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Homemade Cranberry Juice Recipe for Canning (Unsweetened or Sweetened)

This homemade cranberry juice recipe follows Bernardin's published preparation and water-bath processing method. The juice is strained, and settling it for 24 to 48 hours is recommended if it looks cloudy, before canning.
Leave it unsweetened or choose sugar, honey, or stevia. We provide the amounts of each sweetener that worked for us, but feel free to adjust them to your taste.
Sweeteners are added for flavour, not as a preservation ingredient.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time10 minutes
Resting time1 day
Course: Drinks
Keyword: canned cranberry juice, canning cranberry juice, cranberry juice recipe for canning, cranberry juice with stevia for canning, homemade cranberry juice for canning, how to can cranberry juice, low sugar cranberry juice recipe, no sugar cranberry juice for canning, unsweetened cranberry juice
Servings: 3 pint (~500 ml) jars
Cost: $2

Equipment

  • Large stainless steel pot with a heavy bottom
  • Fine-mesh metal strainer
  • 2 layers of cheesecloth or jelly bag
  • Water bath canner or Atmospheric steam canner
  • 3 Pint (~500 ml) canning jars with lids and bands

Ingredients

  • 2 lb fresh cranberries (907 g), approximately 9 cups
  • 9 cups water (2.1 L)

Optional: Add one of the sweeteners of your choice:

  • ⅓ cup granulated sugar (67 g) optional
  • 2½ Tbsp honey (50 g) optional
  • stevia to taste, optional

Instructions

Prepare the Cranberry Juice:

  • Sort the cranberries.
    Remove stems, leaves, and any berries that are soft or have burst. Berries with a small blemish can stay.
  • Wash the cranberries.
    Put the berries in a large bowl and pour water over them. Swish them around right away. Scoop them into a colander and rinse them under cool running water. Look through the berries as you scoop them out. Pick out any you may have missed.
  • Combine berries and water.
    Put cranberries in a large stainless steel saucepan. Add water. If you want to make more cranberry juice, feel free to scale up, but keep the cranberries and water in equal parts.
  • Cook until the berries burst.
    Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer. The berries will plump up before they pop. Once they start bursting, cook for about 5 more minutes.
  • Let it stand.
    Cover the pot and set it aside for up to 2 hours so the berries can infuse the water.
  • Strain the juice.
    Line a fine-mesh strainer with two layers of cheesecloth, or use a dampened jelly bag. Set it over a large bowl and pour in the mixture – this step takes about an hour for the batch of this size. Do not press the pulp, because pressing can make the juice cloudy. Save the pulp and skins for jam or sauce.
  • Settle the juice (optional).
    We washed our berries well and strained them carefully, and our juice had no sediment, so we skipped this step. We recommend it if your juice looks cloudy. Pour the juice into a covered container and refrigerate it for 24 to 48 hours.
  • Pour off the clear juice.
    Carefully pour the juice into a clean saucepan. Leave any sediment behind.

Prepare the Juice for Canning:

  • Prepare the jars and lids.
    Wash the jars and sterilize them.
  • Add your sweetener.
    Leave the juice unsweetened, or stir in sugar, honey, or stevia to taste. We use ⅓ cup (67 g) of sugar, or about 2½ tbsp (50 g) of honey. Stir until it dissolves.
  • Heat the juice.
    Heat cranberry juice to 190°F (88°C) and simmer for 5 minutes. Do not boil.
  • Fill the jars.
    Ladle hot juice into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch (0.6 cm) headspace. Wipe the rims if required.
  • Process the jars.
    Use a water bath canner or an atmospheric steam canner. Use the time in the chart below.