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Grape jam is one of those lost recipes that no one seems to make any more. Every grade school kid knows about grape jelly, but grape jam has long since gone by the wayside. Grape jam is darn delicious, and it’s time it made a comeback!
In truth, there’s a good reason why grape jam fell out of favor. Traditionally it required a lot of work, namely to remove large grape seeds in heirloom grape varieties. The first seedless grapes weren’t developed until the 1980s, and by that point, grape jelly was long since entrenched in our national cuisine.
To make a really fine grape jam, you need to remove the seeds from grapes. They much larger than raspberry or blackberry seeds, and once you’ve cooked a batch down, if you haven’t removed the seeds, there are a lot of grape seeds in the finished jam.
Seedless grapes mostly solve this problem, but not completely, because even “seedless” grapes still have tiny seeds. If you’re using “seedless” grapes, removing the seeds is optional, but I’ll take you through the process either way.
Removing Seeds from Grapes
To make grape jam, the essential part is keeping the grape peels. The idea is to filter out the seeds from the pulp, but leave the peels still in the jam. How on earth does that work?
The Ball Book of Canning and Preserving suggests starting with uncooked grapes and separating the peels from the pulp. Start by peeling back a bit of the grape skin from one end of the grape and then squeeze out the inside. The grape pulp goes into one bowl, and the peels go into another.
I know, peeling grapes sounds tedious. So is shelling peas and all manner of tasks grandma filled her days with staying useful. For me, making jam is something I love to do with my toddlers. They love jam, and they love everything about helping make it. The cooking and canning parts are a little to hazardous for them, but since they’re at the end, once their attention is waning, it works out wonderfully.
Before the cooking process, the more steps the better. Idle baby hands take to coloring the walls, but babies happily put to work peeling grapes take an active part in preparing the food they’ll be eating later. If you don’t have easily entertained toddlers, keep in mind the seeding part is completely optional if you’re working with seedless grapes. Really it’s optional with seeded grapes, if you don’t mind the occasional crunchy grape seed.
Leaving the bowl of grape skins set to one side, the next step is to cook down the grape pulp. Allow the pulp to simmer on the stove until it has pretty well dissolved. Give it a few mashes with the back of a spoon to help it along, but it won’t take long. Pass the pulp through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Even with “seedless” grapes, there are still quite a few tiny seeds.
How to Make Grape Jam
At this point, combine the grape skins and the filtered grape pulp and add the sugar. If you’d like to make a low-sugar grape jam, you can reduce the sugar by half without a problem. Remember that a reduced sugar jam will yield considerably less because you’ll have to cook down the mixture further to reach gel stage. Either way, it’s darn delicious.
Add the pulp/skin mixture and sugar to a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, until much of the juice is evaporated, and the bubbles in the jam begin to change consistency. This jam comes together really fast, quicker than any other no pectin added jam I’ve ever made.
If you’ve made jam before, you’ll recognize this change as the jam approaches gel stage. Place a plate in the freezer and use it to test the jam’s consistency by putting small amounts on the cold plate. Alternately, generally gel stage is around 220 degrees F, and you can test the jam with a candy thermometer.
Once the jam reaches gel stage or consistency that you like, pour it into prepared canning jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Process the grape jam in a water bath canner for 10 minutes and then turn off the heat. Allow the jam jars to sit for an additional 5 minutes before removing them to a towel on the counter to cool.
At this point, it can take a while for the jam to fully gel. Give the jam about 48 hours to rest before you open and test one. If you find it’s too thin, you can pour them back out, recook for a while and re-can the grape jam without issue. If it’s too thick, similarly, you can pour them back into the jam pot and add a bit of water to re-cook. If you tested the jam ahead of time with a plate or thermometer, it should be just fine with no need to retry, but it’s nice to know that options there if you need them.
Choosing Grapes for Grape Jam
Most recipes these days are for “concord grape jam” perhaps because that’s the most popular type of grape for grape jelly. It’s a flavor we’re used to for jelly, thus it’s what they suggest for grape jam. The thing is, it can be hard to find concord grapes for sale in the store. Most of them go directly into jelly or juice, and the few I have seen on supermarket shelves didn’t look too appetizing. I assume they must not keep well, thus the reason they’re always preserved rather than sold as table grapes.
There is no reason you can’t make grape jam with just about any variety of grape. Dark purple or blue grapes make a particularly dramatic presentation, but a bright green Thompson seedless grape jam would have its own beautiful green appeal.
The Ball Book of Home Canning suggests using Concord, Muscadine or Scuppernong grapes. None of those varieties grow up in cold climates. Here in vermont we’re limited to cold hardy grapes for zone 4, which are mostly wine grapes. Most places, you’ll only find generic green or red grapes in the store.
Don’t worry, just get creative with what you can get (or grow) where you live. Trust me, it’s all good.
