Urban Farm Hub

Oregon grape laden with berries

The Oregon Grape in the park near our house is a luscious deep purple blue color and the berries are just a bit soft to the touch. On the way home I picked some berries then made jam with my harvest. This deep blue jam has a great flavor and pairs nicely with sourdough bread or vanilla ice cream.

The two species we have growing in the Seattle area are the tall Oregon-grape (Mahonia aquifolium) and low Oregon-grape (Mahonia nervosa).   The berries from both of these can be used to make jellies, jams or fruit leather.

Here’s how to make the jam:

Prepare the Oregon Grapes

• Collect berries that are a deep blue purple color and slightly soft 
• Wash and pick through your harvest removing leaves, stems and any berries that are over or under ripe
• Put berries and enough water to just cover in a pot and cook until soft.  This usually takes about 10 to 15 minutes
• Run the cooked berries through a food mill to separate out the seeds and skins from the pulpy juice

Turn fruit into jam

• Measure how many cups of berries you have, you will need an equivalent amount of sugar
• Check how much pectin you will need and measure this out.  I like to use Pomona Pectin
• Get your canning jars and lids ready for filling
• Add the amount of calcium water needed to your fruit mixture
• Bring to a boil
• Add in the well mixed pectin powder and sugar
• Bring to a second boil and pour into waiting jars
• Process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes

Ripe and ready to pick

Enjoy!