Capture fresh strawberries at the height of the strawberry season by making Strawberry Jam With Certo. Strawberry freezer jam is made of ripe, fresh strawberries, sugar, fresh lemon juice, and certo - also known as liquid pectin. This jam is sweet, has a beautiful bright red color, and is bursting with strawberry flavor.
This is the strawberry jam of my childhood. A piece of buttered toast with this homemade jam dripping down the side - is the breakfast of champions. Add it to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. Or drizzle it over a bowl of ice cream for dessert. Try strawberry rhubarb freezer jam too, trust me, you won't be mad about it.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Simple Recipe With Four Ingredients
- Keeps In The Freezer For A Year
- Know The Ingredients In Your Jam
What You'll Need
- Strawberries - The jam will only be as good as the berries you use. Fresh-picked berries make the best jam.
- White Granulated Sugar - Nothing fancy, just plain white sugar.
- Certo (Liquid Pectin) - A product of SureJell, using liquid pectin means skipping the dissolving step in the other recipe for strawberry freezer jam.
- Lemon Juice - I love the brightness the lemon juice adds to the jam.
See the recipe card for the exact measurements and complete instructions.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Wash and dry containers and covers. Set aside until ready to use.
Step 2: Hull and remove the strawberry tops. Wash and place in a large bowl.
Step 3: With a potato masher, crush the fresh berries. If you want a chunky jam, leave large pieces, if not keep crushing until you don't see as many strawberry pieces.
Step 4: In a large mixing bowl add the sugar, the crushed berries - and stir until combined. Set the timer for ten minutes, stirring at least three times during that ten minutes.
Step 5: In a small bowl, add the lemon juice, without seeds, and the liquid pectin (Certo). Stir until combined.
Step 6: Once the ten minutes are done, add the Certo lemon mixture to the strawberry mixture. Stir for three minutes. Set a timer because three minutes feels longer when standing still and stirring. Doing this will dissolve the sugar and fully incorporate the pectin into the berries.
Step 7: After three minutes, and the sugar has dissolved, grab the jelly jars or freezer-friendly containers. The containers need to be clean and able to seal. I love mason jars, but use what works for you.
Step 8: Pour the jam into the container, leaving ½ inch space between it and the top. This will give the jam plenty of room to expand when it freezes.
Step 9: Add the cover and leave on the countertop for 24 hours. Store the jam in the refrigerator for 3 weeks or store it in the freezer for up to a 1 year. Defrost in the refrigerator before using.
Tips and Tricks
DO NOT SUBSTITUTE INGREDIENTS OR CHANGE AMOUNTS! I know it is tempting to switch to a different type of sugar or reduce the sugar, but don't do it. The jam will not set, and it will be more like a sauce than a jam. If you want to make a jam with less sugar, use a different type of pectin for a low-sugar strawberry jam recipe. It is also made by Sure Jell, but it is in the pink box.
Check expiration dates! Make sure the liquid pectin is not expired. Otherwise, the jam may not set.
Instead of using a potato masher to crush the berries, use an immersion blender. Be sure to watch closely to keep some strawberry pieces for the jam. It is a much faster way to crush the berries.
Use a large, wide mouth funnel to fill the jars. It will be a million times easier and less messy than without one. I love this inexpensive option from Amazon.
Label the containers. Your future self will thank you during the next freezer cleanout. Labels solve mysteries.
More Strawberry Freezer Jam Recipes
Less Sugar Option: Not everyone wants a super sweet jam, and that is okay! Grab the pink box of Sure-Jell instead of the yellow. The method is a little different and uses more crushed strawberries to make up for the reduced sugar. My low sugar strawberry jam has everything you need to make it work.
Try Liquid Pectin (Certo): If you have a box of Certo in the pantry, use it! Liquid pectin skips the boiling water step entirely and uses lemon juice instead for a bright, fresh flavor. One box has two pouches, so you can get two batches done at once. Head over to my strawberry jam with Certo for the full instructions.
Add Rhubarb: Got rhubarb coming out of your ears right now? Same. Toss some in with the strawberries for a tangy twist that is so good. My strawberry rhubarb freezer jam walks through exactly how to do it.
Use MCP Pectin Instead: If Sure-Jell is not on the shelf at your store, look for the yellow box with the bright blue MCP logo in the canning aisle. It is made by the same company and works the same way. You can also order it on Amazon. My strawberry freezer jam with MCP pectin has all the details for that version.
