Apricot Preserves substitute

Best substitute

Peach preserves

Use the same amount as the apricot preserves you are replacing

Best for rugelach

Close match

Peach preserves are the closest swap at 1:1, just a shade sweeter, so add a teaspoon of lemon juice per half cup. Orange marmalade works 1:1 as a glaze and is what many bakeries actually use, though it is looser and slightly bitter, so strain out the peel. Apple jelly is the neutral, glassy, no-flavor option when you only want shine on a cake or tart. For rugelach and hamantaschen, any thick jam works but must be reduced first, or it will boil out of the pastry.

Other apricot preserves substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Orange marmalade
Different taste
Use the same amount
A citrus preserve with real acidity and plenty of natural pectin, which is why professional bakers reach for it as a glaze.
What changes
Best for
cake and tart glaze, brisket and duck sauces, rugelach, glazing fruit tarts
More bitter and noticeably more citrusy, and looser out of the jar so it brushes on beautifully. In a savory sweet-and-sour sauce this is often better than apricot, giving the glaze an adult edge. Push it through a sieve if you do not want strips of peel showing on a cake.
3Apple jelly, or apple jelly with lemon
Different taste
Use the same amount
A clear, firm, almost flavorless jelly.
What changes
It is the standard neutral glaze because it adds gloss without changing how anything tastes.
Best for
cake glaze, fruit tart glaze, clear shine on pastry, thinning into a brush-on glaze
It brings shine and stickiness and virtually no fruit flavor, so a tart glazed with it tastes of the fruit underneath rather than of apricot. Stir in a teaspoon of lemon juice per half cup so it is not merely sweet. Poor choice as a pastry filling because it is too bland to taste like anything.
4Pineapple or mango preserves
Different taste
Use the same amount
Both are tropical, tangy and about as thick as apricot jam.
What changes
Best for
glazes, brisket and chicken sauces, rugelach, ham glaze
Markedly tangier and more perfumed. Pineapple in particular has a sharp, almost fermented brightness that makes a sweet-and-sour brisket taste livelier and less traditional. Mango is sweeter and thicker. Both look right on a cake and taste distinctly not-apricot.
5Quince paste (membrillo) or guava paste, melted with water
Taste and texture differ
Use 3 tablespoons paste plus 1 tablespoon water for every ¼ cup preserves
Both are stiff, sliceable fruit pastes.
What changes
Melt gently with a splash of water until they loosen to jam consistency.
Best for
hamantaschen, rugelach, any filling that must not run, cheese boards
This is the best option for filled pastry, because both pastes are so thick that they hold their shape in a hot oven where jam would boil out. Quince is floral and mildly tart; guava is much sweeter and more tropical. Both are darker than apricot, so the filling looks reddish rather than golden.
6Raspberry, plum or apricot-adjacent red jam
Different taste
Use the same amount
Whatever thick jam you actually own.
What changes
Raspberry is the traditional alternative in both rugelach and hamantaschen.
Best for
rugelach, hamantaschen, thumbprint cookies, linzer cookies, layer cakes
The flavor and color change completely, from golden and mildly tart to red and assertive. Nobody will think it is apricot; they will think you made raspberry rugelach, which is a real and popular thing. Poor choice for a clear glaze because it stains the fruit underneath.
7Dried apricots simmered into a quick jam
Close match
8 ounces dried apricots plus ¾ cup water plus ⅓ cup sugar makes about 1 cup
Simmer chopped dried apricots with the water for 15 minutes until very soft, add the sugar and a tablespoon of lemon juice, cook five minutes more, then blitz or mash smooth.
What changes
Best for
when you want the real flavor, rugelach, hamantaschen, glaze, brisket sauce
This tastes more intensely of apricot than most jars do, because dried fruit is concentrated. It is stiffer and less glossy than commercial preserves since it has no added pectin, which makes it excellent as a pastry filling and slightly dull as a shiny glaze. Twenty-five minutes of work for a genuine 1:1 replacement.

What is Apricot Preserves?

Apricot Preserves is cooked apricot set with sugar and pectin into a spreadable amber gel that is both sweet and clearly tart, also sold as apricot jam and, in a thicker and darker form, as apricot lekvar.

Cooking tips

To glaze a cake or tart, warm the preserves with a tablespoon of water per quarter cup, push them through a fine sieve to remove fruit pieces, then brush while hot. Cold jam drags and tears the surface; hot strained jam self-levels into a mirror.
For hamantaschen and rugelach, thin jam is the enemy. Reduce whatever you use in a small pan for five minutes until a spoon dragged through leaves a channel, or stir a teaspoon of cornstarch or fine breadcrumbs into every quarter cup. Filling that leaks welds the cookies to the sheet and unseals the corners.
In sweet-and-sour brisket, apricot preserves are doing two jobs, sweetness and acid, and most substitutes cover only the first. Whatever jam you use, taste the sauce and add lemon juice or a splash of vinegar until it tastes bright rather than just sweet.
Apricot lekvar is much thicker and less sweet than jarred jam, so if a recipe calls for lekvar and you have preserves, simmer them down by about a third first. Going the other way, thin lekvar with a spoon of water.
Do not lower the sugar or add extra fruit or water if you are canning preserves rather than just cooking with them. In home canning, the sugar and acid balance is what makes the jar safe and what makes the pectin set, and altering a tested recipe is a real risk. Follow National Center for Home Food Preservation guidance and keep any batch you improvise in the refrigerator or freezer instead.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use apricot jam instead of apricot preserves?

Yes, they are effectively the same thing. In strict terms preserves contain larger pieces of fruit and jam is smoother, but every recipe that calls for one works with the other. Strain either through a sieve if you need a smooth glaze.

Can I just leave the apricot preserves out?

In a glaze, yes, you simply lose the shine and a little tartness. In rugelach, hamantaschen or thumbprint cookies, no, it is the filling and the cookie is empty without it. In sweet-and-sour brisket, no, because the preserves supply most of the sweetness that balances the vinegar or ketchup, and the sauce will taste harsh.

What is the best apricot preserves substitute for rugelach?

Peach preserves if you want the same look and flavor, or raspberry jam if you are happy for the rugelach to be visibly and deliberately different. Whichever you pick, reduce it in a pan first so it does not leak out during baking.

What can I use as a neutral glaze if I do not want apricot flavor?

Apple jelly, warmed with a splash of water and brushed on hot. It gives you the same glassy shine and stickiness with almost no flavor of its own, which is why patisseries use it on fruit tarts where the fruit should taste of itself.

Is apricot lekvar the same as apricot preserves?

Not quite. Lekvar is a very thick, only lightly sweetened fruit butter cooked down for a long time until it holds its shape, traditionally made from prunes but also from apricots. It is built to sit inside a pastry without running. Preserves are sweeter and looser; reduce them by about a third to stand in for lekvar.

Related substitutes

More preserves substitutes

Apricot Preserves substitute

Other apricot preserves substitutes

2Orange marmalade

3Apple jelly, or apple jelly with lemon

4Pineapple or mango preserves

5Quince paste (membrillo) or guava paste, melted with water

6Raspberry, plum or apricot-adjacent red jam

7Dried apricots simmered into a quick jam