Homemade cranberry sauce is the perfect complement to holiday meals, and it’s easy to make and preserve at home. Canning cranberry sauce is easier than you think, and once you’ve made your own, you’ll never go back to storebought.
Jellied cranberry sauce was a staple of my childhood holiday memories, and I loved watching my mom carefully open the can and slide the whole thing out in a single piece. There was an even split across my family, half jellied cranberry sauce devotees and the other half would only eat whole berry cranberry sauce. While I loved jellied as a child, now that I’m an adult, I’ll admit that I’ve gone over t0 the dark side and now I prefer the chunky whole berry stuff.
Though I’ve been canning for years, it just never occurred to me that you could make your own cranberry sauce. A few years ago we were invited over to a friends house for Thanksgiving, and when we arrived the cranberry sauce was just finishing up on the stove.
We’ve butchered our own hogs, cured meats, and even grown our own chocolate, but somehow seeing someone make their own cranberry sauce surprised me. Old habits die hard I guess, and in my mind, cranberry sauce still came out of a tin can.
One bite of homemade cranberry sauce, and I’ll never go back to canned stuff. It had so much flavor! Nuanced layers of tart, sweet, orange and cinnamon danced across my tongue. The turkey that year was so juicy that it really didn’t need it, but I still slathered it on with abandon.
It seemed strange though, Thanksgiving day is such a busy time and the kitchen is jam-packed with activity. Wouldn’t it make sense to cook the cranberry sauce ahead of time? Surely it only improves with a few days in the jar with time for the flavors to marry.
Cranberry sauce is really no different than a jam or jelly when it comes to canning, and it can be made a week, a month or a year ahead of time if you choose. If you’re storing it in the refrigerator, it’s best to make it no more than a week before it’s needed. If you’re canning cranberry sauce, the sky’s the limit.
How to Make Cranberry Sauce for Canning
Whether you’re making whole berry sauce or a smooth jar of jellied cranberry sauce, it starts out the same. Bring equal parts sugar and water to a boil in a pan and allow it to simmer on medium high for about 5 minutes. This creates a hot syrup that will help quickly pop the cranberries open. Once the syrup is good and hot, add in the cranberries.
The first time I did this it caught me off guard a bit. The skin on the cranberries pops open and it’s surprisingly loud. It’s like making popcorn, and I regretted making it when my infant son was sleeping. Keep that in mind, and don’t let the loud cranberry pops scare you. It’s all part of the process!
Once the cranberries pop and begin to release their juices the cranberry sauce will begin to come together. At this point, if you’re making jellied cranberry sauce, the Ball Book of Home Canning suggests straining out the cranberries and putting them through a blender before returning them to the pan. I think it’s easier to turn the heat off right after they all pop and allow the mixture to cool a bit before blending it up with an immersion blender right in the pan. Be careful of splattering!
If you’re making whole berry sauce, just skip that step, but either way keep on boiling the sugar, water and cranberries until it begins to thicken. Like any jam or jelly, watch the fire carefully and beware boiling over. I had to stir down frothy bubbles every minute or so until the sauce was almost ready, and there’s really no walking out of the kitchen when cranberry sauce is cooking.
After about 15 minutes of simmering, the nature of the bubbles will change and you’ll see the syrup quickly begin to thicken. Once the mixture sheets off the back of a metal spoon it’s thickened and ready. You can also test it for texture on a plate that’s been in the freezer. Simply spoon a bit onto the frozen plate and give it a moment to cool to make sure it’s thick enough.
At that point, pour the hot cranberry sauce into canning jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and center 2 part canning lids on top of the jars. Either store in the refrigerator, or process in a water bath canner for 15 minutes. Turn off the canner, and wait another 5 minutes before removing the jars.
Allow the cranberry sauce to cool for at least 12 hours before checking seals. Any unsealed jar should be stored in the refrigerator for immediate use. The others can be stored in the pantry at room temperature. Ball canning lids are now guaranteed for at least 18 months, but in practice, they last much longer than that.
