This easy rhubarb jam recipe uses orange for sweetness, so you can try something different than a standard (but still tasty!) strawberry rhubarb jam. It’s one of my oldest recipes and the first jam I ever made!
My Jam Story From 2013
When I moved last year, I left behind my rhubarb plants. My mistake didn’t occur to me until the following spring, when I craved rhubarb and there was none. I toyed with the idea of stealing my old plants in the middle of the night, knowing the new owners would never miss it, but my husband convinced me this was not a good plan. So, I planted another one in my new home, but little good it did me this year. Thank goodness for the farmers at the Minneapolis Farmer’s Market, who have a bumper crop. I decided to make rhubarb jam for my first batch of jam, because in January, when life in Minnesota feels bleak and colorless, I will have something from the summer to make me happy.
It may come as a surprise to you that I have never made jam before. I have been in the presence of many friends and colleagues who have made jam, but I hid behind my camera. I’ve had the Blue Ribbon Queen of Preserves, Barb Schaller, take me by the hand and show me the ropes, but I was slow to follow, and that is how, all these years later, I’d never gotten around to making my own.
So when the Ball jar company wrote to me and asked if I’d participate in their CAN-IT-FORWARD event, I said YES. I knew if I didn’t do it now, it may never happen. They were willing to send me everything I’d need, and more, to make jam. No more excuses.
I am happy to tell you that it was WAY easier than I could have ever imagined! I simply followed the instructions in the Ball Blue Book for rhubarb-orange jam. Next time I will go my own way, but for my virgin run I wanted to do it exactly as they suggested and I wasn’t disappointed. Ok, maybe I added a bit more zest than they said, because I adore it, but that was my only modification. I’m hooked.
Rhubarb Jam Tips and Tricks
- This recipe uses a lot of sugar to balance out the flavors in the mixture, but it ends up with the perfect tangy flavor balancing sweet and sour.
- Always use clean jars when making jam!
- You can store the jam in your pantry before it’s opened, and in the refrigerator once opened.
- This jam is great on everything from toast to ice cream.
Orange Rhubarb Jam Recipe
See me make the recipe step by step here and find the full recipe at the bottom of this post!
In a large pot or saucepan (I finally got to use my gorgeous copper jam pot from Mauviel) cook the juice, rhubarb and zest until the rhubarb is tender. Add the pectin and let it come to a boil for 1 minute.
Add the sugar and bring back to a boil for another minute.
Prepare the jars and lids as the packaging suggests. I highly recommend that you read the Ball Blue Book and find out how to safely handle all the equipment. Maybe it was all of the food safety classes I had to take in culinary school, but I find it all rather interesting and essential to understand.
HINT: You will want to get yourself some of those handy jar lifters, to get the boiling hot jars out of the water. I did it with regular tongs and wish I hadn’t.
Fill the jars, clean the rim and put the lids on.
HINT: having a funnel would have made this way easier and cleaner, but my ladle did a pretty good job.
Lower the jars into the canning pot. Cover and bring to a boil for 10 minutes. Remove the lid, turn off the heat and let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the water before removing.
Let the jars sit at room temperature until cool, don’t test the tops, they will make a popping sound as they cool.
Label your rhubarb-orange jam so that you will remember what you’ve created after a few months in the pantry.
If you like this recipe, you must try the most gorgeous canned blueberries on earth, by Suvir Saran!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 lbs rhubarb sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
- 2 oranges, juiced (should be 1 cup – add water if needed) Then remove the peel of just one of the oranges. Cut away the bitter pith and slice it into small ribbons. I used twice as much orange zest as the recipe called for.
- 6 tbsp Ball pectin
- 6 cups sugar
Instructions
- In a large pot (I used a copper jam pot from Mauviel) cook the juice, rhubarb and zest until the rhubarb is tender. Add the pectin and let it come to a boil for 1 minute. Add the sugar and bring back to a boil for another minute.
- Prepare the jars and lids as the packaging suggests. I highly recommend that you read the Ball Blue Book and find out how to safely handle all the equipment. Maybe it was all of the food safety classes I had to take in culinary school, but I find it all rather interesting and essential to understand. You will want to get yourself some handy jar lifters, to get the boiling hot jars out of the water. I did it with regular tongs and wish I hadn't.
- Fill the jars, clean the rim and put the lids on. Having a funnel would have made this way easier and cleaner, but my ladle did a pretty good job.
- Lower the jars into the canning pot. Cover and bring to a boil for 10 minutes. Remove the lid, turn off the heat and let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the water before removing.