Old Fashioned Grape Jam (No Pectin Added)
Ingredients
- 8 cups grapes, stemmed
- 6 cups sugar
Instructions
- Seed grapes as discussed above by squeezing the grape flesh out of the skin and then cooking the pulp down. Put the pulp through a fine mesh strainer and then re-combine the filtered pulp with the grape skins.
- Add the skins and pulp into a saucepan along with the sugar and cook the mixture until it reaches gel stage, about 10-15 minutes. Experienced jam makers can watch for when the type of bubbles change and take on a glossy look. To be sure, test the consistency on a plate that’s kept in the freezer or with a candy thermometer.
- Pour the jam into prepared canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Store in the refrigerator for immediate use, or process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the jars to sit in the canner for an additional 5 minutes before removing them to cool on a towel on the counter.
- Allow the jars to rest for 24 to 48 hours to completely gel.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Preserving Grapes
Looking for more ways to preserve grapes?
Hi! Thank you for your great recipe! How long does it preserve for?
For best quality, it is recommended that you use all home canned goods within a year. As long as the jar is still sealed and there are not visible signs of spoilage, then it should be safe to eat for longer.
Can I get some help from some experienced “jammers” :)? I made 3 batches. In my inexperience I did not test the first two and after a couple of weeks the still seem to be too runny in the jars. The third batch actually ended up setting too thick. I bought new lids so that I can recook the runny jam and process it again. However I read that if I try to thin the thick jam it most likely will not reset.
Would it work if I mixed the thin jam and thick jam together to reprocess or should I just chalk it up to “experience” and leave as is?
I am having problems with tartrate crystals. I cook down grapes a bit then put through strainer to removes seeds and skins but still get a nice thick grape pulp. Let sit overnight in fridge. Make jam. I’m guessing as long as I don’t disturb crystals that have settled to bottom I’m good. Made about 4 batches all were excellent except last batch when opened formed tartrate crystals. The grapes are not wild they are concord from a local supplier. I have heard where you can put grape juice through a jelly bag or cheese cloth but I’m wondering how that would work with this thicker pulp.?
You would definitely lose the thicker pulp if you put it through a jelly bag or cheese cloth. As long as the tartrate crystals stay in the bottom when you are pouring, then you should be fine.
I am highly amused by the fact that the first recipe for grape jam I google search comes from someone who lives probably less than 2 hours away from me ( and is also in my ancient Ball Canning Book from like 1991).. However, I’ve been harvesting Concord (and other) grapes from several different places, all in Zone 4, and these are super old vines. Maybe you are in a frost pocket that gets to Zone 3 or just up past St. J where there is a zone 3b pocket? Either way, my jelly came out perfectly grape-y and now headed into the jam zone because I just picked about 5 lbs of perfectly ripe Concord grapes.
That’s very interesting. There are definitely lots of microclimates that can account for those differences. So glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Great Recipe!!! I made jam from our homegrown grapes and by the time it had the right consistency it had cooked down quite a bit. I do not want to add pectin in my next batch can I use cornstarch to thicken or will that ruin the jam? THANK YOU !!!
Hi Mary. You could definitely add corn starch when making your jam. If you do that I would recommend keeping it in the fridge or the freezer though since it is not recommended as safe canning procedures to add thickeners like that to a recipe.
That’s PERFECT !!! I didn’t plan on canning so I’m anxious to try using the cornstarch in my next batch 🙂 Thank You for your prompt response – Appreciate !!!
You’re welcome.
My first time making jam. I think it turned out great, at least what I sampled was yummy! I cut sugar to 4 cups and still seems plenty sweet enough. Also, after cooking skins I used my immersion blender on them to break them down. Thanks, your article was really good on making jam.
Awesome! I’m so glad it turned out wonderful!
Also can I use less sugar?
To a point…you can reduce the sugar somewhat. I’d guess you could cut it in half and still get the jam to gel, but that’s a guess. The consistency will be different, and your yield will be a lot less. You’ll also need to cook it longer. That said, you should get something wicked tasty that’s more like a fruit butter with peels. I bet it’d be delicious =)
Hi😃 You don’t need any lemon in this recipe?
The lemon is optional, but not required for safe canning (grapes are acidic enough on their own). It adds pectin and helps balance out the sweetness, so without it your yield may be lower or your jam a bit runnier, and it will taste a good bit sweeter without the acid to balance it. But yes, the jam should still work without it.
Ok thank you 😊
Thank you so much for this recipe. We tried it today and boy oh boy it is worth it. We did 2 batches using the peeling the grapes. That was very time consuming and we had way too many grapes to do them all like that. We did the last 2 batches by heating up the grapes with skins and running them through the mill. Tastes every bit as good as the peeled version. And … I made all the batches with the 3 cups of sugar and it is absolutely delicious. All versions set perfectly and taste exactly the same.
