A few days ago my neighbor Jill stopped by with a bag full of ripened Italian plums just picked from her trees minutes earlier. Instantly I knew I would have to make plum jam using the vibrant orangish-peach flesh. All the jams I’ve made this year have been made without using pectin and are ridiculously easy to make. Plum jam is no exception. All you need is fruit, or in this case plums, sugar, and a squeeze of lemon. That is it. Pretty easy huh? So make some plum jam with the bounty of the season. Enjoy!
Easy No-Pectin Plum Jam Recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups chopped plums, peels removed
1 cup sugar
1 Tbl. lemon juice
Directions:
Cook plums and lemon juice on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add sugar and stir until everything is well combined. Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes until the thickness of the jam has been reduced to the consistency of thick honey or 220 F. degrees stirring occasionally. Skim off the foam, remove from heat, and allow to cool. Enjoy!
Cutting, pitting, and peeling the plums the good old fashion way.. with my fingers and paring knife.
The fruit of my labor.
Just a little squeeze of lemon will do.
Step 1: Cooking the plums by themselves for a few minutes.
Step 2: Adding the sugar to begin the process of reducing and preserving.
Step 3: Watching the fruit break down and reducing the liquid.
Final Step: Nothing. Congrats, you’re there.
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What a gorgeous color! You make it look so easy!
I’ve been enjoy these little plums too. Your jam looks fantastic! Wish I could have some for breakfast this morning.
Fabulous…what an easy & delightful recipe. I love pairing & peeling the old fashioned way. Gorgeous colour here. Sniff Alice, our plums are long gone. Now the wait for next year begins. BTW, your new pic is gorgeous…very very nice! xoxo
So simple, and easy – looks perfect and delicious to me =D!
This is my kind of jam (never made it before cause it always seemed so difficult). And we are getting gorgeous, sweet purple plums now. But one question: PEELING those babies? Really? Is there and easier way? Cooking then straining? It looks so good, I’d really love to try it.
Jamie: Some people leave the skin on. I prefer mine off because I will use the jam in other recipes using it as a glaze. To peel the skin off was not difficult, just use your fingers or a pairing knife. A little work involved but certainly worth it! Happy Jamming to you!
Alice, what a beautiful Jam! Lately, I have been making tons of jams, which has been fun. I haven’t gotten to the plum jam yet, but I’ll use your recipe instead.
I am a big fan of jam recipes that don’t require any pectin… so much easier! This looks very tasty!
I was wondering. Since it doesn’t have pectin. How long does it last? Do you keep it in the fridge. Can it sit in a cabinet. Can you use prune plums instead?
I’m completely addicted to plum jam and will be bereft when there are no more plums in the markets to jam. I always make mine with the peels on, one because I’m lazy, and two, because it gives the jam the most gorgeous purplish pinky color. But I like my jam chunky (I think seedless raspberry jam is an abomination) so I have no issue with bits of peel.
Thanks everyone for your comments!
Gabby: I asked some canning experts on Twitter and this is what I learned. Yes it will keep in the fridge just like normal jam would. You can can it as well because pectin is a thickening agent and not a preserving one. If you want to keep it on the shelf you must can it. As for as using prune plums.. I googled prune plums and I’m still unclear as to what variety of plums it is.. but I’m pretty sure you can use any type of ripe plums. Hope that helps!
Alice
Yum! I would love to make this and eat on toast!
WOW! That jam looks delcious , Alice! And I love that you omitted pectin here
Alice, I just discovered your wonderful site via Megan at Not Martha and have fallen in love! What a wonderful world you have! My plum tree has given me the most lovely plums for the first time ever. I made your plum jam several times over this morning. I did process it for 5 minutes so that I could put it in my pantry. I love the simplicity, flavor and smallness of this recipe! Small batching is where it’s at..just enough to have fun but still allows the flexibility to do other things during the day. Can’t wait to use my jam for your plum sauce! Thank you so much!
I LOVE that you didn’t use Pectin! This recipe is 100% clean and healthy all the way. It looks so amazing too. I never thought of making plum jam but now I want to
Leave the peels on if you want a really beautiful jam and don’t want to waste your time peeling. The peels have at least half the goodness in them! If you want to use it as a glaze, you could run it through a sieve after cooking the fruit.
Amazing. This recommendation is awesome. The recipe is very natural and requires no unnecessary preservative like pectin.
