemon juice and zest – Including the zest will add great freshness to the jam.
- Salt – a pinch is necessary to keep the jam from freezing solid.
- Powdered fruit pectin – The magic ingredient for making any fruit jam.
- Water
Pro Tip: Using super-ripe fruit creates the best flavor. Berries and stone fruits like peaches and apricots tend to be sweetest when they are right on the edge of being overly ripe.
How to Make Easy Freezer Homemade Jam
Prepping for homemade freezer jam is very easy. You should peel fruits with tough skins such as peaches, nectarines, and plums. But you do not need to peel apricots or cherries, or similar fruits with soft exteriors.
If using strawberries, hull the berries to remove all stems and leaves. If making peach jam, peel off the skin and remove the pits.
Instructions on How to Make the Best No-Cook Freezer Jam Recipe:
1. First, place the cleaned and prepped fruit in a food processor or blender, and blend to a fine mash with small chunks still present.
2. Set out a large mixing bowl and measure exactly 2 cups of mashed strawberries into the bowl. (3 cups for peaches) Then pour in the sugar, lemon juice and zest, and salt. Stir well to get the sugar dissolving process going. Allow the strawberry mixture to sit for at least 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.
3. Meanwhile, set a small sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add water and the powdered pectin, and whisk well to dissolve. Once the mixture reaches the boiling point, continue whisking and boil for 3 minutes to thicken the pectin syrup. This pectin mixture should look like thick clear glue when ready.
4. Slowly pour the hot liquid pectin syrup into the pureed berry mixture, and whisk continuously to incorporate.
5. Once the mixture is thoroughly combined, pour into canning jars and leave about a half-inch gap at the top for expansion.
This recipe makes three 16-ounce jars, six 8-ounce jars, or twelve 4-ounce jars.
6. Lastly, screw the lids on the jars and leave them out at room temperature for 24 hours to set and cool. Then move the jars to the freezer until ready to use.
Although you can enjoy the loose jam immediately once cooled, don’t skip the 24-hour rest time before placing the jam in the freezer. This is what creates the right consistency!
Get the Complete (Printable) Best Easy Strawberry Freezer Jam Recipe Below. Enjoy!
How to Make the Best Freezer Jam with Less Sugar
Some people find jams to be overly sweet, so here is a tip for low-sugar jam…
This strawberry and peach freezer jam recipe calls for 4 cups of sugar. However, if you don’t mind a looser jam, you can use 2 ½ cups of pureed fruit and 3 – 3 ½ cups of sugar.
The taste is still fresh and bright, but the jam will not set up quite as well as with the traditional freezer jam proportions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What To Serve With This Jam
Just as with any other jam, this tastes delicious on toast. You can also use it as a topping for pancakes or waffles, ice cream, or yogurt.
How Long Does This Recipe Last in the Refrigerator?
The jam will keep well in the freezer for up to one year in a freezer-safe container. Once you are ready to enjoy, move the jam to the fridge and keep stored there for up to 3-4 weeks once opened.
If I want to make peach strawberry jam, how would that change the recipe?
As long as you use slightly more strawberries than peaches you should be fine to follow the recipe as-is, with 2 cups of pureed fruit.
Can the jars break in the freezer after they freeze?
If you leave a 1/2 inch of space at the top of each jar, for expansion, the jars will be just fine. They will only crack if you fill them to the brim. Also, be sure to stack them evenly on a flat shelf, so they don’t topple out of the freezer when you open the door.
Is there a way to make this sugar-free?
The key to making this recipe sugar-free is to use a 1-to-1 ratio sugar substitute, to create the same volume and consistency. I believe Swerve and Truvia both have 1:1 options.
Looking for More Deliciously Sweet Spreads and Sauces?
- Salted Caramel Sauce
- Perfect Homemade Lemon Curd
- Raspberry Cranberry Sauce
- Warm Blueberry Sauce
- Raspberry Maple Syrup
Check the printable recipe card below for the nutrition information on this homemade strawberry jam including calories and other daily percentages.