For whole berry cranberry sauce, just pop open the jar and give it a stir when you’re ready to serve a meal. Jellied cranberry sauce will slide right out of the jar, just like those old metal cans I remember from my youth. Just be sure to use a smooth sided canning jar, like wide mouth pints, and then run the sides of the sealed jar under hot water in the sink before opening it and gently sliding it out onto a plate.
This recipe is adapted from my go-to canning cookbook, The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.
This simple cranberry sauce recipe will make either whole berry or jellied cranberry sauce. Canning cranberry sauce allows it to be stored at room temperature, but it can also be stored in the refrigerator for immediate use. Fresh cranberries yield the best cranberry sauce. Previously frozen cranberries also work, but they don't thicken as well for cranberry sauce. Jellied cranberry sauce especially, will have a much softer set if the cranberries were frozen.
Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
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Lisa
Hello Ashley,
I just recently came across your web site and Absolutely Love It!
I will be canning some cranberry sauce in the next day or two and was just wondering if the size of the jar matters?
My Ball canning book is MIA at the moment and it has been a long time since I have done any canning.
I will be using quart sized jars.
Thanks So Much,
Lisa
Ashley Adamant
Hi Lisa, This recipe is only tested by the national center for home food preservation in half-pint or pint jars. That said, it’s wicked acidic and full of sugar and I rationally see no reason why you couldn’t can it up in quarts. Just know it’s not a “tested” way to can it and that you should use your own best judgment.
I do plenty of thick, sugary preserves in quart jars (ie. apple pie filling) and just so long as you’re extra careful to get the air bubbles out it should be fine. The recommendation is 15 minutes process time for both half pint and pint jars, and personally, I’d add an extra 5 minutes (or 10 to be extra safe) for quart jars and process them for 20 to 25 minutes. The extra time in the boiling water won’t hurt this preserve.
The main thing I’d watch out for is siphoning, which can happen if you change the temperature too rapidly taking the jars out. Once canning time is over, turn off the heat and leave the jars in there for 5 more minutes before removing them to cool to room temperature. Siphoning can also be an issue with thick liquids if the headspace is wrong or if there are too many air bubbles. Watch the headspace, bubbles and let them sit before removing them.
This all is likely totally overkill, but better safe than sorry.
Lisa
Hi Ashley,
Thanks so much for getting back to me so soon! I did some research about canning jar sizes and decided the quart is probably too big. I did see Ball sells pint and a half (24 oz) jars that I think would be perfect but could not find them locally.
I have decided to use the wide mouth pint jars that I already have for now and just order the pint and a half size later.
I’ll be cooking and canning the cranberry sauce tomorrow while it rains away outside! It will be excellent therapy for a dreary day.
Enjoy your weekend,
Lisa
LaTonya Williams,
Hi Ashley,
I would like to make and give this for gifts. I wanted to know how many 8oz jar will this recipe yield? And can I add blueberries to this recipe?
Thank you
LaTonya
Ashley Adamant
If you’re making whole berry cranberry sauce this recipe will make about eight 8-ounce jars. For jellied cranberry sauce, most the bulk is filtered out and it makes quite a bit less. The jellied cranberry sauce variation should yield roughly four 8-ounce jars.
Yes, you can add blueberries to the whole berry cranberry sauce variation, and that’s totally safe for canning. Be aware that cranberries are a high pectin fruit, and blueberries are a low pectin fruit. That means if you add too many blueberries it’ll take much longer to set up into a jam, and it may be runnier as a result. The yield will also be lower.
With blueberries in it, the pectin concentration might not be high enough to make jellied cranberry sauce. That’ll depend on how many you put in, but I don’t believe it’ll set properly as a jellied sauce. That said, I’ve never personally tried it. Hope this helps and good luck!
