Easy to Make Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam

You’ll love this strawberry rhubarb freezer jam. It tastes like sweet fresh fruit. It’s perfect for morning toast or as a fruit topping for yogurt, ice cream or pancakes. Twenty minutes is all you need! Yup, this no-cook jam is that easy.

strawberry rhubarb freezer jam on spoon
No-cook means bright fresh flavour and colours.

Also Read: Strawberry Freezer Jam, Three Kinds of Strawberry Jam, Jam Making 101- The Basics

Benefits of Making Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam

Flavour – Strawberry rhubarb freezer jam tastes like fresh fruit puree. Compared to traditional cooked jam, it tastes more fruity than sweet.
Less Sugar – Freezer jam uses more fruit than sugar, regular jam uses more sugar than fruit. (Freezer jam uses 6 cups fruit and 1 1/2 cups sugar, regular jam uses 4 cups fruit and 7 cups sugar).
Easy to Make – No cooking or canning required. Simply crush fruit, stir in sugar and pectin and put in whatever jars or containers you have. (If not using frozen rhubarb, I do recommend cooking the rhubarb a little before making the jam.)
Great Activity for Kids – A fun summertime activity to do with kids. They love smooshing fresh strawberries. It’s messy fun, great to do outside!
No Special Equipment Needed – No canner, no special canning jars, no fancy jar lifters, all you need is bowl and a potato masher (even a fork will do). Reuse any glass, plastic or silicone containers that seal well and are freezer friendly.
No Canning Procedure Required – No sterilizing or water bath, just put it in a container and freeze.
Fresh or Frozen Fruit – Make freezer jam anytime with fresh or frozen fruit.
Any Combination of Fruit – Choose your favourite fruit combination. As long as the amount of fruit is the same, you’re good to go.

strawberry rhubarb freezer jam on spoon
Great for toast, in smoothies or topping for ice cream, cake or waffles.

Top 3 Tips for Making Freezer Jam

  • Pectin – You can actually freeze any kind of jam made with any kind of pectin, but for No-Cook jam, you must use pectin labeled no-cook freezer jam. Bonus – it also requires less sugar than other types of pectin. Read more about PECTIN VARIETIES.
  • Fruit – Choose your favourite fruit combination whether it’s fresh or frozen. As long as you have 4 cups of crushed fruit, it can be any combination you have access to. Once I made Rhugoberry jam – rhubarb, mango and strawberry. It was AMAZING!
  • DO IT – Don’t be intimidated, try it and you’ll be so impressed – as will your friends and family!
oven baked bannock with eggs and apples
Strawberry rhubarb freezer jam on fresh baked bannock.

Why Not Make Freezer Jam All the Time?

Freezer jam is so delicious and easy it’s hard to imagine why anyone would make any other kind of jam. I love freezer jam, but I also make cooked jams with traditional pectin and No Sugar Needed Pectin.  Here’s why…

  1. Texture – Freezer jam does not set the same way regular jam does, it is a little looser and runnier. For those that prefer a more traditional, firm set to their jam a cooked jam is a better option.
  2. Space – A year’s worth of jam takes up a lot of freezer space. If you want to store jam on the pantry shelf, a cooked and properly canned jam is the way to go.
  3. No Sugar – While freezer jam uses much less sugar than regular jam, there are many no sugar jam options available that require cooking and canning.
  4. Tradition – Some people just love classic, traditional jam. That’s cool.
  5. Jelly – Freezer jam is not ideal for making jelly, a cooked jelly recipe is best.
  6. Longer Storage – Full sugar, cooked jams will last much longer in the fridge once opened. If you can’t finish a jar of jam in less than two weeks, it’s best to use a higher sugar, cooked jam that will last much longer in the fridge.
  7. Gift GivingCanned jam is easier to wrap and give to someone, freezer jam makes a delicious gift, but taking the gift jar out of the fridge and freezer will cause condensation and then you have to give clear instructions to put in fridge or freezer right away. For that reason, shelf stable jam is an easier gift option.
strawberry rhubarb freezer jam on spoon
Look at that amazing colour!

Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam Recipe

strawberry rhubarb freezer jam on spoon
Print Recipe
3.08 from 26 votes

Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam

More fruity than sweet, this soft jam tastes like fresh, crushed strawberries on toast. The lighlty cooked rhubarb adds a hint of tart in every bite. Hello toast!
Prep : 20 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 jars

Ingredients

  • 4 cups Strawberries fresh or frozen
  • 2 cups Rhubarb diced fresh or frozen
  • 1 ½ cups Sugar
  • 1 pkg Freezer Jam Pectin* I use Bernardin No Cook Freezer Jam Pectin

Instructions

  • Wash and clean fresh strawberries or thaw frozen strawberries.
  • In a saucepan, bring rhubarb and 1-2 Tbsp water (just enough to cover the bottom of the pot) to a boil. Simmer for 6-8 minutes until rhubarb is soft and tender.
  • Place strawberries in a 9×13 casserole dish or baking pan so they're easy to mash. Use a potato masher or fork to squish them to your desired size (they will be exactly as you mash them since they don't get cooked). I don't recommend using a blender or food processor as they get too liquidy.
  • Add in the cooked rhubarb and mix well. Mash the combined mix a little more until nicely mixed.
  • When finished, you should have 4 cups (1 L) of crushed fruit.
  • In separate small bowl, mix sugar and pectin.
  • Add pectin to fruit. Stir until pectin is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes.
  • Pour into clean jars or plastic freezer containers leaving a ½ inch (1.2 cm) headspace to allow for expansion.
  • Wipe rim with clean cloth and seal.
  • Let stand for 30 minutes to set.
  • Keep in fridge for 3 weeks or in freezer for 1 year or longer.

