Ball Canning Raspberry Jam Recipe

About this recipe

This is a classic raspberry jam made with powdered fruit pectin and processed in a boiling water canner so the jars can be stored in the pantry. The quantities below follow the widely published Ball-style method for red raspberries. They are a reference, not a replacement for the instruction sheet inside your pectin box.

Please read this first. With pectin jams, the fruit, sugar, pectin and acid amounts are balanced against each other. Pectin brands differ, and manufacturers update their instructions. Check the figures below against the sheet in your own box of pectin or against a current Ball or National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) recipe, and use the processing time from that source.

If you are new to jam making, our beginner’s guide to making jam explains the basics of how jam sets.

Ingredients

Makes roughly 8 half-pint jars, depending on how well the fruit is crushed and how long you boil.

• 5 cups crushed raspberries (about 3 pounds of whole berries, fresh or thawed frozen)
• 1 package (1.75 oz) powdered fruit pectin
• 7 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon butter (optional, helps reduce foam)
• Bottled lemon juice, if your recipe or pectin instructions call for it (some versions include 2 tablespoons)

Equipment

• Boiling water canner (or steam canner if the recipe you follow allows it) with a rack
• Half-pint or pint jars with new flat lids and bands
• Large, deep, heavy saucepan (jam rises as it boils)
• Potato masher, ladle, jar funnel, jar lifter, bubble remover and clean damp cloth

Steps

1. Prepare the canner and jars. Wash jars, lids and bands in warm, soapy water. Fill the canner with enough water to cover the jars by at least 1 to 2 inches and heat it. Keep jars hot until you fill them. Follow the lid manufacturer’s instructions for preparing flat lids.
2. Crush the berries. Rinse and drain the raspberries, then crush them thoroughly with a potato masher, one layer at a time. Measure exactly 5 cups. Thaw frozen berries first; they are easier to crush.
3. Mix the fruit and pectin. Combine the crushed berries, pectin, lemon juice (if used) and butter (if used) in the saucepan.
4. Bring to a full rolling boil. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches a boil that cannot be stirred down.
5. Add all the sugar at once. Stir to dissolve it, return to a full rolling boil, and boil hard for exactly 1 minute while stirring constantly.
6. Take off the heat and skim. Remove any foam with a metal spoon.
7. Fill the jars. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe the rims clean, center the lids and screw on the bands until fingertip-tight.
8. Process. Lower the jars into the canner. The water should cover them by 1 to 2 inches. Cover, bring to a full boil, and start your timer. The Ball-style recipe is commonly given as 10 minutes at low elevation (see below).
9. Cool. Turn off the heat, remove the lid, and let the jars rest in the water for about 5 minutes. Lift them out onto a towel and leave them undisturbed for 24 hours.
10. Check seals. Press the center of each lid; it should not flex. Remove the bands, wipe the jars, label them with the date, and store. Refrigerate and use first any jar that did not seal.

Processing time and altitude

Processing time depends on your altitude, because water boils at a lower temperature as elevation rises. Published times for the same kind of jam differ between sources, so I am not giving a single chart here. Look up your elevation, then use the time listed for your jar size and altitude in your pectin’s instructions or in the NCHFP’s guidance.

On sterilizing: NCHFP guidance is that jars that will be processed for 10 minutes or longer do not need to be sterilized first, though they should be clean and hot. If your recipe’s processing time is shorter than 10 minutes, sterilize jars as the recipe directs.

Do raspberries have enough pectin?

Raspberries contain some natural pectin, but not usually enough on their own for a firm, reliably set jam, which is why this recipe uses added pectin. Jams made without added pectin rely on longer cooking, more sugar relative to fruit, and a good amount of acid, and the result is often softer. If you prefer a pectin-free jam, our guide to making jam covers the cooking and set-testing approach, but that style is better suited to refrigerator jam than to a recipe you want to can.

Can you boil jam too long?

Yes. With powdered pectin, the “boil hard for exactly 1 minute” step is there for a reason. Boiling much longer can weaken the set, darken the color, and dull the flavor. Time it and do not walk away.

Variations

• Seedless jam. For a fully seedless, clear set, see blackberry jelly with Sure-Jell. Otherwise, press part or all of the crushed berries through a fine sieve before measuring. Measure 5 cups of the crushed or pressed fruit, juice included. Because seedless purée can be denser, stick to the amounts your recipe allows.
• Frozen raspberries. Thaw them first and include the juice when you measure.
• Less sugar. Do not simply cut the sugar in this recipe. Standard powdered pectin needs a lot of sugar to gel. Use a pectin made for lower sugar and follow its instructions instead. See sugar-free jam recipes for canning.
• Mixing fruit. Substituting a different fruit in a tested recipe changes the balance, so use a recipe developed for that fruit.

Troubleshooting

• Jam did not set. Common causes are inaccurate fruit measurements, not reaching a full rolling boil, boiling too long or too little, changing the sugar, or old pectin. Some jams continue to firm for up to a couple of days, so wait before judging. If it is still runny, use a tested remaking method for pectin jams, or use it as a sauce.
• Jam separated, with fruit floating. Often the fruit was not crushed enough, or the jam was jarred while very hot. Crush well, and after skimming let the jam sit briefly and stir gently before filling jars.
• Foam in the jar. Skimming and a little butter help.
• Lid did not seal. Refrigerate the jar and use it first, or reprocess within the window your recipe allows with a new lid.

Storage

• Sealed, properly processed jars are best stored in a cool, dark place with the bands removed. Quality is generally best within about a year.
• Once opened, store in the refrigerator.
• Discard any jar with mold, a bulging or leaking lid, or an off smell.

Related guides

If you want a no-heat approach, see our no-cook freezer jam. For a jam you do not plan to can, try the Instant Pot blueberry jam.