Easy Homemade Strawberry Jam (Gf) - The Sweet Balance (2024)

Homemade strawberry jam is quick, easy and better than store-bought jam in every way; natural, fresh and customizable to your personal taste. You can make it as sweet or as tart as you’d like, add spices, combine different fruit, make it chunky or smooth, it’s really up to YOU! This method and recipe can be used for any kind of jam, not just strawberry. Some of my favourite jam flavours are mixed berries, peach and cherry.

This jam recipe is made without pectin. Cornflour (or cornstarch) combined with lemon juice is a great alternative to pectin. It thickens up jam really well, combined with the sugar and heat. Also, this recipe is gluten free! There’s so many way to use this homemade strawberry jam, it probably won’t last you more than a month. For instance, it can be used on toast, scones, biscuits, or PB & J Oat Crumble Bars(photos below).

How to preserve homemade strawberry jam

First, you will need to sterilize your canning jar. All you have to do is submerge the jar in a pot of boiling water and cover it with the lid for at least 10 minutes. Then, pick up with lifters or tongs and set aside to dry. You can pour in the freshly made jam when the jar is completely dry. If you will be using it within a month, you can seal and refrigerate at this step. However, if you need to preserve it for longer, submerge the filled and sealed jar in boiling water again for around 30 minutes on a simmer. Let it cool and store in a cool, dry place for up to 3 months. Keep in mind that once opened, it will last up to 1 month and needs to be refrigerated.

Peanut Butter and Jam Oat Crumble Bars

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup strawberries
1 tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt

Instructions

Rinse the strawberries and chop to preferred size; large for chunky and small for smooth jam.
In a saucepan, add the strawberries and the rest of the ingredients.
Simmer on medium-high heat, while stirring constantly for around 15 minutes.
Coat the back of the spoon, let cool and run your finger down the middle.
If the jam stays in place and the line intact, it has thickened and is ready.
Pour into a sterilized canning jam and seal. Let cool and refrigerate.
Enjoy on toast, scones, biscuits, oat bars and more!

Notes

If you need to preserve it, submerge the filled and sealed jar in boiling water for around 30 minutes on a simmer. Let it cool and store in a cool, dry place for up to 3 months. Once opened it will last up to 1 month in the fridge.

Easy Homemade Strawberry Jam (Gf) - The Sweet Balance (7)

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