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This easy plum jam is a perfect way to capture the best of summer fruit in a jar.

You’ll love the beautiful color, the sweet-tart flavor and how simple it is to make.

I’ve been making fresh jams ever since we had a house with a grape trellis. What I love about making my own jam is how you can customize the amount of sweetness and other flavors. Don’t like cinnamon? Add allspice or ginger. Hate recipes with more sugar than fruit? You’re not finding that here. I’m a strong advocate of tasting the fruit and adding just enough sugar to enhance the fruit. After all, when you’re eating jam, it should taste like the fruit, not the sugar.

So find some ripe plums that need to be eaten yesterday and let’s get jamming.

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Easy Plum Jam

What are the best plums to make easy plum jam?

Frankly, use the plums that you can find. I’m using red plums today, but black are good, and pluots also make a lovely jam.

If you have a farmer’s market near you, look for more interesting varieties like Italian prune plums or damson plums.

Story time about Italian prune plums: There was a courtyard in the place where my husband and I honeymooned in Italy filled with plum trees. The trees were literally drooping to the ground because they were so weighed down by all the heavy ripe plums. One day we walked by the courtyard on our way to breakfast and all the plums were gone. In a day, the wonderful kitchen staff had made jam out of all of those gorgeous slender blue black plums, which popped up in jars next to all the cheese and meats. That remains the best jam I have ever eaten.

Ingredients for easy plum jam

Plums: any variety, and ripe
Sugar: any kind
Salt: just a pinch to balance the flavor
Spice: The recipe calls for cinnamon, but allspice, ginger, star anise go well with plums as well. You can leave this out as well.
Lemon: this is an optional ingredient. Most plums are tart enough by themselves, but if you’re using a more sweet plum, a little bit of lemon can help balance the sweetness.
Rum: also optional, but it tastes good with plums. You can opt for vanilla extract instead if you’d prefer.

Jam making FAQ

How much sugar should I use for plum jam?

Plums vary hugely in their sugar content, and ripe fruit is always sweeter. Taste your fruit with a small amount of sugar after you’ve started cooking the plums. If it seems too tart, add a little more sugar. There’s a lot of recipes out there where the sugar nearly outweighs the fruit. I personally think this is nonsense and prefer to sugar to taste only.

That said, I’m not a canning expert, so if you’re making your jam for long term storage, it’s good to consult a good canning book for expert recommendations. The All New Ball Book of Canning is always on hand in my kitchen for just those times when I need a reference.

Do you need to add pectin?

I never add pectin to any of my jams. I always find it adds a texture I don’t care for and somehow masks the flavor. If it’s your preference to add pectin, the Pomona Pectin book is a good reference.

Plums also have a reasonable amount of natural pectin to help the jam gel. Simply cook down your jam until it falls from sheets from a spoon, and you’re good to go.

Ways to use jam

Toast!
Fill homemade Czech kolache
Use it in monkey bread or cinnamon rolls
Luxurious topping for oatmeal
Use in place of syrup on pancakes or French toast

How to make plum jam step by step

Prepping the fruit

First, cut each plum into eighths as you remove the pits.

Next, sprinkle the plums with a small amount of sugar and the cinnamon and salt called for in the recipe. Let the plums sit until the juices start to run. When you can spoon out a good amount of juice, it’s time to cook the plums.

Cooking the plums

Place the plums in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Cook the plums until they start to break down, about 10 minutes. Stir frequently during this time to keep the plums from sticking to the bottom.

Next, mash the plums with a potato masher, then continue cooking until the plums are tender. With this amount of plums, it usually takes me about 10-15 more minutes. Taste the jam at this point for sweetness, adding more sugar if it’s too tart for you.

Alternatively, if the jam seems too sweet, add the juice of up to 1/2 of a lemon to balance out the flavor.

blending plums with an immersion blender

From here, use a stick blender to blend up the jam into a smooth consistency. Be careful here. Cover the pot loosely with a towel as you do this to avoid burns. Jam is hot!

Continue to cook the jam until it starts to thicken. As you’re cooking the jam down, if it ever feels like the bottom of the pot is getting dry, add a small splash of water to prevent scorching. When the jam falls from a spoon with a nice plop, it’s done.

To finish things off, add in your vanilla or rum if using. Finally, spoon your fresh jam into a clean glass jar and keep it in the fridge for up to a month (ours never lasts that long). You can also freeze it making sure to not overfill your jar.

Easy Plum Jam

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Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 2 cups

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Description

Use up all of the best fruit of summer with this easy plum jam.

Ingredients

Scale

1 pound ripe plums, stems removed
Sugar to taste, start with 1/3 cup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
juice from 1/2 lemon (optional if the fruit is very sweet)
1 tablespoon spiced rum or 1 tsp vanilla extract

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Instructions

Cut each plum into about 8 pieces, removing the pits. I like to cut them in quarters, then cut each in half.
Set the plum pieces in a non-reactive bowl and sprinkle with sugar and the cinnamon and salt. How much sugar will depend on the sweetness of the individual plums. Start with 1/3 cup, then you can taste later as the plums are cooking. Stir well.
Set the plums aside for about 30 minutes or up to a couple hours until the juices of the plums start collecting at the bottom of the bowl. You can skip this step, but it can help the plums get a head start when you go to cook them.
Place the plums in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Stir frequently for about 10 minutes until the plums begin to break down.
Smash the plums with a potato masher and continue to cook the plums until they are tender. Add about a tablespoon of water if necessary to keep the plums from burning.
At this point, taste the plums to check the sweetness. Add a little more sugar if necessary. If the fruit tastes very sweet, you can add the juice of up to 1/2 lemon to balance it out. Go easy here on the lemon–you want balance and NOT for it to taste like lemon.
Once the plums are tender, use a stick blender to blend the jam completely. Cook the jam until it falls from a spoon in a nice jammy plop.
Add the rum (or vanilla) into the hot jam.
Pack the jam in a clean glass jar and refrigerate for up to a month if it lasts that long.