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My mom makes the most amazing fruit preserves. We enjoy her garden fruit all year long this way. This peach preserves recipe takes a couple days; a longer process than most of the peach preserve recipes I’ve seen online but its worth the wait. It’s not watery like most of the recipes that rush the process.
This isn’t speed dating. You’ll get to know your peaches over a couple days and and be rewarded with some mighty fine preserves. If you are thinking about Christmas already (as I am), you can make preserves now, slap a label on in December and give them away as gifts to neighbors, co-workers, nursing directors (wink, wink) – I guess this means I can’t eat all of them myself.
Ingredients for Peach Preserves:
11 lbs peaches, rinsed (about 8 lbs after peeling and pitting)
4 cups granulated sugar, or more added to taste
1/2 cup lemon juice (from 3-4 large lemons)
What you will need:
- 5-6 pint-sized jars with lids. I purchased them at Walmart.
- Large Stock Pot (20Qt+) with Rack (or purchase a canner)
- Jar lifter to safely transfer the jars
How to Make Peach Preserves / Peach Jam:
To blanch the peaches:
1. Fill 2/3 of a large soup pot with water. Bring to a boil. Add peaches for 30 -45 seconds, then remove with slotted spoon or this OXO strainer
2. Peel the skin (most of them peeled easily by hand, but there were a stubborn few that required a knife), cut the peaches into quarters and remove pits.
Cooking the Preserves:
1. Place all peeled peaches in a large soup pot and squeeze in lemon juice. Drizzle well with 2 cups sugar, toss and drizzle again with the remaining 1.5-2 cups so the sugar reaches all the peaches. Here’s where you need to use your judgement.
If your peaches are very sweet, you may only need 3 1/2 cups of sugar total. You can add more sugar to taste while its cooking, so don’t panic at this step. You’ll do great!
2. Let peaches sit at room temp with the sugar for about 30min -1 hour, or until sugar is dissolved.
3. Place the pot over the stove uncovered and bring to a light boil, stirring to prevent scorching. Make sure if you see a light boil to stir because the whole pot may not be boiling, just the center. If it stops boiling after you stir it, continue boiling.
Once the whole pot is at a light boil, simmer for 10 minutes and turn off the heat. Let the pot stand uncovered until it is just warm to the touch or reaches room temp.
4. As soon as it cools, repeat step 3. You will bring it to a light boil a total of 5 times. This is why it takes 2 days to make. It’s really easy though. Definitely not rocket science to bring a pot to a boil and give it a few stirs :D.
You can go to work and come home then return it to a boil; there’s no “set” time that you need to be reboiling it. If 2 days doesn’t work for you, by all means, take 3 days. Preserves have plenty of sugar so they won’t spoil at room temp if you leave it on the counter overnight. If you want the preserves to have an even thicker consistency, you can boil it 6 times if you wish.
(Note: the fifth time you boil, bring it to a boil over a little lower heat and stir a few extra times to prevent scorching. Also, it thickens more as it cools.)
5. The last time you bring it to a boil you will want to transfer it to sterilized jars while it’s boiling hot.
To sterilize the jars:
- To sterilize your clean jars: wash them and let them dry in the oven at 215 for about 20 min or until completely dry. Boil the lids 5 min.
2. Transfer your boiling hot preserves to the jars using a glass measuring cup and a funnel (least messy method) leaving about 1/2″ space.
3. Screw the lids on enough to keep a tight seal in place but don’t over-tighten them since air bubbles need to be able to escape.
4. Place packed cans into the canning pot and cover with 1-2 inches of water. Bring to a boil and process 15 minutes. Remove from the pot with jar lifter and leave at room temperature undisturbed for 12-24 hours. You may hear a pop when the jars fully seal. After 24 hours, check that the seal has formed by pushing down on the center of the lid – it should not move at all. If the seal does not form, refrigerate preserves and enjoy within 3 months.
Tada!! You’ll make it and think “hey that wasn’t so bad.” Well, that’s what I thought the first time I made them.
Current Canning Guidelines:
Recipe updated in 2019 to reflect new canning standards. Previously we used the oven method. You can get up to date on the most recent canning guidelines here. It’s a great resource to answer frequently asked canning questions.
