Cost of making home made jam

recovering_spendaholic

Hi - I got a real urge to make some jam yesterday and started working out how much it would cost to make several jars to see us through a few months (DD1 is a huge jam fan). I usually buy Asda own brand or similar jam (not value) pay about 60p for a 340g jar, and realised that it was going to cost me alot more than this to make my own!! If I buy a kilo of any soft fruit it is going to cost me around £3.50 unless reduced, and then there is the cost of the sugar, lemon juice etc. What do you all think? Those of you who are jam-makers is it alot more expensive and is it worth the extra money, and what kinds of jam work out the cheapest to make?

moggins

I tend to stick to making jams and chutneys from things I can pick from the hedgerow so I only have to pay for the sugar and gas. It is well worth it though and the taste bears no comparison to the value stuff from the supermarkets.

Nicki

Last time I made jam, I got fruit on BOGOF but it was the start of the season so still quite expensive. It worked out at about 70p a jar but tastes great and I know there is nothing artificial in it. Fruit should be cheaper now as it is well in season so maybe look out for BOGOF or try markets or PYO to bring the cost down.

Miss_Behaving

I have recently made apricot jam (using 3 x punnets of apricots at 10p each) and ripe tomato chutney (using 8 x punnets of organic vine-ripened tomatoes at 10p each). I always look in the reduced section to see what fruit and veg is reduced - Waitrose offers the best reductions, usually on a Tuesday or Thursday after 6pm!

The results were better than anything I could buy (even if I do say so myself!)

culpepper

If you reuse the jam jars with the pop up bit in the middle ,you wont need to buy special jars.You can use celophane covers if the lids are no good.Jam can be put in other containers too,they just need to withstand the heat of the newly made jam. You can use ordinary sugar. Pectin can be made by boiling up apple peel and saving the juice. You can find many fruits growing wild or go to the market and buy a big bag of fruit much cheaper than Asda's.

Penelope_Penguin

Hi, sometimes being OS isn't simply about cost. I'd rather go without than use shop jam.

I make preserves from what I have in the garden (plum, tomato, courgette) then buy from a pick your own. I aim to have my own fruit patch by next year.

When my DH whispers that the preserve in a hotel isn't a patch on mine, it's definitely worth it!

Penny. x

apprentice_tycoon

Another thing to consider is that bought jam will probably have more sugar than fruit, it's bulked up that way - just have a look at the % of fruit in shop jam, it will probably be less than 40%, if you made it yourself you'll find that a basic jam recipe will be about 50% fruit, 50% sugar.

tra_2

moggins wrote:

I tend to stick to making jams and chutneys from things I can pick from the hedgerow so I only have to pay for the sugar and gas. It is well worth it though and the taste bears no comparison to the value stuff from the supermarkets.

Hi Moggins. What do you pick? Obviously blackberries, but what else?

Chip_Butty_3

Well worth the effort & far better than the cheap shop bought jams.
You know that it isnt artificially coloured and there are no preservative chemicals slipped in.

As for the cost. Made 10 jars of Blackberry Jam last night & two have already been sold for £1.50 at a Car Boot. That has certainly paid for the sugar.

recovering_spendaholic

Thank you all for these replies. I am going to shop around for BOGOFS and reduced items - I often see much reduced tomatoes and strawberries so will keep an eye out for other stuff. I also know where there are some bramble bushes near to my house so I will venture out with the kids tomorrow on a bit of a forage. I may invest in a jelly bag (lakeland have one at the moment with stand for £7 odd) as I love seedless jams. I have also just ordered some greengage and plum trees for the garden so hopefully in a couple of years these will start to yield free fruit too!!. I agree that being OS isn't just about cost too. One last question - do you put the waxed disc thingie on the top of the hot jam or wait till it cools?

Jake'sGran

Have you tried Lemon Curd?. It is really really easy in a microwave. I realise people are wanting to save money but, because of the reduced cooking time, lemon cheese/curd is simple. You do need to use butter but even that is cheaper than margarine these days. I don't use marg for anything. Also, eggs are often on offer - well at Morrison's they are.

I think the cheapest jam is probably plum. Also, don't forgot that jam can be made from tin fruit and this too can often be bought cheaply.

My husband has discovered that the best marmalade he has tried is from Lidl. Its the thick cut one.