You only need two ingredients to make gooseberry jam, three if you include water. But if you make it when elderflowers are fresh and blooming, add some of those to give a subtle but pleasant floral note and fragrance. It's an easy jam to make and it's full of summer flavour. And the bonus? It's relatively low in sugar too.
Before you start with the jam, place two saucers in the freezer. You'll need these to test for when the jam is set. Wash your jars and place in the oven to sterilise. For details check this post how to sterilise glass jars and bottles.
Top and tail the gooseberries. You can pinch them off with finger and thumb or use scissors. Give them a quick wash in water to remove any debris.
Put the gooseberries and water into a large wide stainless steel saucepan. Place the elderflower heads on top of the gooseberries, heads down, stalks up.
500 g gooseberries, 200 ml water, 4-5 heads elderflower
Bring to the boil, place a lid on the pan (if you have one), then simmer for five minutes or until the gooseberries are soft.
Take the gooseberries off the heat and remove the elderflower heads using the stalk. Pour in the sugar and stir until it's completely dissolved.
300 g granulated sugar
Crank up the heat and bring the gooseberries to a rolling boil. Boil until setting point is reached. This usually takes between eight to twelve minutes. Start to test after eight minutes.
To test, remove the pan from the heat so it doesn't overset. Place a teaspoon of jam on one of the cold saucers. Leave it for thirty seconds or so, then push your finger slowly through it. If it wrinkles, it's set. If it remains runny with no wrinkles, continue boiling until you get there. Alternatively, use a thermometer and boil until it reaches 105℃/220°F.
Remove from the heat. If any scum has formed on the top, scoop it off with a slotted spoon and discard. Let rest for two minutes, then stir.
Using a ladle and jam funnel, pour into warm sterilised jars. Cap immediately with clean sterilised lids and twist tight.
Leave to cool then label with the date and type of jam.
Notes
Yields 3 x 250 ml (8.4 fl oz) full jars of gooseberry and elderflower jam. A serving equals 1 tbsp (25g).If you double the recipe or use ripe fruit, it will take a bit longer for the jam to set, so don't worry if it doesn't look anywhere like setting in the first eight minutes. Just keep boiling until you reach setting point.Gooseberry jam will last at least six months in a cool dark place. Once you've opened the jar, however, it's best to keep it in the fridge.Beware of jam sugar, it has added pectin. You don't need it for this recipe and you'll likely end up with a very tough jam if you use it.You’ll find additional tips and info about this recipe in the main body of the post.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They’re approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used. Please refer to my nutrition disclaimer for further information.