Ditch all the added sugar by making your own homemade sugar free strawberry jam! This simple recipe makes incredibly fruity jam that is suitable for low carb and Keto diets. No pectin!
Did you know that traditional jam recipes use sugar and fruit on a 1:1 basis? I have always wondered why this is necessary. Ripe fruit contain so much natural sweetness in form of fructose!
The sugar is supposed to help with the gelling of the fruit, making the jam nice and thick. It also acts as a preservative. Oh, and it's a really cheap ingredient, adding to the profit of jam companies.
I've been making sugar free jam ever since I started eating low carb. Guys, it's so simple. All you need is quality fruit, which you simmer gently until enough liquid has evaporated.
Then you add a bit of extra sweetness such as erythritol, stevia or allulose (if necessary) and a little bit of thickener such as chia seeds, gelatin or xanthan gum (if necessary). That's it!
Reader Review: "I preserved the batch I made last year in canning bottles using a steam canner and they have all turned out great." (Katrina James)
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Ingredients
This is what you need:
- Strawberries - fresh or frozen
- Water - just a splash
- Chia seeds - ground, to thicken
- Lemon juice - optional, preserves the jam
- Sweetener - as needed, depending on the sweetness of the berries
Instructions
Here's how you make sugar free strawberry jam, step by step.
Scroll down to the recipe card for ingredient amounts, the detailed method and nutrition info.
STEP 1
Chop your strawberries and place them in a saucepan. Add 2 tablespoon of water (3 if your saucepan is large). This is so the strawberries don't burn whilst you soften them.
STEP 2
Bring to the boil, lid on, then turn the heat to medium and let it bubble away for around 15 minutes. Now your strawberries look like in the image above. They are soft and have begun to release their own liquid. Mash with a potato masher.
STEP 3
Continue simmering the strawberry puree over a low heat for another 30 minutes until the mixture has reduced by half. As the liquid evaporates, the bubbles become smaller.
Stir continuously towards the end using a spatula, making sure the jam does not burn. Once the mixture has the texture of jam, you're done!
STEP 4
Taste the jam. If the strawberries do not contain enough natural sweetness, add up to 1 tablespoon of powdered sweetener. Instead of pectin, use 1 teaspoon of ground chia seeds to fully set the jam.
Fill into a sterilised container and store in the fridge.
Expert Tips
If you use frozen strawberries, you'll need to cook the jam a little longer as they are more watery. You may also need to increase the sweetener to taste.
This strawberry jam recipe only contains 1.4 grams of fruit sugar per serving (1 tablespoon), which won't spike your insulin levels like regular jam. To keep your blood sugar levels stable do make sure you eat it as part of a meal.
This recipe made 200 grams of strawberry jam, which is just under 1 cup.
Can I make it without sweetener?
If you use REALLY RIPE fruit and reduce the liquid as much as possible, you may not even need additional sweetener. I made this recipe in February. The strawberries available right now are imported and a far cry from the amazing local varieties we can buy here in the UK during strawberry season in June and July.
Using the lemon juice, however, will mean you'll most probably have to add a spoonful of sweetener such as powdered erythritol, allulose or stevia.
How to make sugar free strawberry jam set without pectin
In this recipe I chose to set the jam with ground white chia seeds. You can either grind them with a pestle and mortar, or you take a whole bunch and blitz them to a fine powder in a food processor or in the attachment of a stick blender. Fill it into an airtight jar and use it to thicken sauces and anything else that needs thickening!
You could also use whole chia seeds to thicken low carb jam, as long as you don't mind the gloopy bobbles. The jam will taste the same, but some people don't like the texture. If you use whole chia seeds, I recommend doubling the amount to 1 tbsp.
Other pectin-free options for thickening jam are gelatin and xanthan gum - even sugar-free jell0.
Serving Suggestion
We had it for breakfast with these keto buns (see photo above). It's also great over Greek yoghurt.
If you want to make a quick low carb bread for your deliciously healthy strawberry jam, try these microwave English muffins. It would also be awesome with keto scones or as the filling of a Victoria sponge cake.
I'm also using this jam in my sugar free strawberry shortcake trifle pots - one of my favourite summer dessert recipes!
Storing
If you store the jam in the fridge, it should be good for at least one week. However, if you have a family, it will probably disappear much quicker.
