Ladies and gentlemen, you are never going to buy apricot jam again after trying out this recipe.

It’s so easy to make yourself, and much cheaper than the storebought version. And, as a bonus, you can even taste the apricots in this jam!

The apricot season is not very long, so while it lasts I encourage you to buy a couple of bags and bottle it up for those sad, dreary apricot-less months.

This jam makes such a great homemade gift as well. Tie a pretty ribbon around the neck of the jar and voila!

Apricot jam is delish with butter on toast and is also yummy with scones. You could also try a sweet/savoury combo by plopping a dollop of apricot jam on a good chunk of cheese – my favourite.

Once you’ve tried this jam, I know there’ll be no stopping you. And I can’t blame you, there’s something very satisfying about a cupboard of homemade preserves. So why don’t you give my tomato and chilli jam or my apple chutney a try?

Thickening the Apricot Jam

The amount of sugar that goes into jam can be a bit scary. But believe me when I say it just doesn’t work if you skimp out on the sugar. I tried one apricot jam where I added 1.5 cups of sugar and it was just too runny.

The sugar helps with the thickening of the jam. In this recipe, I used a 1:2 ratio of sugar to fruit.

Besides the sugar, the pectin in the apricots and lemon also helps with the thickening of the jam.

Citrus fruits have the most pectins out of all fruits, which is why I use lemon in the recipe. The lemon juice adds a nice fresh flavour, while the lemon rind contains pectin that helps the jam to thicken.

To help draw out the pectin and moisture, you leave the fruit to macerate before boiling. This is just basically marinating the apricots in lemon juice and sugar. This will also help you avoid burning the jam because there will be quick a lot of liquid in the pot after two hours.

Tips from a Mater Preserver

Lastly, there is a thickening tip that I would’ve never thought of myself. This was shared with me by a lovely old lady who has a whole fantastic room full of jars of preserves – fig, mulberry, crab apple, nectarine, strawberry – name it, it’s probably there.

She said that for years her preserves turned out runny before she discovered the secret: the jam has to be brought to a boil very quickly at the beginning. This is best done with a gas stove on high heat. Once it comes to a boil, then you can just let it simmer away on the lowest heat.

One more tip from her: you can tell the jam is ready when you put a drop into cold water and it firms up.

About Sterilising the Jars for the Apricot Jam

Don’t let this important step put you off! Sterilising jars is actually very easy, and will only take you 10 minutes.

This recipe makes quite a lot of jam, 10 small jars full, to be precise. Therefore, it’s very important that you kill off all the microscopic creepy crawlies in the jars.

If you don’t sterilise them, the jam will go mouldy. If you do sterilise them, you can keep the apricot jam in a dark place for at least a year, and probably much longer (although I’m sure you’ll devour it faster than that).

How To Sterilise the Jars

As I said, it’s very easy. Make sure your jars and lids are clean – simply wash them in warm, soapy water and rinse.

Once your jars are clean, place them upright in a large pot (or two) and fill them about halfway with boiling water. Add water around the jars, and place the lids in the water.

Next, cover the pot firmly with its lid, then boil the whole thing ferociously for 10 minutes. Use tongs to tip the water out of the jars, then fill them immediately and screw them shut.

The last step towards sterile jars (once you’ve added the jam) is keeping them upside down for 20 minutes, thus creating a vacuum and making doubly sure no bacteria can get in there.

Print Recipe

Apricot Jam

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Preserve

Serves: 10 small glass jars

Prep Time: 2 hours – Cooking Time: 1-2 hours – Total Time: 3-4 hours

Jam can be a little tricky to get just right. However, rest assured that even if your jam doesn't set completely, it is going to be absolutely delicious. This apricot jam is amazing with cheese on bread and with scones.

Ingredients

• 3kg ripe apricots
• 1 lemon
• 1.5kg brown sugar*

Instructions

1

De-pip all of the apricots by twisting apart the two halves. Place all the halved apricots into a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Wash the lemon well, then squeeze it and add the juice and the two empty lemon halves into the pot. Add the sugar and give everything a good stir. Leave this mixture on the kitchen counter for at least 2 hours to draw out the moisture and pectin.

2

Place the pot over high heat and quickly bring it to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat to low and allow the jam to boil slowly with the lid on. Stir it occasionally to avoid burning. After about 1-2 hours, your jam should be ready. You will notice that it stops frothing, and it starts forming lines on the side of the pot. The apricots will have mostly disintegrated by now.

3

Spoon the hot jam into freshly sterilized* jars, screw them shut, then let them cool upside down.

Notes

*To sterlize the jars, fill them and a large pot partly with water and boil energetically for 10 minutes. Keep the jam in a dark cupboard for months (or even a year or two)