Canning liquids for fruit

Home-canned fruit must be accompanied in the jar by a canning liquid. The liquid may be pure water, a juice, or a sugar syrup. Whatever liquid you use, it must be heated.

Your choice of canning liquid may be influenced by the future intended use of the preserved fruit. Will it be served as a confection on its own, will it be used in baking or served to a person with special dietary considerations, or will it need to be suitable for a broad range of possible uses?

Fruit canned in juice or sugar syrup will hold its brighter colour longer than if it were canned in plain water. That being said, there are also other valid considerations at play, as mentioned above, and as for colour, any home canned fruit can benefit from an anti-darkening treatment (See: Preventing fruit darkening in storage).

Regardless of the canning liquid you opt for, you might also wish to try adding some flavourings such as almond extract or vanilla extract, or a tablespoon or two of a liqueur or brandy per jar (see below). (Use added flavourings cautiously the first time out, as flavours can intensify during the canning process.)

Pack type choice has greater bearing on quality than packing liquid choice

For good quality home canned fruit, the pack type is more important than the type of canning liquid.

The pack type choices are raw pack, or hot pack.

With a raw pack of fruit, even with heavy sugar syrup, discoloration of the canned fruit may begin in as little as 2 to 3 months of storage. ^[1]Ensuring High-Quality Canned Foods. In: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Complete guide to home canning. Agriculture information bulletin No. 539. 2015. Page 1-11.

A sugar syrup is required for the raw pack of any fruit. Water or juice are not options when raw packing. The raw pack method must always be accompanied by a sugar syrup. ^[2] Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Bernardin Ltd. 2013. Page 37.

For a deeper discussion, see: Pack Type Choices for Fruit

Ensure all pieces of fruit in the jar are covered with canning liquid

Fruit exposed to air at the top of the jar will typically darken quickly, regardless of the canning liquid you have used.

Before you place the lids on your jars of fruit preparatory to heat processing of the filled jar, ensure that all fruit in the jar is covered with your canning liquid, and that a headspace of 2 cm (½ inch) is left, unless directed otherwise by a recipe. Also be sure to debubble, and top up canning liquid after debubbling to help prevent fruit at the top of the jar being exposed to air after processing. When you have ensured that you have done both, then you can put the lids on for heat processing.

Using water as a canning liquid for fruit

You may just use plain water to can your juice in.

The water used doesn’t have to be plain plain water. You may flavour the water, or sweeten it.

A non-caloric sweetener can be used. Note that while a non-caloric sweetener will impart sweetness to the water and extra sweetness to the fruit; it won’t provide any of the texture or colour keeping abilities that sugar does for long-term storage. But then, again, we’re told to use products up within a year anyway and not keep them long-term. Consider non-caloric sweeteners to be a “flavouring”.

Splenda and Stevia

As for which non-caloric sweeteners perform well in canning liquid, good choices are Splenda® (generic name: Sucralose) and stevia.

The National Center for Home Food Preservation says,

“Sucralose (e.g., Splenda®) is a newer sugar substitute that can be added prior to canning. Laboratory tests have shown that half as much sucralose as sugar in the original recipe provides adequate sweetening. For example, if the recipe calls for 1 cup sugar per quart of water, use ½ cup sucralose instead of the sugar.” ^[3] National Center for Home Food Preservation Self Study Course. Module 3. Canning Acid Foods: Preparation. Accessed March 2015.

For your first time out with Splenda®, Bernardin recommends using 1 ¼ cups of Splenda ( ≈ 20 g) to 5 ½ cups (1375 ml) of water.

No canning authorities have had any funding to do research on stevia, though many home canning bloggers have gone ahead and done their own taste experimentation with reported success in terms of taste quality.

HealthyCanning.com has used liquid stevia in canning fruits at the rate of 1 to 2 teaspoons per litre (4 cups) of water, depending on how tart the fruit being canned is. We have found no adverse taste or storage qualities over the course of a year while the fruit was stored for the recommended USDA shelf life span.

Other non-caloric sweeteners

Using saccharin or aspartame-based sweeteners to fruit canning water is not advised. Saccharin (which becomes bitter when heated) and aspartame (which fades when heated) do not perform well and are recommended against.

The National Center for Home Food Preservation says, “Saccharin-based sweeteners become bitter when heated. Aspartame-based sweeteners can lose their flavor when heated.” ^[4] National Center for Home Food Preservation Self Study Course. Module 3. Canning Acid Foods: Preparation. Accessed March 2015.

