Salted Cantaloupe Jam
I take a lot of pride in where I live. I know a lot of folks consider Indiana a "fly over state" and that might be a negative to the vast majority of citizens in this country, but I'll let you in on a little bit of a secret-us Midwesterners enjoy the fact that we're off the radar.
I love that I have neighbors who never will bother me unless I need them to, and then they'd give me the shirts off their backs. I love that I can drive for hours and hours and see little more than farmhouses and cornfields. I love that I can keep my car unlocked (and running) while I pop into the post office. And I love that I can drive up to any one of two dozen farm stands within a five mile radius in August and buy farm fresh cantaloupe by dropping a few quarters in an old coffee can.
Southern Indiana isn't really well-known for a lot of stuff (other than being Louisville's hat), but one thing we do excel at is making some seriously mean cantaloupes. In particular, Jackson County, Indiana-which is just north of where we live-is pretty well-known in the region as having the best cantaloupes in all of the Midwest. Folks drive hundreds of miles to visit this rural Indiana county just to grab a cantaloupe or two! I'm not sure what it is about this area that produces the sweetest, juiciest, biggest cantaloupes you'll ever see, but I'm not complaining.
We only planted a handful of cantaloupe plants this year, but we have no less than 473,000 melons on the vines right now (not only are cantaloupes grown in this area incredibly delicious, but they're also incredibly prolific). And as much as I love eating cantaloupe morning, noon, and night, the truth is, we're a little bit overwhelmed with our haul. Melons are one of those summer items that can be really difficult to preserve for winter eating, but I figured it might be worth a shot to try turning some of our bounty into some cantaloupe jam to enjoy during those cold January nights. And, man, was that ever a good idea.
The idea for salting the preserves came from the fact that summer dinners for me growing up meant a giant bowl of cantaloupe on the kitchen table for dessert. And next to that bowl was always the salt shaker. Just like all sweet foods, a little bit of salt sprinkled on some fresh cantaloupe slices really sets it off. I figured those flavors would be really interesting combined into a jam.
Because of the welcoming of our little girl, I haven't had the chance to do as much canning this summer as I normally like to, but I was so happy I carved out an afternoon to make this cantaloupe jam. Not only is it delicious, but there is something about canning that makes me feel incredibly connected to my roots. My parents canned food. My grandparents canned food. My great-great-grandparents canned food. My soul tells me I should be canning on a weekend afternoon in August. It's hard to explain, but there is something about ladling bubbly jam into steaming hot jars that makes me feel a little more connected to my past. To me, canning is so much more than just stocking away some food (although, that's a nice perk, too).
Now, go make some cantaloupe jam! Enjoy.
📖 Recipe
Salted Cantaloupe Jam
Ingredients
- 6 cups diced very ripe cantaloupe
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 cups granulated sugar divided
- 5 tablespoons powdered pectin
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Fill a waterbath canner with water, and place inside eight half-pint jars (make sure the water covers the jars). Bring to a boil. Place lids and rings in a small saucepan with hot water and heat, but do not boil.
- Bring cantaloupe, lemon juice, and 3 ½ cups of sugar to a boil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a full, rolling boil that cannot be stirred down (it should take 10-15 minutes).
- Once the mixture is at a full boil, whisk together the remaining sugar and the pectin. Whisk the mixture into the cantaloupe mixture.
- Bring mixture back to a full boil, and then boil hard for 2-3 minutes, or until the mixture looks thickened and is set. I like to test it by putting a small amount on a spoon and placing it in the freezer for a few minutes. If it's jelly-like when it's cold, it's set! If not, boil for a few more minutes.
- Once set, remove from heat, and stir in the vanilla extract and salt.
- Remove the hot jars from the waterbath canner, and turn the canner back up onto high.
- Ladle the jam into the hot jars, leaving a ½" headspace. Using a clean, damp cloth, wipe any extra jam from the rim of the jars, and then place on the lids and the rings—tightening just until snug, not overly tight.
- Place the jars in a rack in the waterbath canner, bring to a boil, and process for 10 minutes. Remove from canner, and let cool completely. Check seals after 24 hours—the lids shouldn't flex or move when pushed down on. Store sealed jars in a cool dark place for up to a year. Any jars that don't seal, place in the fridge and eat within a month.
Notes
Nutrition
Want to save this recipe?
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
What a great idea! I will keep this in mind if I ever have a lot of cantaloupe!
I just made a whole lot of cherry jam. I never thought of jamming cantaloupe! I will have to try this!
i have never done any canning but i have several friends who do can tomatoes and lots of fruit! my sister in law has made grape jelly !what about cherry or greem bean canned?
As a recent master's graduate taking the summer off, I have been canning all season as a way to stretch my grocery budget and my growing season. My favorite are fridge pickles, made with something sweet and a couple hot peppers from the garden. Fridge pickles are my favorite because they keep their crunch.
I tried canning for the first time this season with rhubarb jam. Love the idea of cantaloupe jam!
I really want to learn how to can dill pickles. I got a bag of Mrs. Wages spices but it says to use a non-reactive pan and I have no idea how to tell what my pans are made of. I also don't have any materials for water bath canning, but I'd love to learn. My family has always canned but I'm a little afraid to do it on my own. I also want to do peaches and applesauce.
Porcelain enamel is non reactive.
I would love to can boozy fruit jams! (ie strawberries + champagne, plums + rum!)
Just called my husband at the store to bring home 2 cantaloupe!
I want to get into canning this summer since my freezer has no more room for garden goods. I love having a bit of summer in the middle of winter.
I've never canned before, but would love to try tomatoes or strawberry jam.
I would love to start with strawberry jam!
I would love to can fruits, lemons, and possibly tomatoes!
Research CAREFULLY when you can tomatoes if you don't do it right and can at the correct temp it can end in illness we LOVE doing our own but I know my grandma always made sure to be real careful that they sealed correctly and everything was clean!
I make tons of salsas and canned tomatoes most years, but I always pressure can them.
Tomatoes are one of the easiest things to can. And, as they are very acidic, they do not need to be pressure canned; A water bath canner is used. As long as you are careful and follow all directons for canning, you should have no problems at all.
i'm OBSESSED with canteloupe and would probably adore that jam!
I would have never thought to make something like cantaloupe jam. I would love to try this! I've always wanted to figure out how to make dill pickles!
I have never even thought of cantaloupe jam!! Now, I need to try some.
I've never canned before (but I do remember "helping" my mom with it - aka eating jam - when I was little in Norway), but I have a friend who is ready and willing to show me the ropes once I get my own gear, so this would be perfect!
I want to learn to can anything and everything! I've done sliced jalapenos, corn relish and a freezer jam.
I've never canned before but have always been interested in it. I would love to learn how to make mango pepper jam.
Been canning 50+ years. We always just froze the bumper crop cantaloupe as it's to low acid to do much with. Goes to mush, but the kids always called it ice cream! Going to try this recipe; sounds good. I always make cinnamon applesauce, but my granddaughter wants me to make cantaloupe sauce. Not sure what to use for acidity, but thinking cinnamon, maybe nutmeg to season. Have you ever tried making cantaloupe "applesauce "?
Hi, Linda! We haven't made cantaloupe sauce before, but our biggest concern would be safety. If you want to try it, we recommend getting it tested through your local extension office to make sure the acid level is high enough. Or you could try freezing it to preserve it instead.
That looks so good! I have never canned anything but I would love to start!
I've never made my own jam before, but I LOVE cantaloupe. This would be so tasty on pancakes, toast, or stirred into yogurt. Yum!
I'd love to can some salsa! It's my favorite condiment!