Best Easy Freezer Jam (Strawberry and Peach!)
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh pureed strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries (about 1 heaping quart berries)
- 4 cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice add zest for extra lemon flavor
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1.75 ounce box powdered fruit pectin
- ½ cup water
Instructions
- If using strawberries, hull the berries removing all stems and leaves. If using peaches, peel off the skin and remove the pits. (Peach skin easily peel right off super ripe peaches.) *See stonefruit proportions below.
- Place the fruit in a food processor or blender and to a fine mash with small small chunks present.
- Set out a large mixing bowl. Measure exactly 2 cups of berry puree into the bowl. (Measure 3 cups for stonefruit.) Then pour in the sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Stir well to start dissolving the sugar. Allow the mixture to sit for at least 10 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, set a small sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add the water the powdered pectin. Whisk well to dissolve. Once the mixture reaches the boiling point, whisk and boil for 3 minutes to thicken the pectin syrup. It should look like thick clear glue when ready.
- Slowly pour the hot pectin syrup into the fruit, whisk continuously to incorporate.
- Once the mixture is smooth, pour into canning jars (or containers with lids) leaving about a half-inch gap at the top for expansion. This recipe makes three 16-ounce jars, six 8-ounce jars, or twelve 4-ounce jars.
- Screw the lids on the jars and leave out at room temperature for 24 hours to set. Then move the jars to the freezer until ready to use.
Video
Notes
- 3 cups fresh pureed peaches or other stonefruit
- 4 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 box powdered fruit pectin
Nutrition
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Could I add habanero or jalapeño chilies to this recipe? Thank you.
Yes, absolutely! If you give it a try, please let me know how it turns out. :)
The most delicious homemade jam ever! We never run out because we always keep a supply in the freezer.
The best homemade jam! We always have a batch in our freezer!
I made this recipe but used blackberries instead since I had them and love them so much and it turned out great, thank you!
I can’t wait to try this because it looks so good and I love strawberries!
I made this today. As it is sitting on my island, the bottom of the jar is showing clear and the strawberry purée is rising to the top. Is this normal, or did I do something wrong?
Can you use stevia instead of sugar?
Can you use previously frozen strawberries?
Hi Dana,
I personally haven’t tried that, but it most likely would work. If you give it a try, please report back! :)
Love this recipe. I was wondering if my jars should be sealed 100% before I put in freezer as if the top still has a popping sound
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Loved it! So easy to make and tasted better than store bought!
This was really amazing! My family loves jam and they loved it!
Question I want to do peach strawberry jam. How would that change the recipe?
Hi Sabrina,
As long as you use slightly more strawberries than peaches you should be fine to follow the recipe as-is. Please report back! :)
Great recipe. Thank You I’m in no mood in using hot water bath canning when it’s 100 deg. outside, so making freezer jam is such a cool idea.
I was thinking about making a 3 berry jam.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Stay safe& stay healthy
I bought a ton of strawberries on sale, and this was the perfect way to use them up. So amazing on English muffins and toast.
Will the jars not break in the freezer after they freeze?
Hi Jackie,
If you leave a 1/2 inch of space at the top, for expansion, the jars will be just fine. They will only crack if you fill them to the brim.
Thanks for this amazing recipe. I made this recipe for my sister on her birthday.
And the good thing is she liked it.. This is my third time after my college I cooked.
Thanks a lot for this delicious and simple recipe. You have written this recipe in
a very brief way which helped me to make it perfectly. Best with bread.. Thanks! and keep it up…
Hi
Do you know if there’s a way to make this sugar free (with a sweetener like stevia or sucralose)?
I *seem* to remember from years ago that the pectins for freezer jam required sugar.
Dave
Hi Dave,
The key to making this recipe sugar-free is to use a 1-to-1 sugar substitute, to create the same volume and consistency. I believe Swerve and Truvia both have 1:1 options.