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    Home » How to » Homemade Concord Grape Jelly: A Step by Step Tutorial

    Homemade Concord Grape Jelly: A Step by Step Tutorial

    October 19, 2015 , Updated September 4, 2024 Maria 137 Comments

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    An overhead shot of a slice of whole wheat bread spread with grape jelly.

    Nothing says fall like making homemade concord grape jelly. Intoxicating aroma, jewel-like color and sweet-tart taste appeal to all your senses. 

    An overhead shot of concord grape jelly spread on a piece of whole wheat bread.

    Mother Nature dictated my priorities this past week-end.

    I willingly obliged.

    Now I have about twenty jars of Homemade Concord Grape Jelly.

    It snowed hailed in Montreal this week-end, and we also got our first frost warning of the year. Since I had no intention of making ice wine, I psyched myself up to harvest the remainder of the grapes in my backyard while I still could… and I used those grapes to make this wonderful jelly.

    A close up of a bunch of Concord Grapes, hanging from a vine.

    A couple of years ago, my husband built a pergola for the three different varieties of grapes he planted. Needless to say, we had a lot of grapes this year. I’ve been sharing with friends, family and neighbors over the past couple of months, and I still had so many leftovers.

    As the warmer weather continued well into October, the grapes on the vine just became sweeter and sweeter. But alas, the inevitable is well on its way and so I picked those leftover grapes at last and made my favorite jelly this weekend!

    This grape jelly recipe with pectin is really not a difficult process -you’ll just need to set aside a couple of hours, especially if you are lucky enough to be harvesting your own concord grapes.

    A few bunches of concord grapes hanging from the vines in a garden.

    As a side note, you might be wondering what I’m going to do with these twenty jars of concord grape jelly I made!

    Well, I find that they are appreciated as hostess and holiday gifts. Autumn is the best time to prepare these food gifts… homemade strawberry jam, apple butter, vanilla pear butter, applesauce, sun-dried tomatoes, traditional basil pesto …the list just continues to grow.

    Nutrition Tip: This Homemade Concord Grape Jelly is made with the extracted grape juice of Concord grapes, sugar and pectin. It provides you with an excellent alternative to a fat-free spread. Studies have shown that Concord grapes when eaten in their fruit form, provide us with powerful antioxidants called polyphenols.

    An overhead shot of a spoonful of Concord Grape Jelly, surrounded by fresh concord grapes.

    How to make grape jelly

    You won’t believe how easy this is!
    The preliminary steps of making grape jelly involve crushing the concord grapes with a potato masher.

    Step 1: The preparation

    Making your own Homemade Concord Grape Jelly requires a few preparatory steps:

    • Canning jars need to be washed and sterilized (place in 225 ° F oven for at least 10 minutes). I leave them in the oven until I am ready to fill them up.
    • Lids also need to be sterilized; just 10 minutes in simmering water is all it takes. Leave them in the water until you need them.
    • Grapes need to be properly rinsed, stemmed and crushed. I have often found spiders, spider webs and all sorts of creepy crawlers in the middle of mine… that’s what happens when no pesticides are used! I think it’s a fair trade-off. As I stem each grape, I also give it a gentle squeeze in order to separate the “meat” from the skin. I do this over the bowl in order to collect any juices that may be given off. Then, with the help of a potato masher, I crush the grapes. In total, we need about 3 pounds of grapes that have been removed from their stems.

    Concord grapes are boiled before being transferred to a cheesecloth, set over a large bowl in order to collect the juice required t0 make the jelly.

    Step 2: Extracting the grape juice

    Once your grapes have been crushed, place them in a large saucepan along with ½ cup of water. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to allow the grapes to simmer for approximately 10 minutes, covered. Stir occasionally.

    In the meanwhile, set your cheesecloth in a strainer (or use your jelly cloth if you have one) over a heatproof bowl. Pour prepared fruit and liquid in the strainer and allow to drip for a couple of hours. You need four cups of this strained liquid. The aroma of this concentrate is absolutely intoxicating!

    A few process shots depicting how to skim the foam from the simmering grape juice extract.

    Step 3: Combining the ingredients

    It’s extremely important to measure the right amounts of grape juice and sugar– otherwise, your jelly may turn out too thick or too thin.