Country Peach Preserves
Ingredients
Peach Preserves Ingredients:
- 11 lbs peaches, rinsed
- 4 cups granulated sugar, or more to taste
- 1/2 cup lemon juice, from 3-4 large lemons
What you will need:
- 5-6 pint-sized jars with lids
Instructions
To blanch the peaches:
- Fill 2/3 of a large soup pot with water. Bring to a boil. Add peaches for 30 -45 seconds, then remove with slotted spoon and drain the pot. Remove peaches immediately to a large bowl of cold water.
- Peel the skin, cut the peaches into quarters and remove pits.
Cooking the Preserves:
- Place all peeled peaches in a large soup pot and squeeze in lemon juice. Drizzle well with 2 cups sugar, toss and drizzle again with the remaining 1.5-2 cups so the sugar reaches all the peaches. If peaches are very sweet, you may only need 3 1/2 cups of sugar total. Add more sugar to taste while its cooking.
- Let peaches sit at room temp with the sugar for about 30 min -1 hour, or until sugar is dissolved.
- Place the pot over the stove uncovered and bring to a light boil, stirring to prevent scorching. Once the whole pot is at a light boil, simmer for 10 minutes and turn off the heat. Let the pot stand uncovered until it is just warm to the touch or reaches room temp.
- As soon as it cools, repeat step 3. You will bring it to a light boil a total of 5 times. Preserves have plenty of sugar so they won't spoil at room temp if you leave it on the counter overnight. If you want the preserves to have an even thicker consistency, you can boil it 6 times if you wish. (Note: the fifth time you boil, bring it to a boil over a little lower heat and stir a few extra times to prevent scorching. Also, it thickens more as it cools.)
- The last time you bring it to a boil you will want to transfer it to sterilized jars while it's boiling hot.
To sterilize the jars: wash them and let them dry in the oven at 215 for about 20 min or until completely dry. Boil the lids 5 min.
- Transfer your boiling hot preserves to the jars using a glass measuring cup and a funnel (least messy method) leaving about 1/2″ space.
- Screw the lids on enough to keep a tight seal in place but don't over-tighten them since air bubbles need to be able to escape.
- Place packed cans into the canning pot and cover with 1-2 inches of water. Bring to a boil and process 15 minutes. Remove from the pot with jar lifter and leave at room temperature undisturbed for 12-24 hours. You may hear a pop when the jars fully seal. After 24 hours, check that the seal has formed by pushing down on the center of the lid - it should not move at all. If the seal does not form, refrigerate preserves and enjoy within 3 months.
Filed Under
Signs of Spoiled Canned Food:
With any type of canning, we follow this advice: “When in doubt, throw it out”
Discard and do not eat or taste any canned food if you notice any of the following:
- the jar is leaking, bulging, or swollen
- the jar looks damaged, cracked, or abnormal
- the jar spurts foam or liquid upon opening
- the canned food is discolored, moldy, mushy, slimy, or smells bad
I think this must be the most labor intensive jam recipe ever made. haha! It tastes great, but I did two batches (20 lbs total) and only ended up with 12 CUPS of jam. It also took four full days, and hours and hours of constant stirring. I don’t know how people are successfully making this recipe. Each time I brought it to a low boil, it took over 1.5 hours to just get to the simmering point, and it would begin scorching if I did it any faster. I also had to stir almost constantly the entire time. After that, it would take 6-7 hours to return to room temperature, so I only had time to simmer it once or twice a day. I was using really nice pots, not nonstick, which means yes, it does take a little longer to bring things to boil, but not that much longer. My pot was huge, so it has a lot of base surface area, which should have allowed it to come to boil faster and cool faster (a smaller diameter pot that is super deep would take even longer to cool to room temp. I can’t even imagine!)
So it took 4 days total, about 12 hours of active working hours tied to the kitchen, and I yielded just under 6 pints of jam. $35 for my 20 lbs of peaches makes them about $6 per pint. Good thing it’s freaking delicious! Just definitely, definitely not recommended for a first time jam maker. Next time I think I’ll try a recipe that uses pectin to firm it up to see if I get better yield and less time… I wonder if that woulds sacrifice flavor.
Also, btw, I did scorch it bad once, by making the mistake of going to the bathroom while it was on medium heat, but I was able to take out the burnt flavor by quickly changing pans, so that it didn’t continue to cook with the burnt bits, and I also added a teaspoon of almond extract and you can hardly tell at all. Yay!
Hi MG, it does take more time and that is the tradeoff for this pectin free natural method 🙂 and I agree, it sure does taste delicious – can’t be beat! 🙂
Of course it took too long to boil, there was a huge pot of peaches. Next time divide it into 2 pots. This was the easiest and most delicious preserves I had ever made. And…nothing is cheap these days.