Healthy Canning doesn’t have any experience with erythritol, monkfruit extract, or xylitol. Questions about their use would be more ones of quality than safety. We do know that erythritol ^[5]Tiefenbacher, Karl F. Technology of Main Ingredients — Sweeteners and Lipids. In: Wafer and Waffle: Processing and Manufacturing. Academic Press. 2017. Chapter 3, Pp 123-225. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809438-9.00003-X , monkfruit extract ^[6]EFSA Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings (FAF), Younes M et al. Safety of use of Monk fruit extract as a food additive in different food categories. EFSA J. 2019 Dec 11;17(12):e05921. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2019.5921. PMID: 32626208; PMCID: PMC7008860. , and xylitol ^[7]Young, N.W.G. The influence of ingredients on product stability and shelf life. In: Food and Beverage Stability and Shelf Life. Woodhead Publishing, 2011. Chapter 5, Pp 132-183. https://doi.org/10.1533/9780857092540.1.132 are reported to be heat stable.

See: Home canning fruit sugar-free.

Water as fruit canning liquid regarded as red-headed stepchild of home canning

Many old-time home canning educators seem to refer to home canning fruit in plain water as an “also ran” choice, always referring back to the better colour obtained with sugar syrups. This can leave people who opt for water feeling slightly defensive or uncertain. But home canning fruit in plain water can be a valid choice that needs no justification for many reasons, such as wanting to reduce free sugars in diets as everyone is advised to do by dietitians today, when canning for people who have absolutely must follow sugar-restricted diets for medical reasons, and when canning fruit that will later be used in recipes. And it absolutely was the choice advocated by home economists during the sugar scarcities of World World Two.

The darkening of the fruit that home canning educators use to warn people off this choice is less an issue if the jars are stored in a cool, dark place and used up within a year (as is the usage recommendation anyway regardless of the canning liquid.)

Some say that using plain water can also leave fruit tasting weaker. You may see a USDA Extension agent here and there saying, “…fruit canned in water is generally considered unappealing.” ^[8] Ingham, Barb. Safe Preserving: Safe Changes and Substitutions when Preserving Fruits. University of Wisconsin. Blog posting dated 25 June 2015. Accessed 25 June 2015 at https://fyi.uwex.edu/safepreserving/2015/06/25/safe-preserving-safe-changes-and-substitutions-when-preserving-fruits. If you see a statement along those lines, remember that Extension agents are not immune from personal opinions, or, from having their taste buds dulled by decades of added sugar, or perhaps even smoking, so that is a personal opinion and not a documented social science. In fact, many other people counter that they find that the home canned fruit in a jar just naturally ends up plenty sweet enough, depending on the fruit they are canning, and that they couldn’t fathom wanting it any sweeter.

Using juice as a canning liquid for fruit

You can use juice instead of water in canning your fruit.

You can use commercially-bought juice, or make your own from excess fruit. The Ball Blue Book says that the juice may be “fresh fruit juice, bottled fruit juice, [or] fruit juice made from frozen concentrate”. ^[9]Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 16.

Juices typically suggested are apple juice, white grape juice, and pineapple juice (note: pineapple juice would have a greater influence on the flavour of the final product.) You can also use liquid off the fruit. You can also use a blend of juices, and / or dilute the juice with water.

The National Center for Home Food Preservation says,

Fruit can be canned in commercial juices such as unsweetened apple juice, pineapple juice or white grape juice. It can also be canned in juice extracted from additional fruit. To extract the juice, thoroughly crush ripe, sound fruit. Heat the juice to simmering and then strain it through cheesecloth, clean muslin or paper coffee filters.” ^[10] National Center for Home Food Preservation Self Study Course. Module 3. Canning Acid Foods: Preparation. Accessed March 2015.

For a gourmet touch, use a juice from a fruit different from the fruit you are canning. Utah State University Cooperative Extension says:

“Fruit might also be packed with the addition of unsweetened juice from another fruit for an interesting contrast in flavor. Pears canned in unsweetened pineapple juice and peaches canned in unsweetened orange juice are two examples.” ^[11] Lauritzen, Georgia C. Reduced Sugar and Sugar-free Food Preservation. Utah State University Cooperative Extension. FN209. 1992. Accessed March 2015 at https://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/publication/FN_209.pdf

In some people’s view, white grape juice is the juice that least impacts the taste of fruit canned in it.

Still, all that being said, buying fruit juice to use as a canning liquid can get expensive if you have a container load of fruit that just landed on you and you have to just get it canned. You can dilute the juice with water to stretch it, or just water may be enough for everyday, household jars of fruit.

