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Chex88
My jars of jam I made have basically exploded. I noticed this morning that the lids were severely swollen and so I put on safety glasses and used a towel to twist the lids off and they popped off loudly and the jam is oozing everywhere. It seems very foamy like it started fermenting. Followed the recipe from Sure Jell here: [https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/brands/sure-jell/recipe/057883/sure-jell-for-less-or-no-sugar-needed-recipes-red-raspberry-freezer-jam?categoryid=200043](https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/brands/sure-jell/recipe/057883/sure-jell-for-less-or-no-sugar-needed-recipes-red-raspberry-freezer-jam?categoryid=200043)
Two questions: What did I do wrong and can it be salvaged if I cook it down?
We’ve been trying to preserve our home grown raspberries this year and are fairly new to canning. We started freezing the berries throughout the season and recently started making jam with them. The first batch I tried was about a week ago and I used the original Sure Jell but only used half the sugar following the advice from my grandma because we love her raspberry jam. It was obviously runny but tasted right and froze well.
The next batch we started using frozen berries, thawed in the fridge, and using the Less or No Sugar Sure Jell and followed the online recipe, again only using 2 cups of sugar to 4 cups of crushed berries. It seemed to be a lighter color from the get go and seemed like I had mixed air into it maybe? Anyways, the jars have been sitting on my counter for maybe a day and a half and this morning I notices leaking jam and the swollen lids. Any advice is welcome!
Oh, I will note that in an attempt to thicken the first batch that was runny, the day after bottling them I dumped them all back into a pot and cooked it down trying to get the pectin working. Maybe that’s why it was ok?
fordprefect85
That is not a safe recipe, the mistake you made was following it instead of a properly tested recipe. No canning has taken place here just bottling. Throw it out
spirit-mush
It’s alive
e_robs
Freezer jam goes into the freezer right away…
Check out the recipes from Bernardin for freezer jam. They don’t call for boiling or heating or extended sitting (where I imagine bacteria had a fun time getting active in yours, causing foaming).
Happy-Snark
Freezer jam goes directly into the freezer after it’s made. So it shouldn’t be sitting on the counter fermenting.
There are a ton of great recipes for raspberry jam. I usually just follow the Bernardin one from the insert inside a package of pectin and I get a ton of compliments on my amazing jams 🤣😂
Make sure you don’t go rogue by changing the amount sugar/fruit suggested, just follow the recipe. The ratios are important for set of jam and making them shelf stable. When you’re learning to can, just follow the instructions, you’ll get the hang of it. Jams are a great place to start with preserving. You WILL have success, just keep trying.
Kream_Filled_Jesus
The amounts of sugar are also for preservation, not just flavor. You should always use the right amount of sugar the recipe calls for with jams and jelly. That being said, i do not think these are edible unfortunately. If you want something that is very low in added sugar, look into Pamona’s Pectin. You can use a whole lot less sugar with that.
jacksraging_bileduct
Have they started to ferment?
froggrl83
I’ve never made a freezer jam, so I’m not sure what happened. My only guess is that the lack of sugar had something to do with this. I also have never seen a recipe that said to leave on the counter for 24 hours then freeze. Someone else said this is a safe website but I have my doubts. I would use this recipe, exactly as written https://www.ballmasonjars.com/blog?cid=raspberry-freezer-jam
9 Comments
Hi u/Chex88,
For accessibility, please reply to this comment with transcriptions of the screenshots or alt text describing the images you’ve posted. Thank you!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Canning) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My jars of jam I made have basically exploded. I noticed this morning that the lids were severely swollen and so I put on safety glasses and used a towel to twist the lids off and they popped off loudly and the jam is oozing everywhere. It seems very foamy like it started fermenting. Followed the recipe from Sure Jell here: [https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/brands/sure-jell/recipe/057883/sure-jell-for-less-or-no-sugar-needed-recipes-red-raspberry-freezer-jam?categoryid=200043](https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/brands/sure-jell/recipe/057883/sure-jell-for-less-or-no-sugar-needed-recipes-red-raspberry-freezer-jam?categoryid=200043)
Two questions: What did I do wrong and can it be salvaged if I cook it down?
We’ve been trying to preserve our home grown raspberries this year and are fairly new to canning. We started freezing the berries throughout the season and recently started making jam with them. The first batch I tried was about a week ago and I used the original Sure Jell but only used half the sugar following the advice from my grandma because we love her raspberry jam. It was obviously runny but tasted right and froze well.
The next batch we started using frozen berries, thawed in the fridge, and using the Less or No Sugar Sure Jell and followed the online recipe, again only using 2 cups of sugar to 4 cups of crushed berries. It seemed to be a lighter color from the get go and seemed like I had mixed air into it maybe? Anyways, the jars have been sitting on my counter for maybe a day and a half and this morning I notices leaking jam and the swollen lids. Any advice is welcome!
Oh, I will note that in an attempt to thicken the first batch that was runny, the day after bottling them I dumped them all back into a pot and cooked it down trying to get the pectin working. Maybe that’s why it was ok?
That is not a safe recipe, the mistake you made was following it instead of a properly tested recipe. No canning has taken place here just bottling.
Throw it out
It’s alive
Freezer jam goes into the freezer right away…
Check out the recipes from Bernardin for freezer jam. They don’t call for boiling or heating or extended sitting (where I imagine bacteria had a fun time getting active in yours, causing foaming).
Freezer jam goes directly into the freezer after it’s made. So it shouldn’t be sitting on the counter fermenting.
There are a ton of great recipes for raspberry jam. I usually just follow the Bernardin one from the insert inside a package of pectin and I get a ton of compliments on my amazing jams 🤣😂
Make sure you don’t go rogue by changing the amount sugar/fruit suggested, just follow the recipe. The ratios are important for set of jam and making them shelf stable. When you’re learning to can, just follow the instructions, you’ll get the hang of it. Jams are a great place to start with preserving. You WILL have success, just keep trying.
The amounts of sugar are also for preservation, not just flavor. You should always use the right amount of sugar the recipe calls for with jams and jelly. That being said, i do not think these are edible unfortunately. If you want something that is very low in added sugar, look into Pamona’s Pectin. You can use a whole lot less sugar with that.
Have they started to ferment?
I’ve never made a freezer jam, so I’m not sure what happened. My only guess is that the lack of sugar had something to do with this. I also have never seen a recipe that said to leave on the counter for 24 hours then freeze. Someone else said this is a safe website but I have my doubts. I would use this recipe, exactly as written https://www.ballmasonjars.com/blog?cid=raspberry-freezer-jam