Homemade Fig Jam Recipe

The homemade fig jam recipe is one of the most classical in Italy to be made at the end of the summer, together with the cherry and the apricots ones and of course together with the homemade tomato sauce.

Since the figs are only available for a short amount of time every year, in Italy people eat so many of them and store as much as possible for winter time.

The process is easy and it’s like making a classical jam but since figs are sweet, I add a lot less sugar than the usual; the color of your jam depends on the color of the figs.
As with all recipes and especially for jams and sauces, the cooking time varies according to the chosen fruit (more or less watery, more or less compact, etc), the pot used and of course the flame: always adjust it according to your tools and your ingredients.

Before making your jam, make sure you sterilize the jars you’re going to use and to do so, these are 4 of the most used methods (more on the Italian version of this blog, HERE):

STERILIZE JARS IN A POT

Place a clean cotton wiper on the bottom of a pot and place over the jars with the upward opening wrapped in towels individually. Cover with cold water and bring to boil on a high flame, letting it simmer for about 30 minutes. Allow jars to cool in the pot with all the water and then pull them out and let them dry with the opening down. Before using them turn them over so that the vapor and residual water evaporate.

STERILIZE JARS IN DISHWASHER

Place the jars and the lids in the dishwasher with the opening down and select a high-temperature wash, without soap. Allow the jars to cool and dry directly into the dishwasher so before using turn them over so that vapor and residual water evaporate.

STERILIZE JARS INTO THE OVEN

Place the jars with the opening upwards on a plate and place them in the oven. Turn on the oven to bring it to 150°C (302°F) so that the glass, once in contact with the heat, does not break. Leave the jars in the oven for at least 15 minutes then turn off the oven, add the lids using another plate and allow to cool down with a closed oven.

STERILIZE JARS INTO THE MICROWAVE

Fill the jars with water reaching half the height and place them in the microwave without caps. Heat until boiling, then remove the jars from the microwave, throw the water and let them dry on a cotton wiper, overrun. The lids can not be sterilized into the microwave.

You can also sterilize your jars when already filled with jam by following one of the above methods and leaving the jars boiling for at least 1 hour and for a maximum of 2 hours if the jars are big.

Once you’ve done this, it’s time to make your fig jam just like our Italian grandmas used to make