Preserving Pineapple Jam with the Water Bath Canning Method

Just when you think you’ve had jam, you have some pineapple preserves and your whole world changes. Okay, maybe not changes, but your eyes are definitely opened. Imagine the taste of a pineapple freshly sliced. Sweet, tart, cold and kind of makes your eyes water. It’s an amazing experience.

If only you could bottle this wonderful taste to have every day at your disposal… It turns out you can and it’s way easier than you could have imagined. Chopped up fresh pineapple and a little bit of honey cooked on high all day in a crockpot and you can have some too. And if you want to can it done you can have access to it all year, there are just a few more simple steps.

All you need to preserve your own pineapple jam for later is a water bath canner, some canning supplies, pint canning jars, and a ladle. 15 minutes later and you’ll have enough to keep you stocked for a while. Let me show you how. We’ll get started by making your preserves!

3 pineapples

1/4 cup honey

1. Chop up each of your pineapples by first cutting off the tops and bottoms.

2. Then, standing the pineapples right side up, slice off the skin all the way around.

3. Turning the pineapples sideways, cut them into slices.

4. Finally chop them into pieces around the hard center.

5. Throw away the tops, bottoms, skins and cores.

6. Toss all of the chopped pineapple into a large crockpot.

7. Squeeze about 1/4 cup of honey on top.

8. Cook on high all day until pineapple has wilted.

9. Blend up your pineapple with an immersion blender.

10. Leave the top off of the crockpot and continue to cook until it is the thickness you want, but don’t cook all of the liquid out.

11. Now its time to either put it into jars and freeze it,  or refrigerate it. Or you can try canning it!

To can your pineapple preserves, you’ll need a water bath canner, canning supplies, and pint canning jars.

1. Start by setting up your canning station.

2. Fill each of your jars to the bottom of the neck of each jar with your preserves.

3. Wipe the rims with a damp washcloth to remove any liquid or debris.

4. Add a lid to each jar and then screw on your rings. But only twist the rings until you feel the slightest bit of resistance as air needs a chance to escape while canning.

5. Fill your canner halfway with water and set it to high heat just under the highest setting.

6. Lower each jar onto your canning rack in the pot and make sure the water covers your jars by at least an inch or two.

7. Cover the pot and wait for it to boil.

8. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, tilt the lid, lower the temperature by a couple numbers, and set the timer to 15 minutes.

9. When the timer goes off, remove your jars with the jar lifter and set them on a towel to the side to cool for 24 hours.

10. You’ll know that they’ve sealed because you’ll hear them ping and the middle of each lid will be depressed.

11. If one or two jars doesn’t seal, put them in the fridge to use within a couple days. If four or more don’t seal, you can reprocess them again with clean lids.

Canning is a fun and satisfying experience. I enjoy the fact that I can make my own food using only the best ingredients and nothing extra, I can get exactly what I’m looking for, my family gets to eat the healthy food I made, and I get to enjoy it year round. Did I mention that I love how much money I save?!

This is one of those recipes I look forward to enjoying all year. Then I wait for the sales and do it all over again. Corn is another of our favorites, but I never make enough to last until the next sale. I sure will this year!

What’s great is that you can repeat this same recipe for any number of jam flavors, and can even get creative. But I would check online first for processing times to make sure your jam is processed safely. Some of my favorites, next to pineapple, are my Apple Harvest Jam and Mixed Berry with blueberries, strawberries and blackberries. Yum!

What’s your favorite canning recipe? Shoot me an email and let me know. I’m always looking for more great recipes to share with my family. Or if you just want to see something made, that works too! My email is victoria@livehealthyathome.com. Enjoy!