I love that idea of dividing it into 2 pots to speed up the process. Brilliant! 🙂
I used your method to make Peach Jam last year so decided to apply it to Apricot Jam this year and it worked wonderfully. I used 10lbs of Apricots 3 cups of sugar and about 1/2 cup of lemon juice. 4 Boils total. It did turn pretty dark but tastes amazing.
That’s so great Time! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review with us! I’m sure our readers will find this helpful!
Hi, what would the maximum pounds of peaches you would use for one batch? Are their any negative drawbacks to doing this?
Hi Angie, the amounts stated make a typical batch for us and we don’t usually do more than that of peach preserves at a time.
Hi, I have almost a bushel of peaches. I’m wondering if you would dare do anymore than 11 lbs. of peaches per batch? If so how much more could you do?
Hi Angie, I wouldn’t do more than that or it may scorch at the bottom before uniformly heating the pot. I also don’t have an excessively large pot or burner so I don’t do more than 11 lbs in 1 pot.
It’s a great recipe and it tastes great, if your worried about scorching use a heavy bottom pan which distributes the heat more evenly. I did try the 6x method but could not can right away. My first batch fermented so I am going to try to make peach moonshine. I think it best not to go over 2 days when you live in a warm climate
Hi Saul, I haven’t had that occur but we always make the preserves in fairly mild temperatures. Could it be that you reduced the sugar int he recipe? That could possibly cause it to ferment.
I made this on a rainy Saturday with my niece. We added 2 cups of mango juice and 1 tablespoon of almond extract. It was so delicious! The following day we had it on pancakes for brunch. I shared with my best friend and now her husband is asking when I am going to make more.
That’s so great! I’m so happy you all enjoyed this recipe!
This past week I made strawberry and blueberry preserves/jams, and this was nigh on the exact recipe I used. I stood over it or within close proximity so it didn’t burn. The trick is lower heat after it comes to a boil. You want a gentle simmer, and if you have to time, like I do, you can get it done in one day. It takes several hours, but SO worth it!
It is definitely worth it! Thank you for trying our recipes!
I’ve made this recipe soo many times and I love it!! I normally use only freestone peaches but my neighbor just brought me a ton of white peaches and was wondering if those would be good to make preserves with?
Hi Blair, I haven’t tried that but I think it’s worth experimenting! I imagine they will be lighter in color. Keep me posted on how that works out 🙂
Super easy to make! I only used 1/2 cup of sugar and the preserves are delicious. More like a fruit spread, and you actually taste the peaches rather than the sugar. Try it for a healthier alternative!
Hi Leslie, I’m so happy you enjoyed it! I agree, it’s nice when you can taste the fruit more than the sugar which is why homemade is best! 🙂
Hi Natasha, this recipe is super easy to make. This year our peach tree had too many fruits for me to handle. I gave away almost half of the crop. Was feeling bad as did not know what to do with the rest, when I came across your recipe.
I tried with 24lbs of peaches. Balancing wasn’t successful so basically me and my husband peeled off the skin. Followed the instructions as best as I could and the end result…. wow!! I surprised myself. I still have a lot of peaches left and I am going to make another big batch of preserves. Only thing not sure whether the canning process was perfect. When I put the jars upside down, some of the syrup leaked. Is that normal or the seal was not formed properly. Is there a way to check?
Hi Meena, as long as the seal has formed on the lid of your jars (it should not be clickable when you press on it), it should be fine to store. Thank you for sharing your great review with us!
I have tried this receipe with plums and came out great! I like it because it is so easy to do .
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I made this last summer and absolutely loved it. I was thinking about trying the same recipe/method with strawberries. Has anyone else tried it? Any ideas on how much sugar you need or if it is ok to use big “pieces” or “chunks” of strawberries? Thank you!!
Hi, Roberta. I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I haven’t tried this method with strawberries but I think it would work. You may not have to cook it down repeatedly – that is done with this recipe so it doesn’t turn dark which isn’t the concern with strawberry. Cook the strawberry until a small amount of liquid turns to gel on a plate after it cools.
Thank you for your comments! I didn’t realize this the extra steps was due to the color for the peaches. If you used 11 pounds of strawberries, how much sugar would you start with?
Thank you!