I had lots of plums and made preserves for the first time after finding your post. This was so easy and I LOVE that I only needed 3 ingredients. Thank you! I added a link back to your post.
Im 11 years old and me and my grandpa like jam or jelly or plum infactand im facinated with cooking….My grandpa and I made it and it was scruptios and we will be making more still following my cooking dream -Madison-
=D =D =D =D =D
use your jam recipe today….DELISH! Thanks so much
I live in Italy and have a wonderful Italian plum tree in the garden…I left the skin on mine and my jam is a very dark red colour…I have been making jam for 20 years and don’t even know what pectin is…I will make jam from anything and I eat many years after making it…♥♥♥
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! I have two questions:
1. How long does it last in the refrigerator?
2. How long does it last on the shelf if you can it?
And can I say how beautiful it is to see Madison’s post? I love seeing young people who love to cook. My littles ones (3 and 4) already want to cook!
Thanks,
Charlotte
Hi Charlotte,
The jam will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. If you want to put it on the shelf, you will have to can them.on c Here’s a great link on canning from The Pioneer Woman. Hope this helps.
Why do Americans insist on using “cups” as a measurement for cooking .?
How much is a cup?
A cup is 250 mL.
I use this exact same method for my jams! I just posted recently almost exactly like yours but with apricots and peaches.
Great minds think alike! I just got some ripe plums and will make jam in the next few days… can’t wait!
Rich, I laughed when I read your comment, because I searched all over for a recipe that called for cups instead of pounds or grams. How do you measure a pound of plums? A cup is so much easier! It is 250 ml.
I’m making this recipe this afternoon. It looks so simple.
i have just found your website and will give
I was delighted to find this recipe. It is a good idea to get the measure after the plums are peeled and cut. I made the jam with Victoria Plums. It is a lovely golden colour. Great success.
I’m with Rich! I am from the UK and we dont have cups! What are cups? we drink tea in cups….everytime I find an american recipe I have to rummage through my vast collection of cook books to find one with the conversion instructions (I know, I should write it out and keep it somewhere easy to find!) and Joanne – how to measure a pound of plums? easy – we use ….s.c.a l.e.s! Call me old fashioned…But joy! I found a set of red plasitc “cups” in my local supermarket the other day! yippee, that will make life easier across the divide, and now I am off to make this lovely plum jam as my neighbour has just given me what looks like 200 cups of plums!!!!!
this was great. I tried it with my plums and I am really enjoying it
If I was to can this, how many jars (half pints) would this recipe make?
A US cup is half a US pint, more of a mugful than a teacupful
A US pint is 16oz or one pound weight of water*
So half a US pint is 8oz
A UK pint is 20oz or a pound and a quarter of water*
A UK gallon is 10 lbs of water and 8 UK pints
A US gallon is 8 US pints
A UK pound is the same as a US pound and so a UK oz in the same as a US oz
* remember, a cup is a measure of volume not weight. E.g. a cup of rice weighs more than a cupful of roast coffee beans at a density of 762 and 432 respectively, with water at 1000 on the same scale, and molten lead at 11,000!
I was given a bag of fresh plums last night. I don’t really like plums, but I am going to make some jam from them to give to friends. I don’t like to use pectin for jam; I find using a bit of sugar and some fresh lemon juice works fine. I have some extra canning jars to use, so I’ll get started today. Thanks for the recipe! Lovely photos.
As for peeling fruit; hmm, ell I made apricot and nectarine jams without peeling, but when I made peach jam I peeled them (they were drop peaches with bruises so had to be cleaned up). I may try this without peeling.
I just made some plum jam today using this recipe and it turned out really well. I didn’t peel the plums so the jam came out a rich reddish-purple colour. Thank you so much for the recipe
I love this recipe!
Can you double or triple it by just doubling (or tripling) the ingredients?
Or should other measurements be used?
I want to make a BIG batch as two ‘cups’ , after simmering for 20 mins, does not leave you with a lot of jam.
Thanks!!
Lisa
I used this method last year with all types of Berries. I live on a small Wine farm in South Africa and I tried this method with some Merlot grapes. It turned out amazing. This year I am setting aside some Cab Sav as well as Merlot grape. I just take the grapes, skin and all, and send them through an home made press stright from the pot when finished. This removes the grape seeds and skin. For other fruits leave the skin in the jam as I think it adds to the taste and looks. I read that there is a lot of natural pectin is in the skin of most fruit and so you dont need to add more.
