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Easy Cranberry Jelly

cranberry jelly with fresh cranberries on a wooden table
Photo Credit
Chamille White/Shutterstock
The Editors
Category
Pickles and Preserves
Course
Side Dishes
Occasions
Christmas
Thanksgiving
Preparation Method
Cook
Sources
The Old Farmer's Almanac Colonial Cookbook
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This basic Cranberry Jelly recipe only needs sugar and water, as cranberries naturally contain a lot of pectin, which helps keep the berries nice and firm. Make it during the autumn when cranberries are available! It’s an excellent side to add flavor to turkey and pork or everyday meals and a favorite for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.

Note: Cranberry jelly is not the same thing as cranberry sauce. Jelly is clear and smooth, while sauce has chunks or bits of fruit. As a jelly, you can pour it into either jars or special molds for serving.

Homemade cranberry jelly will taste more natural and less sugary than the canned versions. It uses whole fruits and does not use the high fructose corn syrup and more corn syrup found in canned brands. Plus, it’s so easy to make with only two ingredients!

Refrigerate this jelly for up to two weeks.

See our “How to Make Jelly” guide to learn more and discover more jelly recipes!

Ingredients
1 quart or 4 cups of cranberries
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
Instructions
  1. In a heavy saucepan, simmer cranberries in the water for 20 minutes or until soft. Optional: If you want super-smooth jelly, transfer to a blender and puree until smooth.
  2. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve or jelly bag, pushing the sauce through with a spatula. 
  3. Return to the stove. Stir in sugar. 
  4. Stirring, bring to a rolling boil over high heat, and cook for about 5 minutes. 
  5. Pour into a wet molds or sterilized jelly jars immediately as jelly hardens quickly.

Refrigerate to set completely. Enjoy!

About The Author

The Old Farmer's Almanac Editors

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Comments

Maud (not verified)

3 years 9 months ago

How much liquid cranberry juice to 2 cups of sugar?

Laura L Pearsall (not verified)

3 years 11 months ago

How long does this keep? How can I process this to store it?
I'd like to make it, but just can't eat it all in a couple of weeks. Thanks for your help!!

Hi, Laura. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. But if you want to can it, then process it in a hot water bath for 15 minutes.