Storing and Freezing
Store: Keep the jam in the refrigerator for three weeks, in a sealed container.
Freeze: The jam can be stored in the freezer in freezer until ready to use. Defrost in the refrigerator before using. Use the jam within a year for best results.
Reader Love
"Strawberry Freezer Jam is a staple in my house! This is so delicious and we make many jars during strawberry season to last us through the year!"
- Kaitlin
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FAQs
Most jams are not low FODMAP because they contain high fructose corn syrup. Make a homemade version like this recipe. Otherwise, purchase a jam that uses a low FODMAP fruit and does not contain high fructose corn syrup.
Homemade jam uses simple ingredients, including fresh fruit, pectin, and sometimes lemon juice. Store-bought jam can have many ingredients, including high fructose corn syrup. Making freezer jam is not as hard as it looks. It takes time and lots of stirring!
How To Serve Strawberry Freezer Jam
Strawberry jam can be used in so many ways! Spread it on buttered toast, swirl it into plain Greek yogurt, or dollop it on top of gluten free Swedish pancakes for a breakfast that feels a little fancy without any extra effort. It is also great as a filling for strawberry shortcake or stirred into oatmeal for a fruity start to the day. So good!
Additional Strawberry Recipes
Recipe
Strawberry Freezer Jam With Certo
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh, ripe strawberries crushed (Note 1)
- 4 cups white granulated sugar (Note 2)
- 1 pouch Certo liquid pectin 2 pouches in box (Note 3)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Remove the hulls and wash the strawberries.
- Wash and dry storage containers and covers. This can be jelly jars, mason jars or freezer-friendly airtight containers. This recipe makes about three pint sized mason jars. Set aside cleaned jars.
- Place the strawberries in large mixing bowl. With a potato masher, crush the strawberries, until no whole berries remain. Set aside.
- In another large mixing bowl, add the white granulated sugar. Do not substitute or reduce the sugar.
- To the sugar, add the crushed strawberries. Stir until fully combined. Set a timer for ten minutes. Stir at least three times during the ten minutes.
- In a small bowl, add the certo (liquid pectin) and lemon juice. Stir. Set aside.
- After ten minutes, add the Certo lemon juice mixture to the berries with sugar. Set a timer for three minutes and stir the entire time. This step is to be sure the sugar fully dissolves and the pectin is mixed into the jam.
- Grab the containers and fill with jam, leaving ½ inch of space from the top. This allows the jam to freeze and expand. This will prevent the jars from breaking. Add the covers. Use a wide-mouth funnel for less mess. Put on the lids.
- Set the strawberry jam on the countertop for 24 hours. This allows the jam to seal and rest.
- After 24 hours, keep the jam in the refrigerator up to 3 weeks or in the freezer for up to a 1 year. Defrost before using for best results.
Venessa says
Love this jam!
Kaitlin says
Strawberry Freezer Jam is a staple in my house! This is so delicious and we make many jars during strawberry season to last us through the year. Your steps were so easy to follow and we'll continue to use this recipe for all of our future strawberry jam making!
Venessa Mandelkow says
We love strawberry jam in our house too! I am happy to hear this recipe was helpful. Enjoy all those jars of jam.
-Venessa
Wendy says
I just love freezer jam and this is so simple. I am having trouble with it separating while sitting on the counter. I am confused as I did exactly as the receipt says. The difference is that I did a 2X batch. Still followed and notice that the berries in the ingredient list did double however in the instructions it did not. I assumed it was just an error and I did use 4 cups (because batch doubled). Would that be the reason why?
Venessa Mandelkow says
Hi Wendy!
I agree, this freezer jam with Certo recipe is the easiest! I have made a double batch all the time, especially when using Certo because there are two packages in a box! The fact that the measurements didn't double in the instructions is because the recipe card it isn't quite that fancy yet.... give it a few years. 🙂
As to why the the jam is separating it could be from additional water on the berries from washing, or not crushing the berries enough. The berries will float in the pectin sugar mixture if they are more chunky than not. Sometimes I take a knife and press the berries down to the bottom of the jar and cross my fingers they stay there. Luckily it still tastes great, just give it a good stir before using it. Just for reference separation also happens in Strawberry Rhubarb Jam and Low Sugar Strawberry Freezer Jam with Sure Jell.
Thanks for asking the question and I hope you will try it again and see if any of my tips work for you! -Venessa