It’s also the juice – peaches release a ton of juice. If your strawberries do likewise, you might need to simmer it longer. I could only guess with the sugar since I haven’t tried. From a preliminary search, I’m finding 2 lbs with 1 cup sugar plus lemon juice to taste. I would always start with less than that since I don’t like overly sweet preserves and then add more to taste.
Hi. I made the strawberry jam. I used 7 pounds of strawberries or 12 cups of pureed strawberries. I used about 9 cups of sugar. It was a little bit sweet so I would probably use 8 next time. I did have to cook it five times. And yes, definitely be careful about scorching. I suppose my next search might be about how to clean off the bottom of my dutch oven. It tasted wonderful though and I was quite happy with it. Thank you for your help and for the cooking method. It works perfectly for someone that doesn’t have longs periods of time available to her.
Roberta
You’re so welcome, Roberta!
Oh my goodness!!!! This stuff is liquid gold!!!! It made exactly 6 pints and came out a beautiful amber color. Not as light colored as yours, but I don’t care, cause the taste is what matters! I did 5 boils in a nonstick pot and let me just say, you can be a little lazy and walk away from you pot on that 1st boil, but on boils 2-5, there ain’t no playing. It’s all babysitting and stirring, but so worth it! I love how it’s an apple butter consistency. I can’t wait to experiment with other fruits. Thanks so much.
You’re so welcome, Audrey! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe!
Love this. Thank you! One question…why turn upside down?
Hi Vickie, turning it upside down, helps to create a seal.
Im very excited as I’m finishing up my first batch! This recipe is so easy! As far as storage? After the jars have set should they be dry stored, refrigerated or frozen?
These can be dry stored.
Very accurate directions and outcome. I will add that you must stir almost constantly during the last two simmers to prevent scorching and sticking. This also leads to a purée-like consistency which may not be your preference. The preserve is delicious, however. I would like it better if there were larger pieces of fruit but I don’t know how one would accomplish that without resorting to sure gel.
I’m glad to hear how much you enjoy the recipe Frances! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers!
Can you quick cool in cold water between boils or will this ruin it?
Hi Denise, I haven’t strayed from this method but I think it helps with the thickening process when you don’t rush through it.
Frances, could you possibly add some more chopped fruit near the fourth boil? I was thinking the same thing about raspberry jam I just made. I thought if I waited until the end and added more fruit, I would get the chunkiness I wanted. What do you think?
This was my first attempt at jam and I ended up burning it 🙁 I’m turning it into BBQ sauce and I’m going to try again tomorrow.
After the 4th boil I thought it seemed thin and watery, so I did another boil and it went all burnt. How watery is is meant to be when it goes into the jars? 🙂
Hi Sacha, this is more of a syrupy consistency and not overly thick preserves as you would find on store shelves because they use pectin whereas this uses the natural pectin from the fruit and boiling it down an extra time can help thicken it but because the mixture thickens up with each boil, you need to be especially careful to stir frequently, stirring from the bottom of the pot.
I just tried tjis recipe and I just love it!! It has to be the best peach jam I have ever tasted… thanks!
Excellent! I’m so glad to hear that Connie! Thank YOU for sharing! 🙂
Made these preserves and they turned out absolutely wonderful! Just wondering, if this same method will work for pears?
Hi Mary, I’m so glad you loved the recipe! 🙂 I honestly haven’t tried this with pears so I’m not sure if it would work the same way. Maybe someone else has tried and can share their insights? Thanks in advance!
Thanks for the great recipe! It reminds me how my mom used to make it but with apricots. We had tons of them at our dacha 🙂
My pleasure Tatiana! I hope you love the recipe!
Hi Natasha! Any suggestions on how to fix over-sweet preserve? My peaches appeared to be on a sweeter side so it tastes too sweet for me now. Is it OK to add lemon juice and/or water to it? Thank you! Tatiana
Hi Tatiana, yes you can add lemon juice to counter the sweetness. Water would be ok but it would make it more loose. Either way, be sure to bring it to a boil after adding lemon juice or water.
Can you cook in a slow cooker instead of the slow boils?
Hi Debbie, I haven’t tried this in a slow cooker so I can’t say for sure, but even on the low heat setting in a slow cooker, you will eventually have a consistent boiling. I think you could make it work cooking with the lid off so it can reduce down but the slow cooking process as directed in the recipe above (without the slow cooker) will produce a lighter final color to the preserves. If you continually boil it, it will darken in color. Without testing it in the slow cooker, I can’t say for sure how that would work or how long you would need to keep it in the slow cooker to get a thick enough consistency.