Easy Small Batch Black Cherry Preserve

Not quite jam - cherries aren't crushed. Not classic jelly either - whole cherries afloat. Whatever the label, easy to make and delicious. We used sweet Bing cherries for this recipe, but any other sweet cherries work too. You can choose to pit the cherries or not. We kept the pits for this one.

Prep Time10

Cook Time1

Resting time8

Course: Jam

Cuisine: European

Diet: Gluten Free, Kosher, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: Black Cherry Jam, Canned Cherry, Cherries, Cherry Jam, Cherry Jam Canning, Cherry Jam Recipe, Cherry Jam Recipe with Pectin, Cherry Jam without pitting, Cherry Jelly, Cherry Preserve, Easy Cherry Jam, Homemade Cherry Preserve, How to make cherry jam, Recipe for Cherry Jam, Simple soft set Cherry Jam

Servings: 1 x 1-liter (32 oz.) jar.

Equipment

wooden spoon
colander
heavy-bottomed pot
potholders, oven mitts, trivets for hot dishes

Ingredients

2 ½ lb cherries
2 cups sugar
½ cup water
¼ cup powdered pectin any brand

Instructions

Preparing the Cherries

Discard any berries showing signs of browning or bruising, and remove the stems.
Thoroughly wash the remaining cherries, then let them dry in a colander.

Cooking the Cherries

Grab a large, heavy-bottomed pot and combine the cherries, sugar, pectin, and water. Mix everything together.
Place the pot over low heat and gently bring the cherries to a boil.
Reduce the heat even more and let the cherries simmer for 5-6 minutes.
Turn off the heat, cover the pot with a lid, and allow the cherries to steep for 6-8 hours.
Once steeping is done, return the pot to the stove over low heat.
Slowly bring the jam back to a boil. Once it's boiling again, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer.
Let the jam simmer for an additional 40 minutes.
(!) While the jam is cooking, begin preparing the Mason jars. It's important to have your jars ready at this point, because the next step, filling them with piping hot jam, must follow immediately.