Easy Cherry Jam (no pectin)

It’s awfully difficult to find cherries in Taiwan, let alone those darn good looking sweet cherries. Therefore, it wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you when I saw frozen ones in Costco that stated “Dark Sweet Cherries”, I immediately bought them. I had to believe that they were sweet. Who else could I trust?

On another note, a small store bought bottle of cherry jam costs between US$6-7 each. So I thought I could totally make these for a fraction of the price. Mr. V would love it. He loves all things cherry. I’ve only made jam once in my entire life. But because it was a success, I consider myself a jam making prodigy. Anything anyone has tried to do the first time and was a success, like a baby crawling for the first time successfully, is utter genius.

“So you’re gonna pit all that cherries, right?”

“Pfftt, of course. That’s gonna be one of my projects! I’m gonna do it this week.”

All I can say was the frozen bag of cherries totally got lost in our freezer. For two months I couldn’t find it. Ok, I’m lying. Come on. To pit ALL that cherries. Ug. Besides, it’s winter. It’s hard enough to keep myself warm, and now I have to deliberately hold cold, frozen cherries for an indefinite amount of time. Whose idea was this? Oh, right, mine. Not smart.

Anyway, I popped open the bag and got my chopsticks ready to pit the cherries. I inspected one closely. It seemed to have a hole on it. I can’t tell for sure so I cut the fruit in half. Lo and behold, the pit was gone. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It’s like (choir singing in background) a miracle. And to think I procrastinated for two months for this. The bag could’ve at least stated ‘pitted’ somewhere or ‘miracle in bag’. Who’s to know what to trust now? Are they really sweet.. or dark.. or are they even real cherries? We’ll never know for sure.

This method is for the half lazy. The non-OCD. The not pro pectin people (if you don’t know what pectin is, this method is definitely for you). Cheers!

Quick recipe         Yields 2  1/4 cups of jam

what you need:

1 kg (2 pounds) sweet dark cherries, pitted, roughly chopped, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup sugar (or more depending on how sweet you like you jam)
2 tbs lemon juice
sterilized jars

directions:

1. Put everything in a shallow pan on medium high heat.
2. Bring it to a boil while stirring occasionally. When it starts to boil, reduce heat to medium.
3. Continue stirring until jam thickens (about 20 minutes) or until it reaches your desired consistency. To test, place a small amount on a frozen spoon and put it in the freezer for 1-2 minutes. Take the spoon out and use your finger to nudge it. If it wrinkles, it’s ready. If not, cook some more and test again.
4. Remove from heat, let jam sit for 1-2 minutes.
5. Use a sterilized spoon and put jam into the sterilized jar. Fill it all the way to the top (the less space, the less oxygen). Wipe rim with clean cloth/towel and put the lids on. I don’t water bath them. Since it’s filled all the way to the top, it vacuum seals itself.
6. Store in a cool, dark place for up to a year.

To sterilize jars & lids

Method 1: Stove

Submerge jars/ lids in a pot of water. Over medium heat, bring the water to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and leave jars and lids in water until you need them.

Method 2: Oven

Preheat the oven to 225°F/110°C. Place jars and lids in the oven for 20 minutes. Turn off the oven but keep the jars in them until you need them.

Handle the jar/lids with a clean, sterilized handler.

Know any good tricks to making awesome jam?