    That being said, combine 4 cups of extracted grape juice with 7 cups of granulated sugar in a large heavy-bottomed pot.

    Bring your mixture to a boil, add in the CERTO pectin (liquid) and stir for exactly one minute. Do not get burned here!

    Once that is done, remove the pot from the heat and skim the foam for approximately 5 minutes. I find this to be a two-person job, though it can be done alone. I usually enlist the help of my daughter… she stirs while I skim.

    An overhead shot of the grape jelly in a small bowl along side some fresh grapes.

    Step 4: Canning

    Ladle the jelly immediately into your sterilized hot jars. Remember to leave about ¼ inch of headspace. Place a sterilized lid and screw on the top.

    The final part is processing the jars in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. 

    When you hear the seals of the jar lids popping, you’ll know you’ve done a good job!

    How to use it

    This Homemade Concord Grape Jelly is great on toasted bread, bagels, homemade scones, buttermilk biscuits, rolls or pancakes. Not to mention savory-sweet dishes like this recipe for these Super Easy Baked Chicken Thighs.

    An overhead shot of the purple concord grape jelly spread over a slice of whole wheat bread.

    Recipe inspiration

    This summary is based on the recipe which I found years ago on the CERTO website. The original recipe did not require any butter, and so I do not use any (interesting enough, Martha Stewart also uses Certo to make her grape jelly… I guess that means I’m doing it right!)

    Have fun making your grape jelly.

    THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.

    And if you are new here, welcome! You may want to sign up for my weekly e-mail newsletter. You can unsubscribe any time you want.

    Ciao for now,

    Maria 

    ★★★★★ If you have made this Grape Jelly recipe, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!

    Grape jelly spread across a slice of brown bread.

    Recipe

    An overhead shot of the purple concord grape jelly spread over a slice of whole wheat bread.

    Homemade Concord Grape Jelly

    Nothing says fall like making homemade concord grape jelly. Intoxicating aroma, jewel-like color and sweet-tart taste appeals to all your senses. 
    5 from 30 votes
    Print Save RecipeSaved! Pin Rate
    Course: condiment
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 4 hours hours
    Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 4 hours hours 12 minutes minutes
    Servings: 7 half pint jars
    Calories: 994kcal
    Author: Maria Vannelli RD
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    Ingredients

    Extracting the juice:

    • 3 pounds grapes removed from their stems and washed
    • ½ cup water

    Making the jelly:

    • 4 cups extracted grape juice
    • 7 cups sugar granulated
    • 1 pouch Certo fruit pectin liquid

    Instructions

    Extracting the juice:

    • Place grapes in a heavy-bottomed pot.
    • Add water.
    • Crush the grapes with a potato masher. This will help speed up the extraction process.
    • Bring the grapes to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.
    • Cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.
    • Stir occasionally.
    • In the meanwhile, sterilize jars and caps (for details refer to post section on THE PREPARATION).
    • Pour the cooked grapes, in a jelly bag or cheesecloth-lined strainer. Allow to drip for a couple of hours.

    Making the jelly:

    • Combine the extracted grape juice and sugar in a large heavy-bottomed pot.
    • Over high heat, stir together until the mixture comes to a boil.
    • Add the pouch of Certo and continue to stir the boiling mixture for 1 minute.
    • Remove the pot from the heat.
    • Stir and skim the foam for approximately 5 minutes.
    • Ladle the jelly immediately into the hot sterilized jars. Leave ¼ inch of headspace. Place a sterilized lid and screw on the top.
    • The final part is processing the jars in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. 
    • When you hear the seals of the jar lids popping, you'll know you've done a good job!
    Enhance Your Cooking Experience!SCROLL UP for essential step-by-step photos embedded in the article above. When available, videos can be found in the next section. These visuals are designed to help you achieve perfect results every time. Happy cooking!