Linda Slagle
I just finished making this and it turned out Awesome ,I was given 4 pounds of Dried Cranberries ,I soaked them for a half hour 8 cups for each recipe made , I finished with 23 Pints , Most of witch will go in Christmas Baskets for my Very Large Family along with other things I have Grown here in my Huge Garden ,Thanks so Much for sharing these Recipes for Canning with all of us. You are Greatly Appreciated around Here 🙂
Ashley Adamant
Wow, it never occurred to me to try making this with dried cranberries. Lovely!
Melanie
What do you do with the seeds in the cranberries? Like how do you get them out the most efficient way?
Ashley Adamant
Cranberry seeds are so small that you’ll never notice them in the sauce. They’re literally the size of a pin, and they’re really soft after they cook. If you can see or taste them, I’d be impressed. They really disappear. If it really bothers you though, make jellied cranberry sauce instead of whole berry. With jellied sauce, all the solids are completely filtered out (skins, seeds, etc).
Linda Miller
This recipe is very easy and good. However, we prefer our sauce a little more tart. Can I cut the sugar back to 3 cups? Would I use 3 or 4 cups of water?
Ashley Adamant
Yes, you can definitely cut down the sugar as much as you’d like. When you lower the sugar, I agree lowering the water sounds like an excellent idea, otherwise, you’ll have a much longer cook time. I wouldn’t lower the water below 2 cups for this recipe, because you still need something in there to create the “sauce” part of the cranberry sauce, but changing it up to 3 cups sugar and 3 cups water should work well. (Keep in mind your yield will be lower) Enjoy!
Melanie Gallie
Love the recipe! What really caught my eye was those jars! Would you mind sharing what brand they are? Thank-you!
Ashley Adamant
Of course! They’re Anchor Hocking 8 oz canning jars.
Jeanette
Hi Ashley,
I am about to use your cranberry recipe and was wondring if I can use 1/2 the aount of white and the other 1/2 brown sugar. I am so excitedto try so manyforyou recipes.
Thanks
Ashley Adamant
Yes you can, brown sugar (or honey, maple, etc) are all fine substitutions.
Trina
This may be a silly question but you talked about the berries “popping.” Does this mean you have to take out the skins before you continue cooking?
Thanks!
Trina
Ashley Adamant
Nope, you leave the skins in there and they cook down for whole berry sauce. For jelly though, everything but the juice gets strained out.
Kristina Hurkala
Hi Ashley….
I’ve never canned before, but I found a cranberry sauce recipe that my husband loves so I want to try it.
Can i use any pot that my jars will fit in, or do I need something specific? I’m not looking to purchase canning supplies other than the jars
Ashley Adamant
Yup, that’s totally fine. You don’t need anything to can this other than a deep pot. The trick is, the water line needs to come up at least an inch above the top of the jar lids. I have a 6-quart pot that works just barely for canning half-pint jam jars and I use it frequently for canning small batches. No need to buy anything (other than canning jars and lids).
Kristina Hurkala
Oh!!! Something very important just occurred to me, and I can’t find an answer online. My recipe has orange liqueur in it….can you can foods that have alcohol in them?
Ashley Adamant
Yes, that’s totally fine! (I even make a Whiskey Pear Butter myself)
Kristina Hurkala
Ashley,
Thank you sooooo very much for all of your tips!
I did it, and it all came out perfect!
It was a small batch, so I got [4] 8 oz jars and a 16 out of the batch.
I’m making another batch this weekend!
April
Thank you for the great post!!! It was a great guideline for me as I’ve never made my own cranberry sauce before! I made sure to mention your blog and post in my own blog! https://prairiemountainmama.com/spiced-cranberry-sauce/
Catherine Johnson
Ashley. I jus found your recipe and wanted to say thank you. I have been looking for a fresh cranberry sauce recipe like the one I used for many years. I, however, added orange juice as part of the water and then finished it with chopped pecans.
leanne
I make mine with orange juice instead of water and add 1 tbsp grand marnier. I don’t can it. Would it work to do half orange juice and half water and then can it?
Ashley Adamant
You can do all orange juice (and even keep the grand Marnier) and still can it. Orange juice is totally fine for canning, as is recipes containing some alcohol like yours with just a Tbsp.