Remedies for Jam and Jelly that Doesn’t Set (2107)

Jams or jellies that are too soft may result from overcooking the fruit when extracting the juice, incorrect proportions of sugar and juice, undercooking, overripe fruit, and doubling the recipe.

To fix the problem, you may re-cook the jam or jelly with the addition of powdered or liquid pectin, or you may just re-cook the product without any added pectin. Process the re-cooked jams or jellies for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath to assure a good seal and to prevent mold growth. It is recommended that you re-cook a trial batch using one cup of jelly first. Don’t re-cook more than 8 cups at a time.

When re-cooking and using powdered pectin, for each cup of soft jelly or jam measure 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon water, and 1½  teaspoons of powdered pectin. Mix the pectin and water together and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the soft jelly or jam and sugar. Stir thoroughly. Bring to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Boil mixture hard for half a minute. Remove from heat, skim, and pour into hot sterilized containers. Seal using new lids, and process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.

When re-cooking and using liquid pectin, for each cup of soft jelly or jam, measure 3 tablespoons sugar, 1½ teaspoons lemon juice, and 1½ teaspoons liquid pectin. Bring jelly or jam to a boil over high heat. Quickly add sugar, lemon juice, and liquid pectin. Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil hard for 1 minute. Remove jelly from heat, skim, pour into hot sterilized containers, seal using new lids, and process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes. 

To re-cook without adding pectin#If the fruit juice was not acid enough, add 1½ teaspoons lemon juice per cup jelly before boiling. Bring the soft jelly or jam to boiling and boil until the mixture sheets off a spoon. Remove from heat, skim, pour into hot sterilized containers, seal using new lids, and process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.

For more information on this subject, Please visit the College of Agricultural Sciences Publications Web site.

Feel free to forward, post or reprint any of the "Solutions" in their entirely, but please credit http://www.solutions.psu.edu/ as the original source of information, and please do not change the content.