How to make Jelly ~Wild Grape~PLUS, 3 Ways to Tell if Your Jelly Has Reached the Gel Stage!

Join me in the kitchen as I make jelly for our winter food storage! Canning jelly is really simple, so tag along as I turn some wild grape juice into jelly from frozen grapes that I harvested last fall...also, I have included some tips on how to tell if your jelly or jam has reached the gel stage!
Wild Grape Jelly:
7 cups wild grape juice (unsweetened)
5 & 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 box of pectin crystals
...follow directions in video.
I boil the juice/sugar/pectin mixture for approx. 30 minutes or until the mixture has reached the gel stage. I don't follow the directions on the box as I adjust the amount of juice and sugar called for in the pectin instruction.

[@austinpeterson7658]

Hello Alana. That was an awesome and informative video. Loved it , and now I want a PB&J sandwich. Thanks, and you and your family have a wonderful and happy Easter. All the best from Florida.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hello Austin! Thank you very much for watching and for your kind message...you are always so lovely! James has had several PB&J sandwiches...he certainly is spoiled! I hope you had a wonderful Easter and I also hope you have a lovely evening too...take care! 😊

[@suzannefarver5093]

Just made this with a few leftover grapes from my Pinot Noir vineyard harvest. Your tips were invaluable and it came out perfectly! Now I have Panther Ridge vintage pinot noir jelly! It tastes fabulous, and just the right gel.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

I bet your jelly from your Pinot Noir grapes is absolutely fantastic! Sounds like an excellent jelly to market...or maybe, just a nice stash for you and your family! Thank you for watching and I hope you have a lovely day!

[@evadiva5495]

Thank you for this video. I made jelly this weekend according to your instructions and it turned out great! I used concord grapes and I would've liked to use less sugar since they were quite sweet to begin with. I never know if that's ok (less sugar) when you don't use the less/no sugar pectin. :)

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi there...thank you very much for watching! I'm glad your jelly turned out nicely...you can use a bit less sugar if you boil it down a little longer. When using commercial pectin, it is activated by sugar in your recipe so not adding quite enough can affect the set of your jelly. There is a pectin called Pomona's Universal pectin that is activated by calcium water instead of sugar so you can make low sugar or no sugar jams and jellies. The set is really nice and you can even use honey to sweeten your preserves as well! I ordered mine online and the pectin comes with calcium powder so you can mix up calcium water to add to your recipe. I hope that helps! Take care and have a great day! 🌻

[@GeorgeMcConnell-nq3vd]

Last year I made just a half pint of syrup. Oh how I regret not making more. It was so good on English muffins and pancakes. Also over vanilla ice cream. It tastes like grape but not like anything that comes from a store.

[@markcrowther7513]

Bugger...I made my first batch today and I might have not brought it to a hot enough temperature for the gelling process...What do you do you recommend to do if this happens?...Maybe reheat to boiling again?...I had some extra jelly that I left in a glass for sampling and that gelled up, but I added the lids right away but the jelly seems liquidly still....Anyhow just subbed. Thx

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Good morning! If the small jar of jelly did gel nicely then wait for a week or 2 to see if the rest will gel. Sometimes it may take that long. I have had batches that did gel after that period of time. If it doesn't gel, you can always empty the contents of the jars back into a pot and bring it to temp for.the correct gelling stage. I have also done that before with success as well. Good luck and I hope everything turns out nicely for you!

[@markcrowther7513]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife Good Morning! I just did an experiment on two 250ml jars where I opened them up and reheated. I did see the gelling process happen...might have taken it a tad too far as when emptying the pan the bottom had sticky parts....but instead of getting the two 250ml jars of product I only got one...lol Kitchen smells nice though. Thx Alana

[@markcrowther7513]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife FYI one of the two jars did have a slight gelling at the bottom when I first emptied, so I will leave them for a while to see if they slowly gel. If they do then I guess I have double the product. Have you noticed less product with your experimenting?

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

@@markcrowther7513 you're welcome...any time! I'm glad it turned out for you and also the added bonus of the wonderful smelling kitchen! Nothing like grape jelly!

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

I have noticed less product when I re boil the jelly. More of the liquid evaporates from the jelly and gives you a bit less. I hope your jelly turns out lovely...we love it on fresh tea biscuits! Yum! 😊😊

[@rkm4342]

I think this taste is WAY better than the usual sugary taste of grape jelly! (Used muscadine) It’s Tart & Sweet. Useful 4 lots ! My god son adds his hot peppers too it & I luv even g free bread n biscuit s w it. So very very Very good! ❤ * will be a re peated recipe here Thank you

[@robertmarino2158]

Your talent is remarkable , always working hard , looks delicious , stay safe ! Congratulations !

