Equipment
Large pot (15- 19 Liters or16–20 quart)
Water bath canner
Food processer or Blender
Food mill or jelly strainer
Large spoon or ladle
Canning funnel
Jar lifter
Lid lifter
Half-pint canning jars with lids and rings
Fine sieve or cheesecloth
Dishwasher or boiling water for jar sterilization
Ingredients
For the juice
Saskatoon berries (raw):
5 pints prepared fruit = 10 cups / 2.25 L
approx. 1.6–1.75 kg (3½–4 lb)
Water: 120 ml (½ cup)
Lemon juice (optional): 60 ml (¼ cup)
For the jelly
Strained saskatoon juice: 1.4 L (6 cups)
Granulated sugar (low-sugar approach): 900 g (4½ cups)
No-sugar-needed pectin: 1 box
Optional: up to ¼ additional box if you prefer a firmer set
Preparation
1. Prep jars and canner
Wash jars and keep hot. Warm lids in hot (not boiling) water. Start heating your water bath canner.
2. Wash and crush berries
Rinse berries, remove stems/soft berries. Crush (potato masher) or pulse in a food processor/blender.
3. Cook berries to release juice
Add crushed berries + ½ cup water to a pot.Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.If using ¼ cup lemon juice, add it during this simmer.
4. Strain into juice
Pour cooked fruit into a jelly bag/strainer or cheesecloth-lined colander. Let drip until you have 6 cups (1.4 L) of juice.
Optional pause point: Chill juice overnight and re-strain through damp cheesecloth if you want extra-clear jelly.
5. Measure sugar and prep pectin
Measure 4½ cups sugar. Remove ¼ cup of that sugar and mix it with the pectin (helps prevent clumping).
6. Boil juice + pectin
Pour 6 cups juice into a clean pot.Whisk in the pectin/sugar mixture.Bring to a full rolling boil (cannot be stirred down).
7. Add sugar and boil hard
Add remaining sugar all at once. Return to a full rolling boil and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
8. Test set
Use the chilled spoon/plate method. If too loose, add a bit more pectin (1–2 tbsp), boil hard 1 minute again, and retest.
9. Jar the jelly
Ladle into hot jars leaving 6 mm (¼ inch) headspace. Wipe rims, apply lids, bands fingertip-tight.
10. Process
Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes (adjust for altitude as required).
11. Cool and store
Cool 12–24 hours undisturbed. Check seals, label, store.
Bright, clear, deep-berry jelly made from saskatoon juice. If you’ve never had it, it’s way better than you expect.