Canning Strawberries
Canning strawberries whole in their own juice keeps the berries on the pantry shelf for pies, pancakes and desserts all year.
Servings: 8 servings, makes 2 pints
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 cups strawberries washed and hulled, see notes
- 1/2 cup sugar optional, see notes
- 1/4 to 1/2 tsp citric acid optional
Instructions
- Wash and hull the strawberries and place them in a large pot. Sprinkle the sugar over the top and stir to distribute.
- Cover the pot and let the strawberries macerate in the sugar at room temperature for up to 6 hours. If they need to sit longer, put them in the fridge overnight.
- Prepare a water bath canner and canning jars, and heat the canner water to about 180 degrees F.
- Put the pot on the stove and stir in the citric acid, if using. Bring the strawberries and their juice to a simmer, stirring as little as possible, and cook for about 1 minute until the berries are heated through.
- Pack the hot berries tightly into the jars and cover them with the hot juice, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
- Remove air bubbles, adjust the headspace, and seal with two-part canning lids.
- Process in a water bath canner, pints for 10 minutes or quarts for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude (see notes).
- Turn off the heat, take the lid off the canner, and let the jars sit in the water for 5 minutes before lifting them out.
Notes
Recipe source: Follows the tested process for whole strawberries in the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving and the Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. NCHFP doesn't have a strawberry recipe.
Hot pack only: Strawberries are always heated in their juice before they go in the jars. There's no tested raw pack for them.
Yield: 4 cups of whole, hulled strawberries fill about 2 pints. A quart jar takes 2 to 3 pounds of berries, depending on their size.
Sugar: Sugar is optional, but the flavor is much better with a little, since some of the berries' sugar goes into the canning liquid. You can reduce it, but I'd suggest at least 1 tablespoon per pint. For very sweet dessert berries, use up to 3/4 cup or even 1 full cup per quart of berries.
Without sugar: Heat the berries with about 1/4 cup of water per 2 pounds until they release their juice, or use strained strawberry juice as the canning liquid. They come out softer.
Citric acid: It isn't needed for safety, but it helps the berries keep their color and flavor in storage.
Altitude adjustments: Processing times for pints and quarts in a water bath canner.
- 0 to 1,000 feet: 10 minutes for pints and 15 minutes for quarts
- 1,001 to 3,000 feet: 15 minutes for pints and 20 minutes for quarts
- 3,001 to 6,000 feet: 15 minutes for pints and 20 minutes for quarts
- Above 6,000 feet: 20 minutes for pints and 25 minutes for quarts
Nutrition
Calories: 72kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 0.5g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.01g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.03g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 110mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 9IU | Vitamin C: 42mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 0.3mg
