Strawberry Jam substitute

Best substitute

Raspberry jam

Use the same amount as the strawberry jam you are replacing

Best for Victoria sponge

Different taste

Strawberry jam in a recipe supplies sweetness, a little fruit acidity, moisture and red color, and in filled cookies and layer cakes it also has to hold its shape rather than run. Raspberry jam is the best swap at 1:1, sharper and more fragrant, and most people prefer the result. Any other red jam, cherry, plum, mixed berry or red currant, also goes in 1:1. If all you have is fresh or frozen strawberries, 8 oz of berries simmered with half a cup of sugar and a teaspoon of lemon juice for about ten minutes gives you three quarters of a cup of usable jam. Jams differ a lot in how firmly they set, so if the jam is a filling, simmer a loose one down for two or three minutes and cool it before using it.

Other strawberry jam substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Cherry, plum or mixed berry jam
Different taste
Use the same amount
All three behave identically in the oven and all are easy to find.
What changes
Cherry jam, especially sour cherry, is tarter and faintly almondy and is excellent in shortbread and layer cakes. Plum jam is thicker, darker and more caramelized, which makes it a good match for chocolate or a spiced cake. Mixed berry sits closest to strawberry in sweetness. The visible change is color: all three are deeper and browner-red, which shows through a pale sponge crumb.
Best for
filled cookies, cake fillings, crumble bars, toast
Chop any large fruit pieces so the layer spreads evenly and does not tear the sponge.
3Fresh or frozen strawberries cooked into a quick jam
Different texture
8 oz (225 g) hulled strawberries plus ½ cup sugar plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice makes about ¾ cup
Strawberries are low in pectin and high in water, which is why homemade strawberry jam is famously loose, so give this longer than you would other fruit: chop the berries, simmer with the sugar and lemon juice, mashing, for twelve to fifteen minutes until a spoon leaves a clear trail through it, then cool completely.
What changes
It will still be softer than store-bought jam and tastes far fresher and less sugary. Frozen berries work just as well, though they release more liquid, so allow a few extra minutes.
Best for
cake fillings, dessert sauce, scones and cream, swirling into yogurt or ice cream
This is a fridge jam with no added pectin and keeps about a week. Do not put it in sealed jars for the pantry.
4Apricot or peach jam
Different taste
Use the same amount
The most reliable choice when the jam has to hold.
What changes
Apricot jam is naturally acidic and sets firmer than strawberry, so it does not weep into pastry and it is the standard bakery glaze for exactly that reason. What changes is character rather than quality: the dessert stops being a strawberry one. Color goes amber, flavor goes floral and slightly tangy, and a thumbprint cookie made with apricot reads as a completely different cookie, just as good.
Best for
rugelach and hamantaschen, sandwich cookies, tart glaze, sachertorte-style cakes
Sieve it first if it has chunks, especially for a glaze.
5Strawberry preserves, conserve or jelly
Different texture
Use the same amount
These are the same fruit at different textures and all substitute directly.
What changes
Preserves and conserve hold whole or halved berries in syrup, so they are chunkier and wetter; chop the fruit down if you are filling a cookie, or the pieces will make lumps and leak. Strawberry jelly is made from strained juice, sets much firmer, spreads glassy-smooth and slices cleanly in a layer cake, but carries slightly less fruit flavor per spoonful.
Best for
layer cakes, spreading, glazes, filled cookies
Drain chunky preserves in a sieve for ten minutes if a recipe needs the jam thick.
6Grape jelly or apple jelly plus a little lemon (least-best option)
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount plus ½ teaspoon lemon juice per ½ cup
Fine when you only need sweet and red and sticky, weak when the recipe is actually about strawberries.
What changes
Grape jelly is one-note grape candy sweetness with a firm wobbly set, which is why it works in a peanut butter sandwich and not in a Victoria sponge. Apple jelly is more or less flavorless and simply provides glassy shine. Both are firmer than jam, so they slice well, and both taste conspicuously simpler than fruit jam next to butter and cream.
Best for
peanut butter sandwiches, shiny tart glaze, savory meatball glazes
Skip these for shortcake, scones or anything where the strawberry flavor is the headline.

What is Strawberry Jam?

Strawberry Jam is crushed strawberries cooked with sugar into a soft, sweet, mildly tart red spread, sold as strawberry preserves when the berries are left in larger pieces and as conserve when it is chunkier still, and in a recipe it supplies sweetness, a little fruit acid, moisture and color while needing to hold its shape rather than run.

Cooking tips

Strawberry jam is one of the loosest jams on the shelf because strawberries have very little natural pectin. If the recipe needs the jam to stay put, simmer it two or three minutes to thicken and cool it fully before spreading. Warm jam will soak into cake and dough every time.
For a Victoria sponge or a jelly roll, spread the jam on completely cooled cake. Even slightly warm sponge melts jam and it will slide out the moment you cut a slice.
Sweetened jams can make a bake taste flat because they have no acidity to push against the butter and sugar. Half a teaspoon of lemon juice per half cup of jam is the cheapest fix in baking and takes seconds.
In filled cookies like thumbprints and hamantaschen, use less jam than looks right. A rounded half teaspoon per cookie is plenty; more will boil over, weld the cookies to the tray and burn.
Homemade strawberry jam meant for shelf storage in sealed jars is a preserving recipe, and the sugar and added lemon juice are part of what keeps it safe. Do not reduce them or improvise, and follow tested guidance from the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave the strawberry jam out?

In a filled cookie, a sandwich cake or a jam roly-poly, no. The jam is the filling and the recipe has nothing else in the middle, so you would end up with dry plain shortbread or a two-layer cake with no reason to be two layers. Where jam is a topping or a spread, or one of several flavorings in a sauce or marinade, you can leave it out and add a spoonful of sugar or honey if the sweetness is needed.

What is the difference between strawberry jam, preserves and jelly?

Jam is crushed fruit cooked with sugar, so it is thick with pulp. Preserves keep the berries whole or in large pieces suspended in syrup, so they are chunkier and looser. Jelly uses strained juice only, so it is clear, smooth and the firmest of the three. All three swap 1:1 in most recipes; choose jelly if you want clean slices, jam if you want to spread it, and chop preserves down if the pieces are large.

Can I use frozen strawberries instead of jam?

Yes, once you cook them. Frozen berries release a lot of liquid, so simmer 8 oz with 1/2 cup sugar and a teaspoon of lemon juice for twelve to fifteen minutes until thick, then cool. Do not fold thawed berries straight into a batter or onto a cake as a jam replacement, because the water will make the crumb soggy and the layers slip.

Is seedless jam better for cakes?

For appearance, usually yes. Strawberry jam has small, barely noticeable seeds, so it is rarely an issue; raspberry and blackberry seeds are much more visible in a smooth cake filling or a glossy glaze. Warm the jam with a teaspoon of water and push it through a fine sieve if you want it perfectly smooth, allowing for about a fifth loss in volume.

How much jam does a Victoria sponge or a batch of thumbprints need?

A standard 8-inch Victoria sponge takes around 1/2 cup, spread to the edges of the cooled bottom layer. Jam thumbprints take roughly a rounded half teaspoon each, so a batch of 24 cookies needs about 1/2 cup. Buying or making a slightly generous amount is wise, since you lose some to sieving if you strain it.

Related substitutes

More preserves substitutes

Strawberry Jam substitute

Other strawberry jam substitutes

2Cherry, plum or mixed berry jam

3Fresh or frozen strawberries cooked into a quick jam

4Apricot or peach jam

5Strawberry preserves, conserve or jelly

6Grape jelly or apple jelly plus a little lemon (least-best option)