This low-sugar strawberry rhubarb jam is the perfect spring jam! It’s not too sweet and is made with half of the amount of sugar a traditional jam is made with. Also, this strawberry rhubarb jam is made without store-bought pectin.
Everyone loves strawberry jam, but trust me when I say, adding rhubarb to the strawberries takes them to the next level. There is just something about the sweetness of the berries and the tatness of rhubarb that makes them perfect for each other.
If you grow a garden, both strawberries and rhubarb are pretty easy to grow. They are perennials, which means that you plant them once and they come back every year, and they are usually ready for harvest at the same time!
Low Sugar Strawberry Rhubarb Jam Recipe…
There are many spring recipes that call for both strawberries and rhubarb (I love adding rhubarb to this delicious strawberry bread), this jam is one of my favorites and also a really good way to preserve both strawberries and rhubarb if you grow them yourself or happened to come by a great deal at the market.
Ingredients…
- Strawberries (fresh, canned strawberries, or frozen should all work).
- Rhubarb
- Sugar – just good old white sugar. In traditional jams, the ratio is one part fruit to one part sugar. For me, it’s just too sweet so I cut the sugar in half and use one part fruit to one-half part sugar. Even with the tart rhubarb, half the sugar is enough for this jam.
- Lemon juice and seeds – lemon juice and lemon seeds have a lot of natural pectin in them so instead of using store-bought pectin I add lemon juice and a few seeds to my jams. No matter what fruit I use, it always works well.
Kitchen Tools…
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Deep pan
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- Immersion blender – or you can use a potato masher if you like large chunks of fruit in your jam.
- Half-pint jars with lids – this is my favorite size jars to use when canning jam but you can also use a pint.
- Canning utensils
- Ladle
- Paper towel
- Water bath canner
How to Make Strawberry Rhubarb Jam Step By Step…
Step one – prep the ingredients. Cut the tops and woody bottom parts of the rhubarb. Toss those or give them to the chickens, we won’t use them. Dice the rest of the rhubarb. Wash and rinse the strawberries, then hull the tiniest bit out of the top to get rid of the leaves before chopping the fruit.
Step two – cook the jam. Add the fruit and sugar to the pan. Turn the heat to medium-high and start cooking the fruit. Use the spatula to stir frequently. It will take a few minutes until the sugar melts and the juices are released from the fruit. Keep stirring and bring the mixture to a boil. Let it boil for five minutes before lowering the heat to medium-low for the rest of the cooking. Keep cooking, stirring frequently for about 15 minutes. At this point, the fruit should be soft and you can blend it with an immersion blender or mash it with a potato masher.
Step three – add lemon juice and seeds. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon right into the pan and throw in about 5 seeds. Stir them in.
Step four – check for thickness. After adding the lemon seeds keep cooking for about 15 minutes or so. Watch your jam as you stir it to measure its thickness. If you are not sure if it’s ready you can do the spoon test. Scoop some jam on a spoon and set it on the kitchen counter to cool for five minutes or so. Then add it back into the pot and as it leaves the spoon you will be able to measure its thickness. Just remember that the jam will keep on thickening in the jars as it cools completely.
Canning Low-Sugar Strawberry Rhubarb Jam…
Step six – prep the jam for processing. Fill the water bath canner with enough water to cover the jars by about an inch. Set it on the stovetop, turn the heat to high and bring the water to a boil. Wash your jars, lids, and bands well with hot water and soap (since we will be processing the jars for 10 minutes, there is no need to sterilize them first).
Use a ladle and the canning funnel to fill the jars, make sure to leave 1/2 inch of headspace. Use the bubble remover to scrape the inside of the jar and remove air bubbles. Then use a damp paper towel to clean the rim of the jar before centering the lid and closing the jar with the band.
Step seven – process the jars. Place the jars on the rack of the water bath canner and lower the jars into the boiling water. Cover the canner and process the jars for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn off the heat, uncover the canner and let the jars rest in the hot water for five minutes or so. Then, use the jar lifter to remove the jars from the canner and place them on a kitchen towel to cool completely overnight.
Always remember to adjust the processing time if you live over 1000 feet in elevation. Follow the table above to make any adjustments.
How to Store This Jam…
When the jars are completely cool, check that they are all sealed by pressing the center of each lid. If there is no movement there it means that your jars are sealed and ready for storage. If you find that one of the jars didn’t seal, just store it in the fridge and use it first (or you can also try to process it again. Usually I recommend changing the lid if you are going to do that).
Wipe the jars and remove the band. It sometimes rusts in storage and makes it hard to open the jar down the road. And, you can also reuse it for canning something else. Store your low-sugar strawberry rhubarb jam in a cool place like a pantry or a kitchen cabinet. It should last for 18 months or so.
How to Serve Homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Jam…
- As a snack – we love spreading cream cheese on crackers or a bagel and adding some jam on top. It’s an awesome mid-day snack for the whole family.
- On a toast – I always drink coffee in the morning and a toast (preferably made with challah bread or this artisan bread!) with some jam on it is the perfect companion.
- In cookies – I make these thumbprint cookies and add jam in the center. They melt in your mouth and are absolutely addictive!
- On yogurt – homemade yogurt (made with either raw milk or store-bought) with homemade granola and a tablespoon or so of jam is my go-to meal when I have no energy to cook a “real” one.
- Add it to baked goods – if it’s a baked pear puff pastry, a turnover, jam-filled bars, or any other baked good, this jam will work great!
