Fresh Strawberry Jam

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Many others wrote in to say they put more or less sugar or lemon, or added cooking time or heat. Some said it was perfect, while others said too runny. This is not the fault of the recipe, but rather the differences in berries. We live in the Willamette Valley of Oregon where the berries are divine but are generally not exported because they are so tender. They are higher in sugar, and vary in pectin between varieties. The trick to perfect jam is understanding that even the ripeness of the fruit can change everything, and to trust your instincts. I think this recipe is great, but any jam recipe is only a guide.

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I have been making this jam for the past 3 years. Since my son was 3 (he's now 7, I have been taking him strawberry picking and was wondering what to do with all of the strawberries. A few years ago, I saw this episode around strawberry picking time, and decided to give it a try. That was one of my better moves (besides marrying my husband. The jam tastes absolutely divine, is foolproof for beginners and easy to make. It's so easy, that my son now helps to make it. By next year, he'll probably be making it by himself! I always get rave reviews when I make it. I've never had a problem with it gelling correctly and I always stick to the recipe - I don't add any pectin or apples. I also do the "plate in the freezer" test, and the jam always passes with flying colors. Nirvana is freshly baked croissants with this jam - it's a religious experience!!

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I went and picked 7 quarts of strawberries this morning. I tried two recipes, Ina's and the basic recipe on the Sure-Jell Low Sugar box. Ina's recipe was far inferior and took much longer. It never gelled. If you want a liquidy sweet strawberry-lemon topping for a cheesecake, make this. If you want jam, don't bother. Use pectin and go with the recipe in the box. It came out a lot better. I used the pectin that calls for less sugar, and it is still plenty sweet.
Sorry Ina, but this one isn't a winner!

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I watched the episode and Ina used about a 1/2 of diced green apple for the pectin. This helps the preserves gel. It is an wonderful and easy recipe.

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The flavor was good, but this jam just turned out runny. I love Ina's recipes but this is not too great. I like to can my own jams from fresh fruit and I always use pectin -- the use of pectin really helps with the consistency of the jam. If you like it runny though -- make this.

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This is a very good, easy recipe! The strawberries I used were very ripe and had alot of juice so I had to reduce it for about an hour in order for it to jell. The recipe calls for lemon juice and sugar whch creates a nice jell on it's own...for not as ripe strawberries!! A+ recipe as expected from Ina

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I just finished making this and I did use only 1 1/2 cups of sugar and cooked for approx 45 min. The taste was good and it did gel. I also mashed the strawberries after cooking and it seemed to help with thickening.

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Yes, this recipe is very easy, but it takes A LOT longer than the stated time in the recipe. This took me about 90 mins to get to jell. I dunno.. i was under the impression it was only going to take 20-30 mins, i probably wont make it again but it was awesome to try it once.

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The jam was easy to make; however, I will use less sugar (very sweet - and I love sweet things. I also had to cook the jam on a little higher heat (not very low heat as directions called and for a bit longer.

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This is the first time I've ever made jam - I always thought it would be too complicated - but Ina made me confident once again. This turned out great, love the citrus with the fruit. I had to cook mine longer, but well worth the effort. I'm giving some away in little jars and I know they will be a hit!