This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This 10-Minute Chia Seed Jam recipe is my fave!! It’s super quick and easy to make, thickened with chia (instead of tons of extra sugar), totally delicious, and made with real ingredients you can feel great about.
After yesterday’s post sharing my all-time favorite healthy granola recipe, I couldn’t resist following it up with my favorite add-in when making granola and yogurt breakfast parfaits…
…ch-ch-ch-chia seed jam!
Have you guys jumped on the chia jam train yet?! I first started making it for myself three years ago, when I cut out sugar from my diet for 90 days, and have been a total convert ever since. Why?
Chia seeds thicken the jam…not tons of added sugar! Traditional jams contain an insane amount of sugar. But not chia jam. In fact, most of the time I add zero added sweetener to this recipe, since the fruit is usually sweet enough on its own. For fruits that are more tart (i.e. raspberries), I still only add about 1 tablespoon honey.
You can use fresh or frozen fruit. Perfect for leftover fresh fruit in the summertime when it’s in season. And perfect for digging into the freezer during the wintertime.
No canning is required. Which is a good thing, since I’m still a canning novice.
It’s easy to make in small batches. This recipe yields about 1 cup, or you can scale it for more/less.
One batch only takes about 10 minutes. Easy peasy, made in the same amount of time it takes to brew your morning coffee.
This recipe works with nearly any juicy fruit. Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, peaches, apricots, kiwi, pineapple…you name it! Just about any juicy fruit will work here. And feel free to customize yours with any other seasonings as well!
But the number one reason I love chia seed jam? It just tastes great. Specifically, it tastes like real fruit. I mean, what a concept with a fruit spread. ?
So if you love spreading a dab of jam on your toast, in your PB&J, in a granola and Greek yogurt parfait, on your waffle, on your cheese boards, in the middle of thumbprint cookies, you name it…if you love jam, this recipe’s for you. Let’s make a batch together that we can feel great about!
10-Minute Chia Seed Jam Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Alright, so to begin, simply add about 2 cups of fruit (fresh or frozen) to a saucepan over medium-high heat. The fruit should quickly begin to warm up and break down. Then you can mash it with a spoon (or with a potato masher) until it reaches your desired consistency. I still like my jam to have a few chunks of fruit, instead of being completely smooth.
(Also note, all of those seeds in this photo below are purely from the raspberries themselves, although they look like chia!)
Then sprinkle in 2 tablespoons or so of chia seeds, and give them a good stir until combined. Remove from heat, and the jam will start to thicken quickly as it cools.
Then after only about 5 minutes or so, it’ll be ready to go!
You can either pop it into a sealed container and refrigerate for future use. (<– It lasts about 1 week in the fridge.)
Or you can go ahead and add it to your toast, bagel, waffle, pancake, sandwich, etc. I’m obsessed with using mine to make granola and Greek yogurt parfaits, which I love to meal prep at the beginning of the week by filling a few mini mason jars with chia seed jam and Greek yogurt. Then just add in your crunchy granola when you’re ready to eat and — boom — a delicious, clean, feel-good breakfast parfait is ready to go each morning in seconds.
Feel free to experiment and play around with your favorite flavors, consistency, and extra add-ins here. The sky’s the limit to what you can create. So have fun with this one!
This 10-Minute Chia Seed Jam recipe is my fave!! It’s super quick and easy to make, thickened with chia (instead of tons of extra sugar), totally delicious, and made with real ingredients you can feel great about.
Ingredients
Scale
2 cups fresh or frozen fruit (see suggestions below)
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
1-2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup (only if needed)
Instructions
Heat fruit in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the fruit is heated through and begins to break down and bubble. Use a spoon or potato masher to mash the fruit to your desired consistency.
Stir in the chia seeds and lemon juice until combined. Then taste, and stir in 1 or 2 tablespoons sweetener if needed.
Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. (The jam will thicken considerably as it cools.)
