How to Preserve a Concord Grape Harvest
Concord grapes are a delicious, nutritious and low-calorie food that can be preserved as healthy juice or in jellies at harvest. With their trademark pungent fragrance and bluish-purple skins, Concords have been popular since the grape was developed in the mid-19th century. For traditional Concord grape jellies, preserve several batches of grape juice first. That will ensure you have what you need when you're ready to put up the sweet spread. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Large bowls
- Cheesecloth or jelly bag
- Stock or soup pot
- Ladle
- Canner with rack
- Jars, lids and rings
- Sugar
- Pectin
- Slotted spoon
- Kitchen timer
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Freezer bags
- Permanent marker
Instructions
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Concord Grape Juice
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1
Wash 10 lbs. of Concord grapes. Pick through and remove dried or moldy grapes, but keep a cup of green or partially ripened grapes in the batch.
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2
Prepare canning jars, lids and rings by washing in hot, soapy water. Rinse in hot water. Plunge jars into boiling water and keep in simmering water until ready to use.
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3
Place washed Concord grapes in a large soup pot on the stove. Add two cups of cold water and set burner to medium heat.
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4
Bring grapes to a slow simmer, stirring regularly, until grape skins burst and pulp is very soft. Remove from heat.
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5
Strain the mixture into a large bowl through slightly damp cheesecloth or a jelly bag. Reserve the pulp and skins for freezing.
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6
Return Concord grape juice to the pot. Add 3 cups of sugar. Bring just to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat as soon as juice reaches boiling point.
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7
Ladle the hot juice into hot, sterilized canning jars. Leave about ½-inch head space at the top. Put on lids and rings. Adjust jars on rack in canner.
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8
Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove to toweled counter until cool.
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9
Fill freezer bags with cooled pulp and skins. Label, date and store in freezer for use in recipes.
Concord Grape Jelly
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10
Pour 5 cups of grape juice into a medium soup pot. Add 1 box of powdered commercial pectin. Stir and heat over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.
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11
Wash canning jars, lids and rings in hot, soapy water. Rinse in hot water. Plunge jars into boiling water and keep in simmering water until ready to use.
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12
Increase the temperature under the juice-pectin mixture to high. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour 7 lbs. of sugar into the mixture all at once. Continue stirring constantly while mixture returns to a full boil. Set kitchen timer for o1 minute when mixture begins to boil. Stir constantly. Mixture will be foamy. Remove from heat immediately after 1 minute.
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13
Skim foam off the Concord grape jelly mixture using a slotted spoon. Ladle mixture into hot, sterilized jars. Leave about ¼-inch head space. Wipe off any drippings from jar rim. Adjust lids and rings.
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14
Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. Remove to toweled counter until cool.
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1
Tips & Warnings
When making Concord grape jelly, add a tablespoon of butter to the juice and pectin mixture. This helps reduce the amount of foam the processing generates.