    Notes

    Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is just a rough estimate and variations can occur depending on the specific ingredients used. 
    *recipe adapted from Certo

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1pint | Calories: 994kcal | Carbohydrates: 256g | Protein: 1g | Sodium: 14mg | Potassium: 521mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 250g | Vitamin A: 140IU | Vitamin C: 6.4mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1.2mg
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    Filed Under: Breakfast and Brunch, Condiments and Sauces, How to

    About Maria

    Maria Vannelli is a retired dietitian who lives in a suburb just outside Montreal, Canada. She's the founder of the food blog She Loves Biscotti. Maria hopes to inspire you and bring you and your loved ones closer together at meal times enabling you to create some memorable moments.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sharon W. from Calgary

      September 24, 2024 at 3:04 pm

      5 stars
      FABULOUS
      I have Valiant Grapes in my back yard in Calgary. They were very abundant this year! I used 4 1/2 pounds of grapes as they are much smaller than concord, to produce 4 cups of juice.
      I’ve never made grape jelly before. This recipe was Fantastic. I’m very impressed. Thank You so much Maria

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 24, 2024 at 3:40 pm

        Thank you so much for your kind words Sharon! I’m thrilled to hear that the recipe worked so well with your Valiant grapes—that’s amazing! It’s so rewarding to use your homegrown harvest. I’m so glad you enjoyed making the jelly, especially since it was your first time. Thanks again for sharing your experience!

        Reply
    2. Dan S.

      September 14, 2024 at 6:58 pm

      5 stars
      Easy, I love to hear common sense in every paragraph of a recipe doctoral.
      I made it, I ate it, and rate it easy and excellent. Thanks. P.S. I’m a 66 year old Montana man. Done a lot, this added one more thing I’ve done.
      I’ll bet this will be part of a venison glaze with capers one day. I’ll look for you Zupa Toscona recipe. That will be a test to your skills. Peace

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 14, 2024 at 9:46 pm

        Thank you so much for taking the time to comment Dan. I love the idea of using it as a glaze for venison—sounds delicious! All the best.

        Reply
    3. Ann Nizza

      September 08, 2024 at 10:14 am

      5 stars
      Good ob, Maria.

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 10, 2024 at 3:58 pm

        Thanks so much Ann ♥

        Reply
    4. Manon Berube

      September 01, 2024 at 12:21 pm

      5 stars
      I got excellent results with your recipe comparable to my local bakery. My first attempt at making Concord grape jelly turned into a rock hard mess with a different method. Thank you!

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 04, 2024 at 8:18 am

        My pleasure Manon! Thanks so much for sharing!

        Reply
    5. Dawn

      August 29, 2024 at 9:38 am

      So does the butter alter the taste?

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 04, 2024 at 8:20 am

        Thanks for your interest Dawn. It does not. Enjoy!

        Reply
    6. Judi Oates

      September 02, 2023 at 1:57 pm

      5 stars
      I made this recipe last year and won first prize at our local fair. I’ve bought my Concord grapes today and am in the process of making the jelly again. The house is smelling wonderful. This jam was a huge hit with family and friends.

      Reply
    7. Mireille

      August 26, 2023 at 3:22 pm

      Excellent recipe! I used 5 cups of sugar found that was perfect for us.

      Reply
      • Maria

        September 02, 2023 at 10:40 am

        Thanks for stopping by Mireille!

        Reply
    8. Beth

      October 09, 2021 at 6:03 am

      5 stars
      Have used your recipe twice this season and our Concord grape jelly turned out perfectly. I don’t pluck the grapes from the stems – just throw the entire washed batch into the pot and crush them. Then easily pick the loosened stems out as I’m heating up the juice and prior to straining. Got the idea from a farm woman’s old recipe. Will try the butter trick also. Thank you.

      Reply
      • Maria

        October 10, 2021 at 9:07 am

        That is a great time-saving tip! Thanks so much for sharing Beth!

        Reply
    9. Tammy K

      October 01, 2021 at 1:07 pm

      5 stars
      Easy and delicious! My family and friends that I have gifted a jar too LOVE this recipe! Highly recommend!

      Reply
      • Maria

        October 01, 2021 at 1:08 pm

        So thrilled to read this! Thanks so much for sharing Tammy!

        Reply
    10. Mike Giuseffi

      September 29, 2021 at 9:37 am

      Hi Maria- If you opted to add the 1/2 teaspoon of butter that is recommended in modern recipes you could have saved you and your daughter’s tedious five minutes of skimming the jelly.

      Reply
      • Maria

        October 05, 2021 at 9:14 pm

        Thanks for the info Mike! Will give it a try!

        Reply
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