Canning Grape Jelly from Fruit (Not Juice)

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Canning Grape Jelly from grapes is actually fun and more or less easy. The recipe I followed was very informative and walked me through step by step. I couldn’t find a recipe online for canning grape jelly from fruit instead of juice so I wanted to share how I made this jelly from grapes.

First thing before you begin this process you’ll want to have everything ready. I sterilized my jars, lids, and rings. I like to do this in the dishwasher because I know it’s sterilized, but you can also boil water and sterilize them that way for about 10-15 minutes.

Materials – I linked everything below, just click on the name of the item.

Jars. I used 4oz and 8oz canning jars. I think this size works the best for jelly and jams.
Cheesecloth. I had a hard time finding this in the store because it wasn’t with the canning stuff. I finally found it in the cloth section.
Preserving Canning Pot – The one I linked is similar to the one I used. I linked a set because you’ll need the rack and jar lifters.
Large sauce pan

Ingredients

3-1/2 lbs of grapes. I don’t have a kitchen scale, although I found I really need one. I got on my scales at home and weighed myself, then weighed myself again holding the grapes and subtracted the difference, and added and subtracted grapes until I had 3-1/2 lbs.
7 cups of Sugar **EXACT AMOUNT**
Sure Jell Fruit Pectin

Directions

First thing I did was make sure all of my jars, lids, and rings were thoroughly sanitized. I ended up using 12 4oz jars and 3 8oz jars for canning grape jelly. It’s also a good idea to go ahead and have the correct amount of water in the canner already heating (be sure to remove the canning rack so you can drop your jars down in the water). The water has to cover the jars by 1-2 inches.
To prepare your grapes you’ll want to pull the grapes off the stems and wash the grapes in a strainer.
Once the grapes are washed, place them in a large bowl and crush the grapes. I had a hard time with this step so I crushed what I could and finished crushing them in the pot after they were softened a little.
Add grapes and 1-1/2 cups of water to the pot. Stir and bring to a boil. *this is when I finished crushing the grapes while waiting on the grapes to boil*. After you’ve brought the grapes to a rolling boil, simmer on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
While the grapes are cooking, go ahead and cut three pieces of your cheesecloth to fit the large bowl. Place them in the bottom of the bowl and dampen them. Once fruit is cooked, add the cooked fruit to the bowl. Tie the cheese cloth (I made two separate knots) and hang to let juice drip into the bowl until dripping stops. I found it easiest to hang the cheesecloth on my cabinet pulls, but something else may work better for you. Once the dripping stopped I gently pushed on the fruit until I had 5 cups of juice. If you don’t have 5 cups, you can add 1/2 cup of water.
Measure 5 cups of juice and put in the large sauce pan (what I call a boiling pot).
Measure out EXACTLY 7 cups of sugar and set aside.
Stir 1 pack of Sure Jell fruit pectin into the prepared juice. If desired, add 1/2 tsp of butter to reduce foaming. I did this and I think it helped.
Bring mixture to a full rolling boil on high heat stirring constantly (a rolling boil is one that doesn’t stop when you stir it).
Once mixture comes to a full rolling boil, add sugar and return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Once mixture hits a rolling boil, boil for exactly 1 minute, again stirring constantly.
Remove pot from heat and skim off any foam with a metal spoon.
Immediately ladle juice into jars filling them nearly full (you’ll want to leave about 1/4″ space). Wipe the rims and sides of jars. Cover with lids and rings and tighten. Place the jars on the canning rack and lower rack into canner. The water has to cover the jars by 1-2 inches. Canning time differs by what altitude you live in. I live in Georgia and our altitude is around 5,000 so I cooked them for 15 minutes. I’ve added the chart below. After caning, remove jars and put them on a towel upright. After the jars completely seal, check each lid to make sure it sealed by pressing the center of the lid. If it pops back it’s not sealed properly and must be refrigerated.
Jars should sit at room temperature for 24 hours to set. If your jars sealed the jelly can sit unopened in a cool, dry, dark place for 1 year. Refrigerate any opened jelly or jars that didn’t seal for up to 3 weeks.
Altitude chart:
1. 1,000-3,000 – 10 minutes canning time
2. 3,001-6,000 – 15 minutes canning time
3. 6,001-8,000 – 20 minutes canning time
4. 8,001-10,000- 25 minutes canning time
When canning is complete remove jars and place on a towel to cool. Once cooled, check for any jars that didn’t seal. Refrigeration is required if any jars didn’t seal properly.

It seems like a lot, but canning grape jelly is simple. Sterilizing the jars, rings, and lids took me the longest. I’m thinking of gifting these for Christmas gifts this year! I love homemade gifts and what better way to give a gift than to give homemade grape jelly made right from my kitchen!