Easy Grape Jam - just 3 ingredients and no pectin!

Easy Grape Jam is a classic American preserve, great on it's own but even better paired with peanut butter for that all American taste sensation!

Recipe by Camilla Hawkins on September 2, 2017

Prep time: PT8M

Cook time: PT45M

Total time: PT53M

Rating

4.81 stars (89 reviews)

conserve, Fruit, jam, preserve

1.7 kg / 3 lb 12 oz seedless grapes (I used equal quantities or red, black & green grapes)
1 kg / 2 lb 3 oz granulated sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice

Important: Before you begin, please see the notes below.
Place grapes, sugar and lemon juice into a preserving pan or similar.
Using a gentle heat dissolve the sugar slowly, stirring frequently.
As the mixture heats up break up some of the grapes with your wooden spoon or use a potato masher in order the release the grapes’ juices.
Once all the sugar has dissolved fully (around 20 minutes) take the mixture off the heat and use a stick blender to blend the grapes to a juice like consistency.
Put pan back on the heat, bring to a rolling boil and then time for 25 minutes, stirring continuously. (You could start with 23 minutes as depending on freshness and variety of grapes the setting time can vary a little).
Take the pan off the heat and test for set by placing a few drops of the jam on a chilled saucer and place in fridge for a minute.
The jam should form a crinkle when you push your finger through it.
If not then boil for another 2 minutes and re-test until set is achieved.
Pot up in hot jars and place lids on immediately.
Store in a cool dry place and once opened keep in fridge.

Rubina on 2026-05-25 (5 stars):
Thank you for posting this recipe, Camilla! What a wonderful way to use up leftover grapes, especially ones that are past peak freshness. After reading the many comments, especially the critical ones, I thought I'd post a comment of many thanks to you! Your "I don't do faff" comment made me laugh out loud. THANK YOU for eliminating the need to peel the grapes, I was having flashbacks of peeling peas (I don't have a mill, or "mouli" as you call it) to make baby food! I always appreciate comments that share ways that others have tweaked the recipe, so thank you for publishing them. Thank you also for being so gracious by replying to every single comment, no matter how critical...very generous of you, 'though tiring I'm sure! Finally, thank you for being considerate of us "across the pond" (I'm in Canada) by standardizing the recipe to optimize success by using weight. This also made it much easier to adjust to exactly the amount of grapes that I had! I appreciate the time that you've taken to develop this recipe. It worked out perfectly & it's delicious. I'm looking forward to eating it on something other than my testing spoon tomorrow!
Janna on 2025-09-26 (5 stars):
Currently making this right now and it smells amazing. I didn’t realize it was a recipe that you actually had to can in hot jars (beginner at making jam). Do you think it will still be fine if I just put it in containers/jars and put it in the fridge or freeze it?