The cup thing is about Volume not weight. So you can use any size “cup” as long as you use the same size one for each item. i.e. One cup of berries might weigh 100g but one of the same cup of sugar might weigh 200g.
Hi Alice,
Great recipe, I have made it several times. I have 3 plum trees so I wash, seed and freeze to make through the winter. I have also tried this recipe with apricots and it works !!! Thank you ! My variation is that I add cinnamon and a pinch of ginger to the plums whilst cooking.. gives it a bit of spice. I recommend this site to all my friends, again, thank you !
megs
Thank you so much! My neighbor gave me some plums from her tree today and I thought I would make jam, so I googled plum jam because I had never made it before and there was your website! So easy too, I had already added some water so, not much else I could do. It came out wonderful. “Thank you”! Can’t wait to try your Blackberry Mint Lemonade, next! Yumm0′
Thank you so much! I picked some organic plums today… Googled Plum Jam and found your blog… That was ridiculously easy! I read your post, went into my kitchen and made the jam!
Thanks again!
~Really Rainey~
I love that there is more fruit than sugar in this recipe! I was intrigued by the lack of added pectin so I gave it a whirl. My home-grown plums are very happy in this jam. I will make another batch tomorrow with the skins on. (another recipe I’ve used calls for cooking the plums with stones and skin, then straining after.) Thanks!
I made this a few times and LOVE how simple it is. However I had 1 batch turn out to runny. Is there an easy way to fix this or do I try plum syrup?
Hi I made this one and the blackberry Jam both turned out really nice and as I had never made Jam before I was well pleased thanks. Such an easy receipe to make.
in the plum recipe I just used..they said to crack open the stones and take the kernels out…blanch them in a bit of water (by boiling for a few mins) and put them in with the plums and sugar and a bit of water…it worked for me…no lemon juice required…as a rule…6 kernels per pound of fruit…i had 4lb so I used 24 kernels…though I did fish them out…you can leave them in…maybe use a little muslin bag next time so I dont have to fiddle about…
Hi, great recipe. I have been given some plums and I will be trying this today. There seems to be some confusion about pectin for some people. It is as you point out a setting agent. Pectin occurs naturally in fruit. Usually in the skin. That’s why you don’t need pectin when using skinned fruit. When using soft fruits there is often not enough pectin to make the jam set so more has to be added. Pectin is particularly rich in apple and pear skin. Some dietitans recommend eating an aplenty or a pear half an hour before a meal as the pectin is a pro-biotic, in other words it feeds the good bacteria in your stomach.
I just wanted you to know that I found this recipe today and linked it to my latest post. It looks wonderful and I can’t wait to make it with our fresh picked plums. http://www.mommymoment.ca/2011/08/fresh-picked-plums-jam-anyone.html
Jody
Hi my grandma lives on the isle of wight and i have got some plums here picked from her tree. do you live in brading?
Just made this jam today. I left the skins on as I like my jam to be a bit chunky and I like the deep red colour too.
Picked the plums in my garden this afternoon. From chopping the plums to pouring the finished jam into sterilised jars took about 40 minutes – less time than it would take me to walk to the shops, buy some jam and walk home again.
Although I’m English, I measured everything in cups – well, a mug. Really pleased with the results; thanks for such a clear and easy recipe.
I made the plum jam in my microwave its FANTASTIC only problem is ive got Loads and want to know if i can freeze some in plastic containers .Thankyou for Great jam
Thank you for this recipe. My husband and I made it and it was simple and delicious! We will make it again for sure.
Made this tonight but doubled it… I have an Italian plum tree in my yard. You wondered in an earlier comment about them. They are sometimes called prune plums Yellow fleshed, oblong shaped, freestone (so pit easily). I did not peel them. We’ll see how they turn out. Doubling this gave me 2 half pints and 1 pint plus another half pint or so for the fridge. (I processed the rest in 10 minutes hot water bath.) So 5 cups or so.
I remembered reading earlier that the skins and pits provided more pectin, as someone else mentioned. Would be interested in learning more. I did pit these; just didn’t peel them as I like the color and chunkiness (is that word?) of jams with bits of peel.
Does it set like a normal jam? And how do you preserve it?
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