Frequently Asked Questions…
I don’t. I leave the seeds in the jam. They don’t break down, don’t change the taste of the jam no matter how long it stays on the shelf and once you stop cooking the jam they don’t keep thickening it. You can, however, fish them out when the jam is ready if you’d like, they are usually easy to find.
Honestly… Any fruit! If you find yourself with plums, apricot, grapes, kiwi, oranges… Follow this recipe and it should work every time. Just take into consideration that cooking times will probably change depending on how juicy your fruit is.
Yes, and it’s very easy. Just follow a ratio of one part fruit to one-half part sugar. So if you have 2 pounds of fruit, use one pound of sugar. The only thing that is going to change is the cooking time. And if you make a smaller batch, you can simply keep it in the fridge, it should last for weeks. A note here – I don’t recommend processing more than 4 pounds of fruit at a time. Simply because it makes it hard for the jam to thicken properly.
Yes. A few that I like to add sometimes are vanilla extract, almond extract, or cinnamon. If you are adding any of those, add them when the jam is done cooking, right before you can it.
This strawberry rhubarb jam is one of our favorite spring jams. The tanginess of the rhubarb works very well with the sweetness of the strawberries. I hope that you’d give it a try!
More Low Sugar Jam Recipes…
- Low Sugar Strawberry Jam
- Strawberry Mango Jam
- Honey Strawberry Jam
- Mango Jalapeno Jam Recipe
- Mixed Berry Jam
- Chia Blueberry Jam Recipe
- Find a list of all of my jam recipes on this page.
Low Sugar Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
Delicious spring strawberry rhubarb jam with less sugar and no store-bought pectin.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Strawberries, top removed, diced
- 1 pound rhubarb stalks, diced
- 1 pound sugar
- Juice from 1/2 lemon
- 4-5 lemon seeds
Instructions
- Step one - Add the fruit and sugar to the pan. Turn the heat to medium-high and start cooking the fruit. Use the spatula to stir frequently. It will take a few minutes until the sugar melts and the juices are released from the fruit. Keep stirring and bring the mixture to a boil. Let it boil for five minutes before lowering the heat to medium-low for the rest of the cooking. Keep cooking, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes.
- Step two - At this point, the fruit should be soft, and you can blend it with an immersion blender or mash it with a potato masher.
- Step three - Squeeze the juice of half a lemon right into the pan and throw in about 5 seeds. Stir them in.
- Step four - After adding the lemon seeds, keep cooking for about 15 minutes or so. Watch your jam as you stir it to measure its thickness.
If you are not sure if it’s ready, you can do the spoon test. Scoop some jam on a spoon and set it on the kitchen counter to cool for five minutes or so. Then add it back into the pot and as it leaves the spoon you will be able to measure its thickness. Just remember that the jam will keep on thickening in the jars as it cools completely. - Step five - Fill the water bath canner with enough water to cover the jars by about an inch. Set it on the stovetop, turn the heat to high and bring the water to a boil.
Wash your jars, lids, and bands well with hot water and soap (since we will be processing the jars for 10 minutes, there is no need to sterilize them first).
Use a ladle and the canning funnel to fill the jars, make sure to leave 1/2 inch of headspace.
Use the bubble remover to scrape the inside of the jar and remove air bubbles. Then use a damp paper towel to clean the rim of the jar before centering the lid and closing the jar with the band. - Step six - Place the jars on the rack of the water bath canner and lower the jars into the boiling water. Cover the canner and process the jars for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn off the heat, uncover the canner and let the jars rest in the hot water for five minutes or so.
Then, use the jar lifter to remove the jars from the canner and place them on a kitchen towel to cool completely overnight.
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions...
- Do you remove the lemon seeds before canning the jam?
I don’t. I leave the seeds in the jam. They don’t break down, don’t change the taste of the jam no matter how long it stays on the shelf and once you stop cooking the jam they don’t keep thickening it. You can, however, fish them out when the jam is ready if you’d like, they are usually easy to find. - Can I follow this recipe with other fruit?
Honestly… Any fruit! If you find yourself with plums, apricot, grapes, kiwi, oranges... Follow this recipe and it should work every time. Just take into consideration that cooking times will probably change depending on how juicy your fruit is. - Can I adjust the quantities of the ingredients?
Yes, and it’s very easy. Just follow a ratio of one part fruit to one-half part sugar. So if you have 2 pounds of fruit, use one pound of sugar. The only thing that is going to change is the cooking time. And if you make a smaller batch, you can simply keep it in the fridge, it should last for weeks. A note here – I don’t recommend processing more than 4 pounds of fruit at a time simply because it makes it hard for the jam to thicken properly. - Can I add spices to this jam?
Yes. A few that I like to add sometimes are vanilla extract, almond extract, or cinnamon. If you are adding any of those, add them when the jam is done cooking, right before you can it.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 half pint jarAmount Per Serving: Calories: 376Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 30mgCarbohydrates: 97gFiber: 5gSugar: 87gProtein: 2g
Hi! I’m Lady Lee. I help homesteaders simplify their homesteading journey while still producing a ton of food! I am a single mother of four, I was born in Israel and raised in an agricultural commune called a Kibbutz. Now I homestead in central NC.
what do the seeds accomplish in the jam? I have never seen them left in before.
Lemon seeds have natural pectin in them and they help thicken the jam and gel it. It’s a substitute to store-bought pectin.