Video

Notes

Yield 4 – 5 half pint (250 ml) jars
Freezer Jam Pectin – Read your package instructions carefully. Every brand of freezer pectin has slightly different mixing instructions depending on the gelling ingredient.
Nutrition Facts, per jar assuming 4 jars.
Tried this recipe?Mention @GetGettyS or tag #GetGettyS

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

Calories: 368kcal | Carbohydrates: 94g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 5mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 87g | Iron: 1mg
Course: jam, preserves
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chia seed jam, freezer jam, rhubarb, strawberries

More Rhubarb Recipes

Want to learn more about rhubarb or rhubarb recipes, check out 7 Things You Need to Know About Rhubarb.

Curious about the bannock in that photo?  

Here’s How to Make Bannock in the Oven or Over a Fire.

Getty Stewart is an engaging speaker and writer providing tasty recipes, time-saving tips, and helpful kitchen ideas to make home cooking easy and enjoyable. She is a Professional Home Economist, author of Manitoba’s best-selling Prairie Fruit Cookbook, Founder of Fruit Share, mom and veggie gardener.

11 Comments

  1. Did you mix the strawberries and rhubard out of the sauce pan or in the sauce pan? I am new to all of this.. sorry! Basically, I am unclear if we are mashing/combinging on or off heat.

    1. Hi Taylor,
      I’ve rewrote the recipe to provide more clarity. I recommend that you prepare the rhubarb and strawberry separately. Cook the rhubarb and stir to break it up into tender pieces. Mash the strawberries separately without heat. I like using a glass 9×3 pan so I have a shallow layer and a flat, hard surface to make mashing easy. When you mix the rhubarb and strawberries together you can mash them a little more. Basically, you want to mash until you get the size of fruit pieces that you prefer to have in your jam. There is no cooking, so pieces won’t break down any further. Hope this helps. Enjoy and welcome to the world of jam making!

    1. Hi Krysia,
      Pectin is the substance you add to make jams and jellies thicken. Common brand names are Certo, SureJell, Pomona, Bernardins,etc. Pectin is naturally occurring in fruits and vegetables; it gives cells structure and shape. Some fruits like apples (especially slightly underripe or crab apples) and citrus contain more pectin than others, as a result our grandparents often added apples, crab apples or citrus rind to jams and jellies in order for them to set or jel. Today, we use commercial pectin under the brands of Certo, SureJell, Pomona or Bernardins. Commercial pectin is typically made from citrus rind and occasionally from apples. Most common jam or jelly recipes will call for some form of pectin. Making jam or jelly without pectin requires special adaptations and typically you end up with a fruity spread that is delicious, but slightly different than jam. Here’s a chart of different pectin varieties. http://eqhct8esjgc.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Pectin-Chart.pdf

      Hope that helps.
      Getty

  2. So sorry Getty, I have been making all kinds of freezer jams for years, and this is possibly the worst recipe I have encountered. Too runny, to bitter and to get it to thicken required another trip to the store for more pectin and it was time consuming. I did get it to thicken, but I would suggest to your readers to use the instructions included with the box of pectin.

    Thank you, MN

    1. Oh no, I’m so sorry it didn’t work for you Michelle. This is one of my favorite recipes that I’ve used with tons of groups. It was one of our favorite activities at family camp for an entire summer. Even the kids loved it. Perhaps the difference is in the brand of freezer pectin used? I’ve updated the recipe showing the brand I usually use – Bernardin no cook freezer jam pectin. I even double checked their instructions for freezer jam and it’s pretty much the same as the ones I’ve shown. I certainly agree with your suggestion to read the mixing instructions on whatever pectin people choose.
      Perhaps another item that may have caused a difference is the thickness of the stewed rhubarb. I barely add any water to the rhubarb, so it is quite thick – again, I’ve made note of this in the recipe.
      Thanks for trying and sharing your experience.
      Getty

  3. Do I need to heat or unfreeze the strawberries? It only says to heat rhubarb. Both my fruit are frozen.

    1. Hi Geraldine,
      If using frozen strawberries, thaw them so you can squish them with a potato masher. If using fresh strawberries, no need to heat, they will squish quite easily. The rhubarb, whether frozen or raw needs to be cooked a little because it is tougher. Hope that clarifies it.

      Enjoy!

  4. Hi, I probably will not get an answer in time but I will check back anyway. Did you use low sugar dry fruit pectin SureJell pink box)? It doesn’t seem like much sugar.

    1. I used a pectin specific for freezer jam, called freezer jam pectin. It comes in a pouch rather than a box. And yes, the freezer jam pectin does use much less sugar. If you use regular powder pectin or the low sugar dry fruit pectin you have to boil the jam to properly activate the pectin.

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