3 Easy Low-Sugar or No-Sugar Rhubarb Jam Recipes to Can This Spring

Spring is in full force here and I plan to celebrate by making a batch of pretty pink, low-sugar, rhubarb jam!  But first, I would like to share with two pieces of trivia!  One, rhubarb is technically a vegetable.  Yep, we eat the stalks of the plant therefore consuming a vegetable.  A side note: do NOT eat the leaves as they are poisonous in large amounts!

My second piece of trivia for you is that when making rhubarb jam, do not use aluminum pans.  The acidity of the rhubarb reacts with the aluminum, pulling small traces of aluminum into the jam leaving your pan with pitting and your jam with a metal taste.  Yuck…no one wants that!  Instead, use an enameled metal, stainless steel, or anodized aluminum pan.

In the past, I have made various kinds of jams full of sugar and pectin.  Lately, though, I am on a quest to reduce the amount of sugar in me and my kids’ lives and so have found a few recipes that are low or no-sugar to try!  I plan to try this Keto one first!

The original recipe and instructions are from Little Yellow Wheelbarrow.   What is really neat about Laura’s recipe is that she has already tested various combination or sugar alcohols in her recipes and gives us, in her opinion, the best results.  If you would like to properly can this jam, instructions follow the basic jam-making instructions. 

Recipe #1: NO SUGAR RHUBARB JAM

“Makes a very tart, lip-puckering, rhubarb jam with Keto-friendly sweetener.”

Ingredients

4 cups of cooked and smashed rhubarb (begin with 6 cups of diced raw rhubarb)*

1 cup of Erythritol

1/2 cup of Splenda

One package of No Sugar Needed Pectin

One pat of butter

*Note: Use only the reddest parts of the rhubarb stalks to make the prettiest pink jam.

Directions

1. Cut 6 cups of bright red rhubarb into chunks and place in a stainless-steel (or other non-aluminum) pot. 
2. Add ½ cup of water.   
3. On the stove, cook it down until you can smash the rhubarb with the back of a spoon.  Smush it all and take it off the heat.  It may only take rhubarb 3 minutes or so on medium-high heat to do this.
4. Measure out 4 cups of smushed rhubarb and put it back in the pan.   Add your 1 cup of Erythritol and 1/2 cup of Splenda and the pat of butter.
5. Turn heat back on and bring to a rolling boil.
6. When your rhubarb reaches a rolling boil, add the pectin and start a timer for 2 minutes. When the timer stops, remove from the heat.
7. This recipe fills four 1 cup jam jars.
8. To can, follow basic instruction below or simply store in clean, glass jars in the refrigerator or freezer.  Eat refrigerated jam within 3 weeks and frozen jam within 3 months.

Basic Canning Instruction for Jam

1. Clean and sterilize mason jars, lids, and rings.  Plan to do this step before making the jam.

I fill a large pot with warm water making sure to cover all jars, lids, and rings.  Turn on the heat.  Once the water begins to boil set the timer for 10 minutes (more time is needed if you live at higher altitudes). 

I like to clean the surrounding kitchen space while the jars are sterilizing.  Then I begin on making the jam.  You can always leave the jars in the hot water until you are ready to use them!  Just pull them out carefully with a jar lifter or tongs.

2. Once jam is ready and your jars are sterilized, fill the jars with jam using a jar funnel.  Leave a ¼-inch head space.

3. Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean cloth and add the lids and rings according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

4. Boil in a water bath: 10 minutes for 8 oz (1 cup) jam jars and 15 minutes for 16 oz (1 pint) jars. Remove from the water bath and cool on a rack for 24 hours before removing rings. Store for up to one year.

The next rhubarb jam recipe uses honey and a little ginger and vanilla.  I think this would make a lovely holiday gift idea.  This recipe was originally found at An Oregon Cottage.

Recipe #2: HONEY RHUBARB GINGER JAM

“Delicious, naturally sweetened honey rhubarb ginger jam is made with just five ingredients.”

Ingredients

4 cups sliced rhubarb, fresh or frozen (about 1-1/2 pounds)

1 ½ cups honey

1 tablespoons lemon juice (do not omit)

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger*

*Note: You can also use up to 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, but no more if you are canning.

Directions

1. Cut 4 cups of bright red rhubarb into chunks and place in a stainless-steel (or other non-aluminum) pot.
2. Combine all the other ingredients into the pot. Cook over med-high heat until thick and syrupy (this will take about 20 minutes).
3. This recipe fills three half pint jam jars.
4. To can, follow basic instruction above or simply store in clean, glass jars in the refrigerator or freezer. Eat refrigerated jam within 3 weeks and frozen jam within 3 months.

And finally, I have low sugar recipe for you originally from Practical Self Reliance.   What’s great about this recipe is that is uses half the amount of sugar as traditional recipes and no pectin.  Because no pectin is used, this recipe will be a tad runnier than the others (which is okay with me).  This would taste so delicious over ice cream or made into jam bars.

Recipe #3: RHUBARB JAM WITHOUT PECTIN

“This simple rhubarb jam has just two ingredients and no added pectin.”

Ingredients

2 lbs rhubarb, chopped into 1/4 inch pieces (about 6-7 cups)

1/2 to 2 cups sugar* (see note)

*Notes:  This recipe can be doubled if desired, but do not increase the recipe past double or the jam may not cook properly. A very low sugar jam uses about 1/2 cup sugar for 2 lbs rhubarb but adjust the sugar level to your taste. Using 2 full cups of sugar will yield slightly more than 3 half pints.

Directions

1. Cut 6-7 cups of bright red rhubarb into chunks and place in a stainless-steel (or other non-aluminum) pot. 
2. Stir the rhubarb and sugar together and allow to macerate (become softened) overnight.
3. Remove the rhubarb pieces and set aside. 
4. Bring the leftover sugar/juice mixture to a simmer over medium heat until thickened.
5. Add the rhubarb and cook for another 5 minutes until the rhubarb is cooked and the jam thickens to your preference.
6. This recipe fills three half pint jam jars.
7. To can, follow basic instruction above or simply store in clean, glass jars in the refrigerator or freezer.  Eat refrigerated jam within 3 weeks and frozen jam within 3 months.

Let me know which recipe you try.  I hope this season I have enough rhubarb for all three! 

To try a few other spring recipes:

Foraging for Edibles: 4 Recipes to Cook this Spring