Give the jam one final good stir. Then serve immediately, or transfer to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
So easy and delicious! I was spending $7 on a tiny jar of this and was blown away that making it is so easy and I much prefer the taste of just fruit and chia seeds. Thanks so much for this!
Havent made this yet but look forward to it. I remember this type, minus Chia seeds, we made back “in the day” . Looking forward to lower sugar preserves. Preserves I buy are sugar, pectin, maybe some fruit. Thanks
I am trying to make a chia jam with cherries, but up, blueberries, and plums cut up. Will this work using 2 cups of this mixture. I make rhubarb and strawberry jam and it turned out fantastic, and I was able to keep it in the fridge for quite a long time, and it never went bad at all.
What happens if you use frozen fruit which will already be soft from freezing? Must you heat it or can you simply add chia seeds and wait for it to thicken?
This is my best recipe discovery in a long time! I’ve probably made 10 batches of this jam already. I use it on toast, with overnight oats, and to sweeten plain yogurt. My last batch used frozen dark sweet cherries. I didn’t have a lemon, so I added a splash of orange juice, and it turned out delicious! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
I have been wanting to find an alternative to all of the preserves/jams on the market loaded with sugar and other questionable sweeteners. I made two batches, unsweetened strawberry and sweetened mixed berries, both from frozen berries. They were both fantastic and incredibly quick and simple, with minimal mess.
Just made mango jam. Added Just a little honey. The mangoes were already sweet. Can’t wait for tomorrow to have some on my homemade yogurt.
Can you freeze this?
Absolutely love this, I am on my own journey of wellbeing so looking forward to checking out your other delights
So easy and delicious! I was spending $7 on a tiny jar of this and was blown away that making it is so easy and I much prefer the taste of just fruit and chia seeds. Thanks so much for this!
Is this recipe suitable for home canning?
Havent made this yet but look forward to it. I remember this type, minus Chia seeds, we made back “in the day” . Looking forward to lower sugar preserves. Preserves I buy are sugar, pectin, maybe some fruit. Thanks
I am trying to make a chia jam with cherries, but up, blueberries, and plums cut up. Will this work using 2 cups of this mixture. I make rhubarb and strawberry jam and it turned out fantastic, and I was able to keep it in the fridge for quite a long time, and it never went bad at all.
I used 2 tbs of stevia and 1 tsp of grated lemon rind and it tastes real fine. Thank you so much for this no sugar delight !!
Have you done this without heating the berries? I have frozen raspberry pieces and would prefer not to cook the berries first.
Oh, my goodness! I had a big bag of frozen mixed berries, so used some of them to make this jam. It’s all I can do to eat all of it at once!
Perfect over vanilla ice cream and bananas and I’m sure would be great on crepes or French toast.
What happens if you use frozen fruit which will already be soft from freezing? Must you heat it or can you simply add chia seeds and wait for it to thicken?
Fabulous Jam
As Diabetics in our group
We are delighted
Any other treats you can send out please
This is a winner
Thanks 🙏
I am never buying store bought jam again!
This is absolutely delicious.
Blueberry is the best
This is my best recipe discovery in a long time! I’ve probably made 10 batches of this jam already. I use it on toast, with overnight oats, and to sweeten plain yogurt. My last batch used frozen dark sweet cherries. I didn’t have a lemon, so I added a splash of orange juice, and it turned out delicious! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
I have been wanting to find an alternative to all of the preserves/jams on the market loaded with sugar and other questionable sweeteners. I made two batches, unsweetened strawberry and sweetened mixed berries, both from frozen berries. They were both fantastic and incredibly quick and simple, with minimal mess.
I use red grapes with berries and find the red grapes are so sweet, I don’t need a added sweetener.
Made it. Love it. Will make it again.
It’s a tad seedy for the rest of the family, so I’m working on that but for now, it’s all mine – deeeelish!!
So good! What’s the nutritional content tho? I am tracking my macros