Typically, unsweetened juice (juice with no added sugar) is recommended by most canning guides. The Ball Blue Book does seem to suggest, however, that sweetened is fine as well. ^[12]Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 16.

Using sugar syrup as a canning liquid for fruit

You can make syrups in a range of heaviness, from very light to very heavy. The Ball / Bernardin Complete book advises:

“In general, you can use even the lightest syrups with any kind of fruit, but the heaviest syrups don’t work well with everything.” ^[13]Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Ball / Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto: Robert Rose. 2015

Quantities of sugar syrup needed

Allow 250 to 375 ml (1 to 1 ½ cups) of syrup per litre / US quart jar of fruit you will be canning. Bernardin estimates that you will need about 1250 ml (5 cups) of syrup per 7 x ½ litre (US pint) jars, and about 2500 ml (10 ½ cups) of syrup per 7 x 1 litre (US quart) jars. ^[14] Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Bernardin Ltd. 2013. Page 38.

If you sense you are running short while you are packing jars, you could also divvy the syrup that you have up amongst jars, and then top up with boiling water.

To use sugar syrup

First, make your syrup by mixing water and sugar together (see table below), then bring to a boil over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Then set aside on a burner set to just barely keep it warm. Don’t let the syrup boil down. Bring back to a boil before using to fill fruit-filled jars.

For raw packs: bring prepared syrup to a boil and pour over raw fruits in jars.

For hot packs: bring water and sugar to a boil, add fruit, reheat to a boil, and fill into jars immediately. ^[15] United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Complete guide to home canning. Agriculture information bulletin No. 539. 2015. Page 2-5.

Syrup Type	Approx. % Sugar	White Sugar	Syrup	Water	Yield	Used for
Ultra light	10	½ cup / 115 g		5 cups / 1250 ml	5 ¼ cups / 1300 ml	Close to natural sugar levels in most fruits; adds the fewest calories.
Extra Light	20	1 ¼ cups / 275 g		5 ½ cups / 1375 ml	6 cups / 1500 ml	Very sweet fruit.
Light	30	2 ¼ cups / 600 g		5 ¼ cups / 1300 ml	6 ½ cups / 1625 ml	Sweet apples, sweet cherries, berries, grapes.
Medium	40	3 ¼ cups / 725g		5 cups / 1250 ml	7 cups / 1750 ml	Tart apples, apricots, sour cherries, gooseberries, nectarines, peaches, pears, plums.
Heavy	50	4-¼ cups / 950		4-¼ cups / 1125 ml	7 cups / 1750 ml	Very sour fruit.
Corn syrup (1)		1 ½ cups / 350 g	Corn syrup: 1 cup / 250 ml	3 cups / 750 ml	6 cups / 1500 ml
Honey (2)		1 cup / 225 g (if desired, optional)	Liquid honey: 1 cup / 250 ml	4 cups / 1 litre	5 cups / 1250 ml

(1) For the corn syrup, technically, you could use either clear, golden or dark corn syrup, but for visual quality purposes you will likely want to use clear or golden.

(2) The Ball Canning Back to Basics (2017) suggests that the sugar may be omitted as part of the honey syrup. ^[16]Ball Canning Back to Basics. New York: Oxmoor House. 2017. Page 98.

Home canning your fruit with alcohol

It’s also okay to add alcohol flavouring to the canning liquid for canned fruit.

The Ball Blue Book advises:

“Wines, liqueurs, and extracts also impart their unique characteristics to the overall flavor of a recipe. It is not necessary to use the most expensive brands, however, their natural attributes of flavor and color should be considered in order to complement the fruit.” ^[17] Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 16.

To a ½ litre (1 US pint) jar of fruit being canned, add a tablespoon or two of something clear such as brandy, Cointreau, Grand Marnier, Triple Sec, etc. Such alcohols are clear and so won’t make the jar cloudy, and the subtle flavour will infuse the fruit. You could also try a ½ to 1 teaspoon or so (to taste) of non-alcoholic concentrated rum or brandy extract.

The Ball / Bernardin Complete Book (2015 edition, pages 154 to 169) has many recipes for “spirited fruits.” They all call for sugar. You could just leave that out (as we’ve seen it’s fine to can fruit without sugar), and swap in 1 teaspoon liquid stevia per 1 cup / 225 g of sugar called for. Among the alcohols they suggest (depending on the fruit in question) are apricot brandy, amaretto liqueur, brandy, cherry brandy, creme de menthe, cognac, Dubonnet, Grand Marnier, Kahula, Kirsch, peach schnapps, port, red wine, rum, white wine, vodka. They recommend per ½ litre jar (1 US pint jar) to use 1 tablespoon of the spirits and wines; ½ tablespoon when using liqueurs instead.

