Concord Grape Jam with Vanilla Recipe
Concord Grapes come into season in early fall, and you can often find them at a well-stocked grocery store or your local farmer’s market. Their flavor is wonderful — often described as ‘musky’ — though the thick skins make them less pleasant to eat out of hand. This recipe uses the pulp and the skins, so you get all that real Concord flavor and color in a jam, no pectin needed. The jam itself comes together in about an hour; if you’re canning it for pantry storage, plan on another hour for sterilizing jars and processing. Do that once and it’ll keep on the shelf for a full year — a single afternoon with a bounty of grapes turns into jam you’ll be spreading all year long.
Table of contents
What’s the Difference Between Grape Jam and Grape Jelly?
A jam is a fruit preserve that includes fruit solids and juice. Jam has a semi-thick texture with visible bits of fruit. Jelly is made from just the juice and is clear with no visible bits of fruit. Jelly is a little more solid than jam.
I’m not a big fan of commercially made grape jelly. But this homemade Concord Grape Jam with Vanilla is what store bought grape jelly wants to be when it grows up.
This recipe uses the pulp and the skins from the grapes for a spreadable jam with plenty of fruit texture.
As I say every time I post a home canning recipe, it’s really easy and not at all scary to make your own jams, jellies and preserves. You just need the proper jars, a big pot and a bounty of fresh produce.
Ingredients
- Concord grapes – Concords are “slip skin” grapes. Meaning, if you squeeze the grape the pulp will slip right out of the skin. You can make this jam using either fresh or frozen concord grapes. See the freezing section below for more information.
- Sugar – The sugar plays more than one role in this recipe. Not only does the sugar sweeten the fruit, but it is essential for preserving the fruit as well. Don’t be tempted to reduce the sugar in the recipe as your jam may not gel properly and may spoil quickly.
- Vanilla beans – Reinforce the aroma and flavor of the grapes. Vanilla bean adds a full and rounded vanilla flavor, but you can add a teaspoon of vanilla extract instead or skip the vanilla entirely.
Sugar as a Fruit Preservative
When sugar is mixed with fresh fruit, it draws out and binds up the water in the fruit, creating an environment that is hostile to bacteria. To have the needed preserving qualities a recipe should have about 40-60% sugar by weight.
Do You Need Pectin for This Recipe?
No, you don’t need to use commercial pectin for this jam. The grapes, especially the skins, have enough natural pectin to form a gel along with the sugar in the recipe. Don’t be tempted to strain out the grape skins as you may compromise the gelling power of the fruit.
How to Make Concord Grape Jam
Here’s what the recipe process looks like at each stage. Refer to the recipe card below for measurements and exact instructions.
- Squeeze the pulp from the skins. Place the pulp in a large pan.
- Combine the skins with a half cup of water in a food processor.
- Process until you have a chunky puree. You want some texture from the skins in the final jam.
- Cook the grape pulp with the vanilla bean until the pulp is quite soft.
- Remove the vanilla bean. Use a fine sieve or fruit mill to strain out the grape seeds from the pulp. Scrape the vanilla seeds from the pod and add them to the pulp. You can save the vanilla bean pod to make Vanilla Sugar.
- Combine the pulp, skins and the sugar in a sauce pan.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and cook about 15 minutes.
- To check if the jam has gelled properly, place a dollop on a cold plate. Use the tip of your finger to push on the mixture from the side. If it’s properly gelled it will “wrinkle” rather than run across the plate.
Can You Freeze Concord Grapes for Jam?
Yes, wash and stem the grapes then place them in a single layer on a parchment lined sheet pan. Place the pan in the freezer until the grapes are frozen solid. Transfer the grapes to a freezer bag and freeze up to 6 months. To make this jam recipe, allow the grapes to thaw and continue with the recipe as written.
Two other great uses for your frozen concord grapes is homemade Concord Grape Sorbet or Concord Grape Ice Cream.
Canning & Storage
Canning
The best way to prepare your Concord Jam for long term storage is to process them in proper canning jars.
- Sterilize proper canning jars in boiling water. Transfer the hot jam into the sterilized jars, leaving about 1/2″ of headroom.
- Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean paper towel. Any bits of jam left on the rim can prevent the lids from forming a vacuum seal.
- Place the proper 2 piece lids onto the jars and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
- Remove the jars from the water bath and let them cool. The lids will “pop” to let you know a vacuum seal has formed.
Storage
Properly canned and processed Concord Grape Jam will keep at room temperature for at least a year.
If your jam is not processed in canning jars, it can be stored in freezer safe containers and frozen for 6 months.
Once a jar is opened the jam should be refrigerated. It will keep for 2-3 months in the refrigerator.
How to Serve Concord Grape Jam
Pair this jam with peanut butter on White Sandwich Bread for the perfect PB&J. If you want a real treat, use your homemade Concord Grape Jam in Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich Cookies or in a Peanut Butter Mousse Pie.
If you get a big batch of concords, Concord Grape Pie is what you’ll want to make. If you see them, buy a bunch and bake a pie and/or make some preserves to enjoy later in the year.
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Concord Grape Jam with Vanilla
Ingredients
- 2 ½ lbs Concord grapes (weight after stemming)
- 4 oz water (½ cup)
- ¼ vanilla bean (split)
- 2 ½ lbs granulated sugar (5 cups)
Instructions
- Put a small plate or bowl in the freezer to chill while you prepare the jam. You'll use this to test if the jam is gelled.
- Separate the skins and pulp from 2 ½ lbs Concord grapes, reserving both. In a food processor or blender, pulse the grape skins with 4 oz water until you have a chunky puree.
- In a large pan, cook the pulp with ¼ vanilla bean over medium heat until soft, about 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove the vanilla bean pod and run the grape pulp through a food mill or strainer to remove the seeds
- Scrape the the seeds from vanilla bean and add them to the pulp. Combine the strained pulp with the skins and 2 ½ lbs granulated sugar in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook about 15-20 minutes until it begins to thicken.
- To check if the jam is ready, take the plate from the freezer and put a small dollop of jam onto the cold plate. Let it cool a bit then push on the jam from the side. If it wrinkles it's ready. If it's still runny cook it a few more minutes.
- Pour the hot jam into sterilized canning jars. Use a wet paper towel to wipe the rims of the jars to make sure they're clean. Any bits of fruit can prevent the lids from sealing properly. Cover and process the jars in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
- Remove the jars from the water and allow to cool at room temperature. You should hear the lids "pop" to let you know the jars are sealed.
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