How do you sterilise jam " in jar"

[whataboutbob]

I don t mean sterilising the jars prior to filling with jam. I mean when you sterilise the jam, in the jar, so you can keep it over the winter. I have a glut of strawberries at the allotment and it s just occurred to me I could save money on jam as the kids get through quite lot. Any experienced sterilisers out there? Thanks.

I thought when u made jam you sterilised the jar then when you boiled the jam it sterilised it? the sugar preserves it to keep it from going 'off".

You don't need to sterilise the jam as it effectively sterilises itself when you cook it for long enough to set it. You would sterilise bottled fruit but jam has far more sugar in it and that preserves it without need for further sterilisation.

Thanks everyone, but as I make low sugar jams ( I use less than 50% sugar ) I thought it would be likely to spoil at some point over the next months.

I think you need to google old fashioned fruit booting methods.

I think they heat fruit in the jars and might work.

I clean the jar in the dishwasher first, I don't bother sterilising it but you could. Then pour the jam into the jar when it is very very hot as fast as possible. Put the lid on then turn the jar upside down all as quickly as possible. The hot jam kills any nasties left on the lid, and then vacuum seals as it cools. It seems to stay good for at least a year, I've never kept a jar longer than that so no idea if that'd work!

If you google "canning" you will get lots of info. You need the special lids with a flat top and ring - lakeland sell them, ive also seen them in local Factory Shop. Look up the precise instructions but roughly it goes something like: sterilise jars, boil jam up, tip into jars, then loosely lid and boil in the jar, then tighten lid.

Seems that most US jam makers use the above method for any jam. In a full sugar recipe I wouldn't bother but for low sugar / diabetic jam you will need to!

If you have freezer space Google "freezer jam" as you can then have a lower sugar jam which also makes a fab sauce for ice cream etc.

I boil whole fruits (cherries, figs) in light syrups all the time (also do vegetables and meat pates). You fill the pots and screw them tightly on. Stack the jars into a pan and fill with water. The water must cover the jars completely. Heat till boiling then turn to simmer and cook for 30mins to an hour. Leave till water is cold before removing jars.

Thanks everyone I will try the immersion in water and bringing up to boil for half an hour. My grandma used to do something similar so that sounds right! Here' s hoping for home made jam at Christmas!

For anyone else who is interested, I've just checked out the Le Parfait website. They show you how to sterilise jam in the jar for longer term storage.