You can add such flavouring whether you can the fruit in water, juice or syrup.

Can you go higher in the ratio for alcohol? In a recipe for Brandied Cherries, the Ball Blue Book gives directions for a canning liquid that is nearly 50% alcohol: 1 cup sugar (225 g), 1 cup water (250 ml), ½ cup lemon juice (125 ml) and 1 ¼ cups brandy (300 ml). (The alcohol gets added after the syrup is made from the sugar, water and juice, and removed from the heat.) ^[18]Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 19. In the Ball / Bernardin Complete book, the canning syrup for “Oranges in Cointreau” is more booze than water: ⅔ cup water (150 ml), ¾ cup Cointreau (175 ml) and ½ cup white wine (125 ml) mixed into 3 ½ cups sugar (800 g). ^[19] Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Robert Rose Inc. 2015. Page 157.

Home canning your fruit with spices

You could also experiment with adding to your jars of ready-to-can fruit hard, whole spices such as a whole clove or two, half a stick of cinnamon, an allspice berry, a few vanilla seeds scraped from a vanilla pod, a star anise, etc.

Be leery of added powdered spices, as they could make your jar look unsightly.

You can add such flavouring whether you sweeten the canning water or not, or use a juice or not.

The Ball / Bernardin Complete Book (2015) offers this advice:

Spices, herbs and other flavourings such as liqueurs can be used to add flavour and flair to various preserved fruits. Because ground spices may affect the apperance of the final product, whole spices are often tied in a square of cheesecloth to create a spice bag. This bag is cooked with the fruit and removed prior to canning.” ^[20] Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Robert Rose Inc. 2015. Page 140.

Using herbs as added flavour

The Ball Blue Book suggests you may use herbs to flavour your fruit canning liquid:

“Fresh herbs enliven the flavour of almost any berry. Toss a sprig or two of mint, rosemary or thyme into the syrup as it cooks. Remove herbs before canning.” ^[21]Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 19.

While they refer to the use of herbs with berries, you could try them with another fruit. The Ball / Bernardin guide suggests adding a “well-rinsed” fresh mint leaf or two to jars when packing peaches in them for canning. ^[22]Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Ball / Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto: Robert Rose. 2015. Page 151.

You would want to bear in mind that having herb-flavoured fruit might limit the range of its utility at time of use.

Fruit for baking: canning liquid considerations

Fruit for baking in home fruit canning terms means fruit that you plan to possibly use later as an ingredient in recipes.

When canning fruits that you later plan to use as ingredients in recipes, such as apples, peaches or berries in baking recipes, it’s advised to can them in an extra-light syrup or even just water so as not to have the added sugar later conflict with the sugar in recipes as you go to use the fruit.

The Bernardin Guide says, “When canning apples for baking, use an extra-light syrup or water” and “For berries to be used in baking recipes, eliminate sugar and heat berries with just enough water to prevent sticking [before hot packing into jars].” ^[23] Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Bernardin Ltd. 2013. Page 38.

The Ball / Bernardin Complete Guide gives this advise for apples for baking:

“If you plan to use preserved apples for baking — they are delicious in cobblers, pies and other desserts — be sure to pack them in an ultra-light or extra-light syrup or in apple juice.” ^[24]Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Ball / Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto: Robert Rose. 2015. Page 144.

The Ball / Bernardin Complete Guide gives a full set of directions for berries for baking:

“Berries for Use in Baking Recipes (hot pack): Packing berries in water allows you to use them in place of fresh or frozen berries in any baking recipe. In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine berries with just enough water to prevent sticking. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until berries are heated through. Ladle hot berries and liquid into hot jars, leaving ½ inch (1 cm) headspace. If there is not enough liquid to cover berries, add boiling water. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding boiling water. Process both pint (500 ml) and quart (1 litre) jars for 15 minutes.” ^[25]Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Ball / Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto: Robert Rose. 2015. Page 147.

To can rhubarb for later use in baking or other cooking (for instance, fools or ice cream), wash, chop and freeze it, then thaw it. Thawing will release a lot of liquid. Heat together both the rhubarb and the liquid that came off it without adding sugar, and pack into hot jars as a hot pack. Top jars up with a bit of boiling water if needed. Then, proceed with heat processing the jars. (You will have stewed rhubarb rather than solid chunks, but that is unavoidable with any way of canning rhubarb. To retain as solid chunks, simply keep frozen until needed.) For more information including process times, see: Home-canning rhubarb.