You’re welcome! I’m glad both the peeled and unpeeled batched came out great!
I used my own grapes and when I put them through the strainer, it was really just liquid left. I boiled the mixture with the skins for an hour. It never jelled or even reduced. It burnt though. It looks like chicken gravy and not grapes at all. It was so much work and I’m so sad that ruined it. Do you know what I did wrong?
That is a really good question. The skins have a lot of pectin, and it really should have gelled without issue. Did you add sugar?
Hi! Thanks for the recipes and tips!
I am a wine grape grower and amateur winemaker: Sangiovese, and Petite Sirah.
We get tons of grapes at harvest; literally. I paid to have some from last year’s harvest made into jams. They were so delicious! My family and friends would like more of it, lol!
I wanted to try to make it myself this year. Have any of you done so with wine grape must (the jam maker last year used the must – which is grapes that have gone through the crusher/destemmer)? It has a lot of pips (seeds). I am not sure how to remove them. Any suggestions?
And, can I make jam without sugar and/or pectin?? I am somewhat new to canning, and am not quite certain.
Thank you for any pointers!
Marla
Hi Marla,
You can run the grape pulp through a fine mesh strainer or a food mill to remove the seeds. You can definitely make jam without pectin. This particular recipe does not use pectin. You can easily reduce the amount of sugar in this recipe by half. I personally have never made jam without sugar but I have heard of others doing it or even substituting honey or maple syrup.
When I opened my jar of jam, there was a thin layer of grey liquid at the top, and jam under it. What should I do?
I am not sure what that would be Anne. I have never experienced that and I can’t seem to find any articles about it anywhere when I search.
Thanks for the reply. It was in a jar where the lid had not ‘popped’. I opened this jar first because of this. I drained the water off, and have since eaten the jam. It was delicious! lol.
I am wondering if water from the ‘water bath’ had got in the jar.
Thanks for looking into this.
Cheers!
Anne
Well I am glad it was good. I think that is definitely a possibility.
Could you use a food processor or juicer instead of peeling the grapes?
I’ve heard some people have decent luck using a food processor. I haven’t tried it myself though.
Wonderful directions! It was all going well until I got distracted while letting the mix cook. After it cooled, I found I had a nice jar of Grape Taffy! It was so good, however, that I actually considered eating it that way. Reason prevailed and I mixed the jar of taffy with the next batch of jam, and all came out well. I gave it a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice and about a teaspoon of cinnamon. Yes, cinnamon goes with almost everything, including chunky peanut butter sandwiches with fresh jam.
Grape taffy sounds wonderful to me. Great job on fixing the batch though.
Thank you! Thank you! This jam recipe is wonderful. We were told that the former owners had a grapevine near the wood line of our house. For years we couldn’t find a trace of it. Then years later, there it was. Vines hanging from the tree limbs. What a beautiful site! We picked them and made a wonderful jelly. Now we have to find a way to move it to a trellis again. Lol This year I wanted something more, and I put in a search and I’m so grateful for your recipe. I’m so surprised that pectin wasn’t needed. I did put the skins in a food processor. I wasn’t sure about huge pieces of the skins in the jam. My skins were very sour and had a bitter after taste. If I would have left them whole do you think that bitter after taste would have been noticeable? I’m going to try to make another batch soon. Thanks again.
I would be interested to know if leaving them whole makes a difference. Did you taste them before you made the jelly?
I have 10 lbs of Concord grapes and want to can them for making grape pies. I bought a food mill for taking out the seeds. Should I cook the grapes first or run through the mill first to get rid of the seeds and then cook pulp and skins and then put in jar. Water bath or pressure can? Mom used to do this when I was a kid, but she is no longer here for me to ask. Hope my questions make sense. Thanks for any help you can offer.
I did a quick Google search and found several recipes. Just search for “canning grape pie filling” You can make the pie filling according to the recipe and then process it in a water bath canner and your pie filling will be ready to go. Just be sure that the site you are looking at follows safe canning guidelines.
How long do the unopened jars stay good? Do you store them in the fridge or in the cabinet?
Without canning, they should be stored refrigerated for a week or so. If you’re canning them, 18 months in a cabinet.
Grape jam is darn delicious
It sure is. I don’t think I have met a jam that I don’t love.
Made this with tame muscadines. Texture was great but the skins are tough even though I put them through a blender. Recommend using a thin skinned variety. The taste is amazing, tho.
Thanks for the tip Kathy. Glad you enjoyed the recipe.
After simmering pulp, I only got 2 1/2 cups of juice after straining. Is this enough? I like the comment about running the skins through a blender as my muscadine skins are tough.
You actually want the pulp and the juice together, not just the juice. You want to push the pulp through the strainer to just to get the seeds out.