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi Robert...thank you kind sir! We are very fortunate to have so many wonderful wild edibles around here to make delicious things from! My Mom taught me well! 😊

[@RemsFamily]

Looks delicious!!!

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi Remi! Thank you so much! hope you find some wild grapes growing around you guys and then you can make some jelly too! It is really delicious! Have a great evening! 😊

[@RemsFamily]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife I don't remember seeing wild grapes around. I planted some last year and hoping they survived the Winter 🤞

[@leopardwoman38]

Looks good! Thank you! 👍👍👍

[@christinewosmek5637]

So I did hot water bath on my juice and didn’t refrigerate it does this mean my juice is bad?

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Good morning! Your juice will be perfect if you canned it...it will be shelf stable and ready to drink or use to make jelly whenever you like! I can some of my juice and I put some in the fridge or freezer depending on how fast I need to use it. Thank you for watching and have a great day!

[@williamallison3510]

Watch out for those rabbit holes!

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Haha..those pesky rabbits! 😁🐇

[@allykhongchan6714]

Are these riverbank grapes? If so, howd you get the seeds out before making them into jam?

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi there! Yes, these grapes are also referred to as "Riverbank Grapes". I use a steam juice extractor and the seeds remain in the top layer of the juicer. Before I had my juice extractor, I would simmer the grapes in a stock pot then put them through my food mill which would also separate the skins and the seeds. If you don't have either, you can place some layers of cheesecloth in a colander (which sits over a bowl to collect juice) then put your simmered grapes in the cheesecloth lined colander and let this sit overnight to drip through to the bowl. I then use the juice to make jelly. If you want you want to make jam instead jelly, you can press the simmered grapes through a mesh sieve. Hope that helps...have a great day!

[@allykhongchan6714]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife thanks so much for your response, I appreciate it. 😁

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

@@allykhongchan6714 you are very welcome...have a great evening! 😊

[@allykhongchan6714]

you as well!

[@callikohl5698]

Do you do anything different to the juice you extracted to make juice to drink? And do you have a video of it.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

I don't have a video for making the juice but all I do if I want to use the concentrate for drinking is just pour the concentrate in jug and add sugar or honey to sweeten to taste and enough water to my taste as well. I don't like really sweet juice so it's really just a matter of preference how you like to sweeten or dilute it. Also, when I use concord grapes, the juice doesn't usually need any sweetener vs. when I make the juice out of wild grapes. They are more tart than the concord, so I find it needs a little sweetness added.

[@callikohl5698]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife thanks so much.

[@callikohl5698]

Alana, thanks for answering my questions. I know this is a little late to the party, but I subscribed and just want to say thanks for the good info.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

@@callikohl5698 You are very welcome and thank you very much for your support and your lovely message! 🌻

[@kelvingravel8699]

Hi Alana thank you for another excellent video, the gelly looks absolutely delicious, the gelly would be great on scones with cream 😋, hope you all have a fantastic Easter 🐣, take care and stay safe 👍 😊.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hello Kelvin! Thank you very much...were certainly are spoiled with all of these grapes growing around here to make these lovely preserves! I will have to surprise James with some scones...and clotted cream...yum! I had a lovely Easter dinner yesterday with family ...I hope you did as well! Thank you again for watching and have a wonderful evening!

[@applewoodhomestead6948]

Great tips on using a candy thermometer. I will have to try this next time. Awesome video 😎

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi Christine! Thank you very much for watching and for your kind message! I hope these tips help...have a wonderful evening! ❤️

[@billyshumate853]

Good morning Alana. That's gonna be delicious with some fresh hot biscuits. Take care and have a blessed day and I'll see you on your next video.

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hello Billy! I made the biscuits and they were delicious with butter and the grape jelly! James says that is his very favourite treat! Thank you again for watching and have a wonderful evening my friend!

[@billyshumate853]

@@alanacawker-therusticwife Hope y'all had a very blessed Easter weekend

[@berniceallison7769]

Thanks for another great video..the jelly looks so good. 😋

[@alanacawker-therusticwife]

Hi Bernice! Thank you dear friend! It was really nice on some hot biscuits! James' favourite!

[@berniceallison7769]

I gotta get in to see you....I've been down with covid. I'm feeling OK.. didn't hit me as hard as others I know. Hope you're staying well.