If you have a small amount of gooseberries and looking for a recipe in which to use them, this one is it! This strawberry gooseberry jam recipe is tart, sweet, and not to mention, gorgeous! Swirl it into homemade yogurt, spread it on toast, or sneak a spoonful when no one is watching!
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I'm convinced that the good Lord did not intend for us to eat gooseberries. Maybe they're only meant for the birds? I mean, have you ever tried picking gooseberries? Not only are gooseberry bushes loaded with thorns, but the fruit grows underside the thorny branches, hidden by the leaves. I have to deal with similar thorns when I make boysenberry jam.
So, if you can buy gooseberries at Trader Joe's or a local farmers market, consider yourself lucky! I had to go to war with the gooseberry bush in my garden (and it won) just to get a tiny amount of berries. For this reason, I combined them with strawberries to make a small amount of jam. Since gooseberries are tart and strawberries are sweet, they complemented one another and resulted in a delicious jam. Or, should I say preserve, since it came out pretty chunky, just the way I like it!
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🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Gooseberries: Fresh gooseberries, but frozen can be substituted.
- Strawberries: Fresh or frozen hulled strawberries.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar
- Lemon Juice: Fresh or bottled lemon juice.
🔪 Helpful Tools
- Medium pot
- Two 8-ounce mason jars
- Canner (optional)
- Immersion blender (if you prefer a smoother texture)
🍓 How to Make Gooseberry Strawberry Jam
Step 1: Rinse gooseberries, then top and tail (remove stem from one end and dried blossom from the other). Add to a medium pot and top with ⅓ cup water. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes to soften.
Step 2: Add chopped strawberries and sugar, then stir to combine. Simmer for another 15 minutes over low-medium heat. Mash the berries every now and then. Add lemon juice and simmer 5 more minutes. Place a few tablespoons on a chilled plate in the refrigerator for 2 minutes to see if it's set. If not, simmer a little longer.
Pro Tip: If you prefer a smoother texture, you can use an immersion blender to blend the jam before pouring into jam jars.
Step 3: Pour hot mixture into 2 sterilized 8-ounce mason jars, leaving ¼" headspace. Wipe the jar rims with a clean paper towel, add lids and collars, then hand-tighten.
Pro Tip: Refrigerate unsealed jars and consume within 3 months.
Optional Canning Instructions
Add jars to a canner filled with water and make sure the water level is at least a few inches over the jars. Bring the water to a full rolling boil, then process for 10 minutes. Add 5 additional minutes for every 1000'-3000' above sea level.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
Gooseberry jam is wonderful over vanilla ice cream, with freshly baked strawberry scones, or swirled into protein overnight oats. But, of course, you can also serve it over some toasted sourdough bread, my personal favorite!
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Gooseberry jelly is tart and sweet and has a unique flavor that's hard to describe unless you've had gooseberries before.
Topping and tailing gooseberries is the process by which the stem and dried blossom are removed from the fruit. A small piece of stem (top) is ok, but the dried blossom (tail) should be removed.
Gooseberries have a texture similar to grapes with a thin skin encapsulating the juicy flesh inside. Gooseberries can be either tart or sweet with a flavor similar to sour grapes or passionfruit and have tiny seeds that can be eaten.
Although gooseberries can be eaten raw, they are often cooked to make gooseberry jam and pie. They are also fermented to make gooseberry wine. They are also used to infuse gin.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- I wanted to accentuate the flavor of the gooseberries so I didn't add any spices. If you'd like to add some, a touch of cinnamon might be a nice addition.
- It's usually advised not to double jam or jelly recipes. I don't recommend doing so with this recipe either.
- If processed in a hot water bath, the sealed jars can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to a year.
🍒 Related Recipes
If you enjoy this gooseberry strawberry jam recipe, check out these other jam recipes!
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📖 Recipe
Would you like to save this recipe?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Rinse gooseberries, then top and tail (remove stem from one end and dried blossom from the other). Add to a medium pot and top with ⅓ cup water. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes to soften.
- Add chopped strawberries and sugar, then stir to combine. Simmer for another 15 minutes over low-medium heat. Mash the berries every now and then. Add lemon juice and simmer 5 more minutes. Place a few tablespoons on a chilled plate in the refrigerator for 2 minutes to see if it's set. If not, simmer a little longer.
- Pour hot mixture into 2 sterilized 8-ounce mason jars leaving ¼" headspace. Wipe the jar rims with a clean paper towel, add lids and collars, then hand tighten.
- Add jars to a canner filled with water and make sure the water level is at least a few inches over the jars. Bring the water to a full rolling boil then process for 10 minutes. Add 5 additional minutes for every 1000'-3000' above sea level.
Nutrition
Notes
- If you prefer a smoother texture, you can use an immersion blender to blend the jam before pouring into jam jars.
- Refrigerate unsealed jars and consume within 3 months.
- I wanted to accentuate the flavor of the gooseberries so I didn't add any spices. If you'd like to add some, a touch of cinnamon might be a nice addition.
- It's usually advised not to double jam or jelly recipes. I don't recommend doing so with this recipe either.
- If processed in a hot water bath, the sealed jars can be stored in a pantry for up to a year.
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