Sugar-free Strawberry Jam Recipe

Yes, you really can make sugar-free strawberry jam right in your own kitchen! And it’s not even hard.

Back when I lived “at home”, meaning as a teenager with my parents, we used to grow and can a lot of our own food, and one of the things we used to make a lot of was jam and jelly.

Especially strawberry jam those years we grew strawberries. As I mentioned in my homemade strawberry syrup recipe, we used to straight up can a lot of the strawberries when we were overwhelmed with how fast they were ripening.

But we also made jam, and I remember being shocked at how little of the jam was made with actual fruit – so much of the final product was sugar!

I have no problem with sugar in moderation, as you know, but I’m also not a fan of eating it on a daily basis on breakfast food (i.e. baking powder biscuits – my favorite!).

Try this delicious Sugar-Free Strawberry Jam

So after Gabe and I got married, we started experimenting with making reduced sugar jams and jellies using the fruit in my parent’s-in-law’s orchard, and our own garden.

At that time, honey was my version of reducing sugar, but aside from the fact that honey is still high glycemic, honey isn’t my favorite flavor in most jams.

So this year, thanks to our little strawberry garden, we’ve done something even more drastic by making sugar-free strawberry jam.

This way, I can feel pretty good about letting my kids load their biscuits up with jam.

They love this sugar-free jam!

We love the natural flavor of this jam. I tastes just like it should – flavored by the fruit and juices, with just a bit of stevia as sweetener. It’s perfect on gluten free waffles and pancakes! Not to mention toast. One of my sisters loves to combine this jam with low carb bread to support her keto diet.

Can you use frozen strawberries to make a jam?

Absolutely! I know first hand how hectic getting spring produce preserved can be, and one of the best solutions is sticking fruit in the freezer, and making your jam when you have more time.

When you thaw frozen strawberries to make jam, be sure to preserve the juice that seeps out of the strawberries as they thaw to use in your jam. Whereas the cell walls of fresh strawberries are in tact, keeping the water inside the berries until you mash or heat them, frozen berries have broken down, letting the juice escape. Be sure to capture it.

Is sugar necessary for jam?

Pectin works to thicken jam by interacting with heat and sugar. So, in a way, yes. But also, keep in mind that fruit has natural sugar in it.

Also be sure to use Sure-jel’s no sugar needed pectin.

Is no sugar added jam healthy?

In my opinion? Yes. It’s like eating fruit, which is high in nutrition.  This jam contains far fewer calories than traditional jam, containing a trivial amount of sugar, but do keep in mind that strawberries themselves contain glucose, fructose, and sucrose.

What are the best sweeteners for homemade sugar free jam?

My personal favorite is liquid stevia, such as Pyure. You can also use monk fruit extract, honey, or agave syrup. Sucralose based sweeteners are also known to work well, but I personally avoid those.

The amounts differ by type, but if you’re using the right pectin, as mentioned above, you’ll mostly be sweetening to taste.

For instance, how much honey do you use in place of sugar? For 6 cups of strawberries, you’d probably use about one cup of honey, but it can be slightly more or slightly less without messing you up.

Can you preserve homemade sugar-free jam?

Yes! This makes a wonderful freezer jam, which can last upwards of six months.

Can you can jam without sugar?

We can this sugar free jam using a water bath canner. Without the sugar, it is more prone to growing mold, so the inversion method doesn’t work well. Using a water bath canner is very easy though, and simply involved immersing your jars in a pot of water, and bringing it to a boil for a certain amount of time.

How to make sugar free strawberry jam – step-by-step:

1. First, you’ll need three quarts of strawberries. Remove the hulls, and after the stems are removed, roughly chop them, and measure out six cups.
2. Next, mash them lightly with a potato masher, or pulse in a blender or food processor to break them up, and release some of the juices. The exact amount of blending you do depends on your desired consistency though. The more pulsing you do, the finer the texture, less means more chunks (which I like!).
3. After that, place them in a 4 quart or larger pot, and add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 3/4 cup of water.
4. Stir in your no-sugar pectin and a teaspoon of butter (this is optional, but helps keep the jam from foaming), and heat over medium heat.
5. Bring to a boil that cannot be stirred down, and set a timer for 1 minute.
6. Remove the jam from heat, and add 1 1/2 teaspoons of liquid stevia, or the equivilent of powdered stevia, and stir until dissolved.
7. Skim off any foam that may have accumulated at the top
8. Ladle into prepared jars to within 1/2 an inch of jar rim, wipe rim with a clean cloth, and screw lids and rings down firmly.

To can: 

1. Prepare your water bath canner by instering the canning rack, and filling with water.
2. Heat water while jam is being prepared.
3. Gently place jars of jam into the canner, making sure that the water reaches at least one inch above jars.
4. Place lid on canner, and heat to a rolling boil.
5. Boil for 10 minutes for half pints, or fifteen minutes for pints.
6. Remove from heat and let cool before removing jar.

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