- Let the jars sit at room temperature until cool, don't test the tops, they will make a popping sound as they cool. Label your rhubarb-orange jam so that you will remember what you've created after a few months in the pantry.
I would make a yummy Alphonso mango jam!
I love to make strawberry-banana jam. And I saw a bourbon maple corn jam at the Farmer’s Market today and was very intrigued.
I love to make any kind of jam…apricot, strawberry-rhubarb, peach! This jam looks great !
Last week I went on my first outting to pick Huckleberries and then made jam. WOW! My new favorite!
I have never canned before, but if I do it will be mango and red chilli jam. Sweet, hot and tart…yumm
I really want to make strawberry rhubarb jam this year, but it will be my first time and I’m a little nervous… My parents would can grape juice when I was little and the cans didn’t always “pop” and then we’d end up with nasty grape vinegar (or bad “wine”). Pretty gross…. 🙂
my favorite is canning raspberry pepper jelly- friends request it for Christmas!
I want to can BBQ sauce to give as Christmas presents. I would also love to can the sweet Oregon berries we pick all summer.
My favorite is raspberry Jam! I would LOVE a recipe for orange marmalade it is my all time favorite! Just discovered your site and love it!
I just started making jam last year! I Love it! Nothing like homemade jam on your toast in the morning. I am making the rhubarb jam today. I have some blackberries that my daughter picked off of our bush that I will make jam with and once my grapes are ready, I will make jam with them. I also want to make some peach jam and if my peppers would cooperate, I can make some pepper jam!
I fell in love with canning last summer when I had the best garden ever and so much food! The first jam I attempted was Strawberry and it didn’t quite set but I used it anyway for a syrup. I have since learned so much and now make everything from blueberry jam to elderberry jam right through to zucchini jam! I love experimenting with new recipes and flavors and everyone that gets a jar begs for more! Need I say More?! Haha I especially love that I grow much of my own food and know where it’s coming from unlike shopping blindly and not knowing which foods are GMO’s!!
Best canning story? How about last week! I’m 18 weeks pregnant and trying desperately to ‘put up’ our harvest for the winter when I’m quite ’round’ and maybe not having the energy to cook. So… In a pregnancy-fuzzy-brain-induced-state, out of 7 jars, I didn’t tighten the ring well enough on one jar, and since I boiled the canner water before putting the jars in instead of putting them in first, I broke one jar. So… 5/7 plum jars made it. I plan to can pear jam though in a few weeks to keep up with the harvest around here. 🙂
One year my mom canned apricot jam. I ate it everyday in a pb&j sandwich for TWO years. I still can’t eat apricot jam. I always make sure to never can too much of one thing at a time 🙂
I really want to make blackberry and thyme jam, I think it would make a great marinade for meats!
I just started canning this year. I fell in love after tasting the strawberry jam I made. Not less than 4 hours off the patch and I was processing the best jam I’ve ever had. Lookingforward to exploring this great hobby!
I get the canning bug every year when lovely produce is abundant! While I have tried jam in the past, green tomato relish is one of my favorites. I can no longer find the original recipe, so each year’s product is a little different.
I love apricot jam – so that is what I would try to make!
My one and only canning attempt was as a young girl, making plum jam with my Dad. We were given a bushel of over-ripe plums – what a mess we made!
I am a retired Home Economics teacher who loves rhubarb, but I’m a purist. After washing and cutting, I add a little water and sugar, or honey if you like, before simmering until soft. I refrigerate it and have it in the AM with my oatmeal. I look forward to every spring/summer for rhubarb.
Each August my Mama and I would spend a day picking wild blueberries all over the area (up in the Adirondack Mountains in NY) and then the next day turning them into jam. A fun and tasty summer adventure!
I always wanted to learn how, so I am trying it this weekend. Living in the city, it is not always easy to find fresh fruit in the dead of winter. I think this will be a great opportunity to try it. Wish me luck, Thank you
We make strawberry jelly
I always made muscadine jelly when my dad was making muscadine wine.
I just made my first jam as well! That might not seem like much, until you consider that I’ve been in the kitchen since before there were microwave ovens…what took me so long?!
So simple, so gratifying, and sooo tasty!
I don’t have any canning stories, since I haven’t been at this very long–except to say how lovely the afternoon was for the two of us who did it together, ending in dozens of glistening ruby-colored jars and a bit of prosecco to toast our success!
I would love to make some rhubarb strawberry jam