Easy Strawberry Balsamic Black Pepper Jam
Ingredients
- 4 cups sugar
- 1 quart fresh strawberries This is about how many berries you'll need, see exact measurement below
- 1 packet pouch liquid fruit pectin (I use Certo which is a liquid pectin but you can also use SureJell, a powdered pectin, just follow the instructions inside the box for freezer jam.
- ¼ cup good quality balsamic vinegar*
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper don't use ground pepper, it will make your jam look muddy
Instructions
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Wash and rinse glass** or plastic containers and lids in the dishwasher or with hot soapy water. Dry thoroughly.
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Measure exactly*** 4 cups of sugar into a medium-size bowl.
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Stem and crush strawberries. Don't try to use a blender or food processor for this step, as you want some small pieces of strawberry to remain (I like to use a potato masher). Measure exactly** 2 cups prepared fruit into large microwave-safe bowl.
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Stir in sugar till thoroughly combined. Place bowl in microwave and cook on high for 3 minutes. Remove from microwave and stir well.
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Add balsamic vinegar to strawberry mixture and stir. Add liquid pectin and stir continuously for 3 minutes. Take a taste to make sure the sugar is dissolved. If it still tastes a bit grainy, stir for another minute or two until almost all sugar is dissolved. Add pepper and stir till combined.
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Fill containers immediately (you don't want jam to start to "set" before you get it into the jars) to within ½ inch of top. Don't fill any higher as mixture will expand a bit in the freezer. Wipe off top edges of containers and cover with lids.
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Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. (I love the look of beautiful, vibrant red jam stacked up on my kitchen counter - call me old-fashioned, but there's something about it that makes me smile.) Refrigerate up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator.
Recipe Notes
*Balsamic vinegar can be crazy expensive. I'm not talking about the $200 per bottle kind. Actually America's Test Kitchen did a taste taste of grocery store balsamic vinegars and the winner was the "365" vinegar sold at Whole Foods. Trader Joe's also has a great 12 year aged balsamic.
**Don't worry about putting glass jars in the freezer. I've done this for many years and never have had a problem. :) Just make sure to leave a half inch of room at the top to allow for expanding in the freezer.
And speaking of glass jars, I have a few favorites. Have you seen these charming Weck Jars? They are wonderful for gifting your jams, jellies and other canned goods. I also love these Quattro Stagioni jars.
***Making jam is a very exact science. Often when I cook, I add a "bit" of this or a "dash" of that - but not when making jam. If the proportions of fruit and sugar are not correct, the jam will not set properly. I learned this many years ago the hard way; instead of jam, I ended up with a soupy sauce that was only suitable for topping ice cream. Be sure to use an accurate measuring cup, spoon ingredients into cup, then level off with a straight-edged table knife.
Grab a magazine and set a timer for the stirring steps. Thorough stirring is essential when making freezer jam to ensure a smooth, not "grainy" finished product.Scrape the sides of the bowl frequently during the stirring process.
Yield: about 5 cups of jam