Blackberry jam

Name: Blackberry jam
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 500 g fresh or frozen blackberries; 3 tbsp liquid honey; 2 tbsp chia seeds

This simple blackberry jam with chia seeds for added texture is very fruit forward. Our recipe for blackberry jam is incredibly easy and fast to make and requires just three ingredients. Sweetened with honey, the jam has a beautiful colour, and the ripe blackberries bring both sweetness and a lovely tartness to this homemade jam. Serve on toasts, in desserts, as flavouring in yogurt for breakfast and much more – its flavour and consistency makes it perfect for anything sweet and delicious.

https://www.arlafoods.co.uk/recipes/blackberry-jam/

Instructions

Put blackberries and honey in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
Boil at low heat, without a lid, for 2-3 minutes. Remove the foam at the surface using a spoon.
Mash the berries with a whisk until the desired consistency has been reached – or use a hand blender if you want the jam to be completely smooth.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in chia seeds.
Pour the jam into clean glasses, for instance, ones cleaned with sodium benzoate or simply scolded in boiling water.

Enjoy!

Questions about blackberry jam

Making jam from scratch is easy and fun with our recipe for blackberry jam. Prepare yourself and learn more by reading our answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about this delicious jam.

What is blackberry jam?

Blackberry jam is, as the name would lead you to think, a jam made using fresh or frozen blackberries. The jam tastes both sweet and tangy and has a vivid purple colour. Our blackberry jam recipe uses chia seeds to add texture and thicken the jam as well as honey to complement the slightly tart berries, but sugar may also be used.

How to make blackberry jam?

Making blackberry jam is incredibly easy. Simply boil berries and honey for a few minutes and stir in chia seeds before pouring the jam into sterilised glasses. Unlike most other jams, jam with blackberries foams quite a lot as it boils so make sure to remove this excess foam using a spoon. Enjoy your easy blackberry jam on a slice of bread, on porridge or yogurt, or with desserts like pancakes or layered cakes.

How to make seedless blackberry jam?

For a seedless blackberry jam, use a hand blender to ensure a smooth texture after the blackberries and honey have cooked for a few minutes. Using only the fruit juices of the blackberries by using a sieve to strain the jam will yield a jelly rather than a jam so the hand blender is the best option to get a delicious blackberry jam.

Can I use frozen blackberries to make jam?

Since making blackberry jam using frozen berries is entirely possible, you can use this easy recipe all year round. You do not even need to thaw the frozen berries before cooking your homemade jam, simply allow for a slightly longer cooking time. Try foraging for ripe, wild blackberries when they are in season and freeze them to make blackberry jam in the colder months.

How to can blackberry jam?

When canning jam, it is crucial to properly clean and sterilise the jars and equipment you are using. Using a funnel to make sure that no jam gets on the side of your jam jar is also advisable. Place the lid onto the jar immediately after pouring in your hot jam to prevent bacterial growth.

Does blackberry jam need pectin?

Because blackberries naturally contain a high amount of pectin, you do not need to add any – simply follow our recipe for blackberry jam without pectin without worrying about how your jam will gel. The naturally occurring pectin will act as a gelling agent and ensure that your homemade jam sets properly.

How long does homemade blackberry jam last?

If you store your unopened homemade blackberry jam in the refrigerator, it should keep for up to three weeks. After opening your jam jar, make sure to enjoy it within 1 week. In the freezer, this jam will last for up to 6 months. 

Ingredients

Fresh or frozen blackberries	500 g
Liquid honey	3 tbsp
Chia seeds	2 tbsp

Bold-coloured chia blackberry jam

Our lovely blackberry jam with honey is both sweet, tart, and delicious. The fresh berries give it a beautiful purple colouring, and the chia seeds ensure a wonderful texture and rich mouthfeel. There are many options for what to make with blackberry jam; you can use it in cakes or other baked goods, to add a beautiful splash of colour to desserts like pancakes or ice cream, on yoghurt as a sweet snack, or to make your breakfast oatmeal sweet and delightful.

If you want to enjoy your homemade jam with fresh blackberries on a slice of freshly baked bread have a look at our recipes for sourdough bread or wholemeal bread. Even though these bread recipes make for very different breads, ranging from crisp and airy to textured and dense, they will all taste wonderful with a layer of your colourful blackberry and chia seed jam.

Homemade jam with fresh blackberries

Using fresh berries in jam making is wonderful. Ripe blackberries are sweet and a little bit tart. As they ripen, they gain their signature dark colour, whereas the unripe ones are red in their colouring. As such, the darker the berry is, the riper and sweeter it is, while redder blackberries are tangier and sourer. You can, of course, use all stages of fresh blackberries to make your homemade jam, but since they may vary greatly in taste, remember to taste your jam to see if it might need more honey to sweeten it.

In case you are in the mood for more jam recipes, check out our plum jam and strawberry jam as well and discover some of the most wonderful ways to use fresh or frozen fruits.

Add texture with chia seeds

Blackberries have a lot of seeds and, as such, a jam made from them has a crunchy texture and mouthfeel. In our blackberry jam recipe, we have leaned into this aspect of the beloved jam and chosen to add chia seeds for even more texture. Chia seeds have a very subtle flavour that in no way overpowers the blackberries. Rather, they serve to add a mild nutty flavour and, of course, texture.

Set your blackberry jam without pectin

Blackberries like many other types of fruit have a naturally high pectin content. As such, it is not necessary to add any more pectin for your homemade jam to set properly. With other kinds of fruit, adding a gelling agent like pectin or freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice which contains high amounts of it may be necessary. With blackberries, though, it should not be, but in any case, the addition of chia seeds serves to thicken this jam.

Experiment with different flavours

If you want to try play around with adding spices to your homemade jam, you definitely should. A spiced blackberry jam recipe is perfect for the darker months where we all love a combination of flavourful spices like cinnamon, star anise, and cloves or cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg to bring a bit of warmth. You can also stick with a classic, vanilla and blackberry. Simply add a vanilla pod to the jam and remove it when it is done cooking.

Combining blackberries with other fruits or berries is, of course, also an option. Sweet and tart blackberries pair well with apples. With this complex fruit, you can take your homemade jam in different directions depending on whether you go for a sweeter apple like Cox's Orange or a tangy one like Honeycrisp or Granny Smith. No matter which type of apple you decide to experiment with, the fruits complement each other beautifully.

Arla Foods UK

Arla Foods Ltd
4 Savannah Way
Leeds Valley Park, Leeds, LS10 1AB
Company registration number: 02143253

Call us: 0113 382 7000

Write to us

Other Arla sites

Arla in other countries