To increase the shelf life, add 1 teaspoon lemon juice during cooking. The acids in it helps with the gelling of the jam and prevents bacteria growth during storage (source). This way, you can easily keep it in the fridge for 3-4 weeks.
Preserving and Canning
I have been asked many times whether this jam is suitable for long term storage or larger batches.
The answer is yes.
The Cheat's Version: FREEZING
This is my simple solution: Freeze the jam in ice cube trays. This way, you have small portions ready for when you need it.
The Pro Version: CANNING
I'm not a canning expert. But my readers are. Over the years, many readers have told me on social media and in the comments on this post that they successfully preserve this keto jam for a year and longer.
I mentioned in the intro that my reader Katrina successfully used a steam canner for her batch. My reader Donna shared: "Mine lasted over a year, properly canned. Definitely add the lemon juice."
More Sugar Free Jams And Spreads
- Sugar Free Blueberry Jam21 Minutes
- Sugar Free Raspberry Jam5 Minutes
- Sugar Free Orange Marmalade Recipe (Keto)2 Hours 40 Minutes
- Blueberry Cream Cheese20 Minutes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Sugar Free Strawberry Jam
Ingredients
- 400 g strawberries, diced 14 oz, fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds ground
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice optional
- 1 tablespoon powdered sweetener optional, increase to taste as needed
Instructions
- Chop the strawberries and place them in a saucepan together with the water.
- Bring to the boil (lid on), then turn down the heat medium and let it bubble away for 15 minutes. Add the lemon juice if you want to store the jam for longer than 1 week - it prevents the growth of bacteria.
- Mash the strawberries with a potato masher (or with a fork), then continue to cook on low-medium for another 30 minutes until reduced by half. You want it to bubble peacefully. Bubbles will become smaller as the liquid evaporates. Stir regularly with a spatula to prevent the jam from burning. Towards the end of cooking, stir constantly.
- Taste. If necessary, sweeten with 1 tablespoon of powdered sweetener.
- Add the ground chia seeds and stir. Cool and fill into a sterilised jar. Store in the fridge.
Jane Ritchuk
I did this with mixed frozen fruit and created a delicious topping for Keto Cheesecake! a really good versatile recipe.
Katrin
That sounds delicious!!!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Kathy
If using sugar free jello, how much do you use?
Katrin
You probably only need very little, maybe 1 tsp. There isn't much liquid to set, seeing as you can in theory make the recipe without any thickener, as long as you cook it down for long enough. And you don't want the jam to be rock-hard!
Radtech
Why not use pectin? I used a product that uses calcium and pectin
Katrin
It's not necessary in this recipe - strawberries actually contain natural pectin.
Jessica
If you use gelantine do you use the same measurement?
Katrin
That's a good question. I'd check the amount of liquid your gelatine packet can set and take it from there. I got 200 ml of jam from the recipe. From memory, one 7g pack of gelatine sets about 1 pint / 500 ml of liquid, so you'd only need 1/3 of a pack.
Marijane Kendall
Have you tried using citric acid as the preservative? Isn't it used as a preservative in some products on the market? And although it has a citrus taste, probably not as much as the lemon juice.
Katrin
No I haven't, I must check it out 🙂
shannon mcgraw
Can you something else
Besides chia seeds?
Thanks
Katrin
Yes, I've also used xanthan gum to thicken before.
Charlotte Green
Hi I really want to try this today but only have the xanthan gum and no chia seeds. How many grams would be the right amount to add?
Thank you
Katrin Nürnberger
That depends on how much you have reduced the strawberries. I'd say between 1/4 and 1/2 tsp should be enough.
Katrin
So glad you like the jam Margot!
Bonnie
Can you freeze the jam?
Katrin
I have not tried it, but I don't see why not. You can freeze fruit, so freezing jam should work! Maybe even do it in an ice cube tray, so you can get small portions whenever you need it.
Irena
When do you add the Jello if using? Thanks!
Katrin
I would stir it in towards the end.
Nicole M Foster
This looks delicious - I can't wait for strawberry season! Thank you for the lemon juice tip! I hate to waste jam but can't always use it up within a week.
Katrin
Let me know what you think when you've tried it 🙂