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Plum canning recipes go way beyond a basic batch of plum jam. With one good plum harvest you can put up pie filling, sauce, butter, jelly, syrup, pickles, and chutney, all from the same tree.
Plums grow especially well on our Vermont homestead, and we’ve got nearly 20 varieties in just about every color you can imagine. Early in the season, we pick the best-looking ones and work through our plum canning recipes while the fruit is at its peak.
Once the pantry shelves are full, the dehydrator comes out for a few gallons of prunes, and the plums still keep coming. We finish the season by hauling in buckets of them for big batches of plum wine, but the canning always comes first.
Plums are naturally acidic with a good amount of pectin, which makes them one of the more forgiving fruits to put up and a strong candidate for setting homemade jam and jelly recipes with little or no added pectin. Every recipe here comes from a tested source, with my own Vermont recipes first and trusted canning sites filling in the flavors I haven’t published yet.
Canning Plums in Syrup, Honey & Juice
Plain canned plums are the simplest place to start, and they hold their shape and color better than you might expect. A jar is good straight as a snack, spooned over oatmeal, or baked into a quick cobbler.
You can pack plums in a light syrup, in honey, or in plain juice or water if you’re watching the sugar. Halved and pitted is easiest, though small plums can go in whole if you prick the skins first so they don’t burst.
- Canning Plums covers hot pack, raw pack, and syrup options step by step
Plum Pie Filling
A jar of plum pie filling is one of those quiet luxuries that makes winter baking almost effortless. Crack it open for pie, of course, but it’s also lovely over pancakes, ice cream, or a wedge of pound cake.
Like any canned pie filling, these use Clear Jel, the one thickener tested as safe for canning. It holds the right consistency through processing and storage, where flour or cornstarch can turn cloudy or unsafe.
- Plum Pie Filling is a classic spiced filling ready to bake into pie
Plum Jam
Plum jam is where a lot of plum seasons begin, and for good reason. Plums carry enough natural pectin that many recipes set up well without a box of added pectin, especially if you toss in a few underripe fruits.
The flavor takes well to warm spices, a little pepper, or a pairing with other late-summer fruit. If you grow heirloom varieties, damsons and greengages each make a distinctive jam worth putting up on its own.
- Damson Jam turns the small, tart damson plum into a rich, deep-colored jam
- Greengage Jam captures the honeyed flavor of green-gold greengage plums
- Plum Jam Without Pectin sets with just plums and sugar, no box of pectin needed
- Low Sugar Plum Jam cuts the sugar way down with no-sugar-needed pectin
- Peppered Plum Jam adds black pepper for a savory-sweet edge
- Spiced Plum Jam works in cinnamon and warm spices in a small batch
- Peach, Pear, and Plum Jam blends three orchard fruits into one spread
Plum Jelly
Plum jelly strains the fruit down to a clear, glistening spread with no skins or pulp. Because plums are naturally high in pectin and acid, a basic plum jelly can come together with just juice and sugar.
From there it’s easy to dress up. A little cinnamon and clove, or a pod of cardamom, turns a plain plum jelly into something special for the holiday table.
- Plum Jelly is the basic recipe made from strained fresh plum juice
- Spiced Plum Jelly adds warm baking spices to the jar
- Vanilla-Cardamom Plum Jelly brings a fragrant, dessert-like twist
Plum Sauce
Plum sauce is the savory side of the plum harvest, and it’s the jar I’m most glad to have come dinnertime. A good one walks the line between sweet and tangy and turns a plain weeknight protein into something worth talking about.
There’s a whole world of styles here, from the takeout-style Chinese plum sauce you’d serve with duck to spicier canned versions for brushing on grilled meats. Stick to a tested recipe, since the added vinegar and aromatics change the acidity.
- Plum Sauce is a straightforward sweet-tart sauce for canning
- Spicy Canned Plum Sauce adds heat for grilling and dipping
- Asian Plum Sauce is a canning-safe version of the takeout classic
- Sweet and Spicy Plum Sauce balances sugar and chili for a versatile glaze
- Chinese Plum Sauce (Duck Sauce) is the rich, glossy sauce for spring rolls and duck
Plum Butter
Plum butter cooks the fruit low and slow until it’s thick, smooth, and deeply flavored, with little or no added pectin needed. It’s a forgiving way to use up a big pile of soft plums all at once.
Nearly every culture with a plum tree has its own version, from German pflaumenmus to Polish powidlo, and they’re all worth a try. A slow cooker handles the long reduction if you’d rather not babysit the stove.
- Plum Butter cooks plums down into a thick, canning-safe spread
- German Plum Butter (Pflaumenmus) is the deeply spiced traditional German version
- Spiced Plum Butter leans into cinnamon, ginger, and clove
- Polish Plum Butter (Powidlo) is cooked down for hours into a dark, jammy butter
Plum Juice, Lemonade & Syrup
When you’d rather drink your plums, juice and concentrate are the way to go. Plum juice is good on its own or as a base for jelly later, and a canned lemonade concentrate gives you plum lemonade by the glass all year.
Plum syrup is the thinner pour of the group, made for pancakes, soda, and cocktails. A few jars stretch the season well past the first frost.
- Plum Lemonade Concentrate cans down to a concentrate you dilute by the glass
- How to Can Plum Juice at Home puts up plain plum juice for drinking or jelly
- Homemade Plum Syrup makes a pourable syrup for drinks and desserts
Pickled Plums
Pickled plums don’t get nearly enough attention, but they’re a wonderful sweet-and-sour bite next to rich meats and a cheese board. They’re a good gateway into pickling fruit if cucumbers are all you’ve tried so far.
Recipes range from simple spiced plums in syrup to savory versions with onions or a hit of heat. Firm, slightly underripe plums hold their shape best in the jar.
- Pickled Plums is a simple sweet-spiced starting point
- Salty-Sweet Spiced Pickled Plums plays salty against sweet with warm spices
- Pickled Italian Plums uses firm Italian prune plums that hold their shape
- Pickled Plums and Onions turns savory for serving with meats
- Spicy Pickled Plums adds chili heat to the brine
Plum Chutney
Plum chutney simmers the fruit down with vinegar, onion, ginger, and warm spices into a thick, savory-sweet condiment. It’s right at home alongside curries, grilled meats, and a sharp cheddar.
The flavor is endlessly adjustable, leaning sweet, spicy, or aromatic depending on the spices you reach for. A jar or two makes a thoughtful gift for the cooks in your life.
- Plum Chutney is a classic savory-sweet chutney for canning
- Plum Chutney with Warm Spices builds in cinnamon, clove, and star anise
- Spiced Plum and Peach Chutney blends two stone fruits with warm spice
- Plum and Ginger Chutney brings extra warmth from fresh ginger
Other Ways to Preserve Plums
Canning isn’t the only way to hold onto a plum glut. Freezing and dehydrating are both simple and need almost no special gear, and dried plums (prunes) keep for ages.
And if you end up buried in fruit the way we do every August, a batch of plum wine is a satisfying use for the soft, bruised plums that aren’t pretty enough for the jar.
- How to Freeze Plums keeps fresh plums in the freezer for baking and smoothies
- How to Dehydrate Plums dries plums down into homemade prunes
- Greengage Plum Wine ferments ripe plums into a light homemade wine
- Damson Plum Wine gives you a rich, complex wine with the benefit of the natural tannins in damsons
Plums reward you for paying attention. Grab them at their peak, when they’re heavy and just soft to the touch, and you’ll taste the difference in every jar come winter.
With this many ways to put them up, one productive tree can keep your pantry interesting all year. Start with whatever’s ripe and a tested recipe, and go from there.
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