Along with the legendary cassis liqueur, my rustic blackcurrant jam recipe is one of the first things I'll make when I have a lot of fruit. This is an easy, rustic fruit preserve that's low on sugar and needs no pectin.
What Does Blackcurrant Jam Taste Like?
Black currants have a rich, woodsy flavor that's difficult to explain. You might imagine them as a sour blueberry with a stronger flavor.
Perhaps the most important to know is that black currants taste unlike all other currant varieties and are an acquired taste for some. Red, white, and pink currants all have a bright flavor more comparable to raspberries.
Chef's Notes
- Black currant preserves are very popular in Europe. If you have friends or neighbors from there, especially Eastern Europe, save a few jars to give them for the holidays.
- If you haven't made it, skip the jam and make Blackcurrant Liqueur first. If you want, you can combine currants leftover from making cassis to use the jam. Mix the fresh currants with equal parts leftover currants.
- I prefer my preserves spreadable. The secret with currant preserves is to gently puree them just to break the fruit up with a hand blender or food processor.
- Adding a splash of vinegar ensures a low pH so you can keep the sugar at a minimum.
How to Make Blackcurrant Jam
Compared to some other preserves, making black currant jam is easy. To keep the pH low, first you cook some sugar with vinegar. I like to use homemade vinegar made from the fruit I'm cooking with. You can use red wine vinegar instead, or make your own homemade vinegar.
Bring the ground fruit mixture to a boil. I also like to add a splash of vanilla if I have some, but it's optional. You'll cook the jam for about 15-20 minutes. You want to get it to a temperature between 215-220 F ideally. Pureeing the fruit makes it thick no matter what though, so don't worry too much about the exact temperature.
Once the jam is thickened nicely, and somewhere in the area of 215F-220F, lemon juice is added and the jam is portioned into jars. From here it can be water bath canned, or frozen.
Canning Black Currant Jam
Canning the jam is easy. It's a small batch, so I process the jars in a large pasta pot with a canning insert. Simply bring a large pot of water to a boil. The pot needs to be filled enough so that the jars are all covered by at least 2 inches of water.
Add the jars to the pot, cover, and boil for 10 minutes. After cooking, remove the jars and cool. Finally, label, date, and store the finished canned currant jam in a pantry.
Recipes with Black Currant Jam
- Traditionally, currant preserves are often used in baking. A jarful of currant jam makes a great layer for the middle of just about any cake.
- One of my favorite things to do with jams is add them to quick breads like muffins. I usually omit some of the sugar from the recipe I'm using.
- If you simmer the jam in a splash of chicken stock and whisk in a tablespoon of soft, unsalted butter it makes a nice sauce for roast chicken or game. Season the sauce with a splash of red wine vinegar to taste. Chopped fresh tarragon or lemon thyme and fresh cracked black pepper are good added as well.
More Interesting Fruit Preserves
Rich Black Currant Jam (Low-Sugar, No Pectin)
Equipment
- 1 Large pot or waterbath canner
- 4 Half pint mason jars with lids
- 1 Tongs
- 1 Deep heavy, non-reactive pot 3-4 quart size, preferably stainless steel, for cooking the jam
- 1 Candy thermometer or instant read thermometer in a pinch
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Roughly 6 cups blackcurrants fresh or frozen
- 1.5-2 cups Granulated sugar preferably organic sugar
- ½ cup Red wine vinegar or homemade vinegar from fruit
- 1 Lemon for zest and 4 teaspoon juice
- 1 Orange for zest
- 2 teaspoons Wild vanilla extract optional
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Make the Jam
- Bring the sugar, salt and vinegar to a simmer. Add the currants and warm them through. Add a splash of vanilla extract if using.
- Gently pulse the fruit with a hand blender to break it up. You can also buzz them in a food processor before cooking. If the fruit isn't broken up, it won't be spreadable.
- Bring the fruit mixture to a boil and cook until the temperature of the jam reaches 215 F-220F. This is a rustic, easy recipe, and pureeing ensures it will always be thick. This means you don't need to worry if it's difficult to get it to 220F. As long as it's thick, it will be good.
- As the pot boils, stir it regularly to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom and burn.
- Once the jam is thick and you're near 215-220 F, turn the heat off, beat in the lemon juice, lemon and orange zest.
- Spoon the jam into clean mason jars, clean the rims of the jars with a paper towel and screw on the lids.
Canning the Jam
- Prepare a water bath canner. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the jars of jam. Cover the pot, set a timer for ten minutes, and allow the jars to boil.
- Remove the hot jars using tongs and allow to cool. Wipe the jars dry, label, date, and store in a pantry after inspecting all the jars to make sure they're sealed and the lids don't pop up when pressed.
- I've opened jars 3-4 years old that were perfectly fine.
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