This 3-ingredient Homemade Blackberry Jam doesn't require any added pectin and comes together so easily right on the stovetop. Keep it in the fridge for pancakes and waffles, dessert recipes, or yogurt bowls!
This recipe really lets the natural sweetness of our blackberries shine. You can strain the seeds from it before cooling, or keep them in for that classic texture. I love to top a stack of Apple Pancakes with a pat of butter and a hearty scoop of these preserves.
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving (1 tbsp.): $0.28
- Total Cost (8 oz. jar): $4.43
- Those Other Guys: $8.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Blackberries - Either fresh or frozen berries will work great in this recipe. Just make sure you thoroughly clean your fresh fruit. I recommend soaking in a water + apple cider vinegar combination, then rinsing before using.
- Granulated Sugar - We don't use a ton of sugar since blackberries have a natural sweetness. You can also use honey or agave as a sweetener!
- Lemon Juice - A small amount of lemon juice will cut some of the sweet taste of the jam as well as help prevent the growth of bacteria when we store it in the fridge. It also helps activate the natural pectin in our fruit, which creates that jammy texture we're looking for.
Pairing Ideas
Lemon Blackberry Crisp Ice Cream: Such a fun flavor - and you don't need an ice cream machine to make it! We swirl blackberry jam through a lemon-flavored base and sprinkle shortbread crumble throughout.
Baked Brie: Add some blackberry preserves to the top of a wheel of brie before baking, then serve with crackers, sourdough bread, and sliced apples.
Breakfast Favorites: Spread some jam onto these Sausage, Egg, & Cheese Sandwiches or add a couple spoonfuls to Homemade Cream Cheese Danishes.
How to Make Homemade Blackberry Jam
Making homemade jam or preserves is so simple! Most jelly recipes use pectin, a food starch, to get the gel consistency that we’re all used to. But we’re going to make this homemade jam without pectin.
Pectin can be expensive and sometimes hard to find. Blackberries naturally contain high levels of pectin, and combining them with the acidity of lemon juice (plus cooking down most of their moisture) really activates the fiber. The result? Delicious, jammy, homemade preserves.
Step 1: Start by adding all of your ingredients to a large pot.
Let the mixture come to a boil, stirring occasionally with a silicone spoon or spatula.
Step 2: Smash any large pieces of fruit using the back of a spoon or a potato masher.
After about 30 minutes, it should be done. Strain if you don't like seeds, then let cool completely in a glass jar before storing.
Recipe Pro Tips
- Take the temperature of the jam. You want to make sure your homemade jam reaches 220°F. That temperature ensures we have the consistency needed.
- No candy thermometer? If you don’t have a food thermometer, there's a quick freezer test that can help. Once you think your preserves are ready, add a plate to the freezer for about one minute until it gets chilly. Then, spoon a dollop of hot blackberry preserves on the plate.
- Place the plate back into the freezer for another minute, and run your finger through the jam. It should stay where it's at, and not immediately run back into the space you created with your finger - that's how you know you're ready to go.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Some fruit naturally contains pectin. In the recipe card below, I show a cooking technique to create the jam consistency that we want without using added pectin.
You can store this homemade jam in a mason jar in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks (if it lasts that long!) I like to make small batches so the jam can continuously be fresh. You can also freeze this for up to 2 months as long as it's sealed well.
Regular granulated sugar actually uses a non-vegan technique when processing. To make vegan homemade jam, substitute the granulated sugar with coconut sugar.
Other Breakfast/Brunch Recipes You'll Love!
If you tried this Homemade Blackberry Preserves Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Homemade Blackberry Jam (No Pectin!)
Equipment
- Large Bowl for cleaning the berries
- Pot
- Silicone Spoon
- Candy Thermometer
- Fine Mesh Sieve
- Mason Jar
Ingredients
- 16 ounces blackberries
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- If using fresh blackberries, soak in a mixture of cold water and a little apple cider vinegar for about 10 minutes. Drain, and rinse again with cold water.16 ounces blackberries
- Drain once more, and set aside.
- Add the berries, sugar, and lemon juice to a pot and cook on medium heat until it begins to boil, stirring frequently.¼ cup granulated white sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Cook for about 30-35 minutes. While the pot is boiling, smash some of the larger berries against the side of the pot with the back of a spoon.
- Your jam should reach 220℉ (use a candy thermometer to test).See the recipe notes for another test if you don’t have a candy thermometer.
- If you don’t like the seeds, strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove any excess seeds and pulp.
- Add the hot blackberry preserves to a mason jar and let it cool completely.
- Once the preserves are cooled, seal, and store in the fridge.
- Serve on biscuits, toast, pancakes, or anything else you can think of. Enjoy!
Notes
- Set a plate in the freezer for about one minute.
- Drop a quarter-sized amount of the hot preserves onto the plate and put back in the freezer for another minute.
- If you can run your finger through and it wrinkles up (aka, the preserves don't quickly fill the path you made with your finger), your preserves are ready!
Lucy Daniels says
Blackberries are my favorite fruit! Made this recipe this morning and was able to use it immediately for breakfast. I kept the seeds in. It was just sweet enough without being too much.
Shani H. says
Thank you so much Lucy! I love blackberries too, especially in-season.