How to Make Homemade Canned Figs (2024)

Looking for How to Make Homemade Canned Figs - Easily! With Step-by-step Photos, Recipe, Directions, Ingredients and Costs in 2024? Scroll down this page and follow the links.And if you bring home some fruit or vegetables and want to can, freeze, makejam, salsa or pickles, see thispage for simple, reliable, illustrated canning, freezing or preservingdirections. There are plenty of other related resources, click on the resources dropdown above. If you are having a hard timefindingcanning lids, I've used these, and they're a great price &ship in 2 days.

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How to Make Homemade Canned Figs - Easily! With Step-by-step Photos, Recipe, Directions, Ingredients and Costs

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Makingand canning your own figs is also quite easy. Here's how to make it, in 12easy steps and completely illustrated. These directions work equally wellfor regular sugar, low sugar, fruit juice-sweetened and Stevia (in a prepared form like Truvia, it measures same as sugar; if you use another form, you will need do your own conversion) - or Splenda, if you prefer, -sweetened jam.

For more information about figs, see Fig Picking Tips. See Howto Make Homemade Fig Preserves and Fig Jamand Making Candied figs andOther fig recipes. Alsothis page for Blueberry Jam directions, and for strawberry,blackberry, raspberry, peach, etc., and other types of jam, see this jam-making page!

For easy applesauce orapple butter directions,click on these links.

Ingredients and Equipment

Fruit - fresh figs - about 4 dozen medium to large figs(about 11 lbs) makes 7 pint jars (16 ounces each) of jam.
Lemon juice - either fresh squeezed or bottled.Alternatively, Citric acid (brand name, fruit fresh).
Water - 1/2 cup
Sugar - About 4.5 cups of dry, granulated (table) sugar. Itis possible to make low-sugar, fruit juice-sweetened, or Stevia (in a prepared form like Truvia, it measures same as sugar; if you use another form, you will need do your own conversion) - or Splenda, if you prefer, -sweetened fig jam; I'll point outthe differences below.
Jar grabber (to pick up the hot jars)- Big box stores andgrocery stores sometimes carry them; and it is available online - seethis page. It's a tremendously useful to put jars in the cannerand take the hot jars out (without scalding yourself!). The kit soldbelow has everything you need, and at a pretty good price:
See here for related tools, equipment, supplies on Amazon

1 large pot; I prefer 16 to 20 quart Nonstick ceramic coated pots foreasy cleanup.
Large spoons and ladles,
1 Water Bath Canner (a huge pot to sanitize the jars after filling(about $30 to $35 at mall kitchen stores, sometimes at big box storesand grocery stores.). Note:we sell canners and supplieshere, too - at excellent prices - and it helps support this website!
Half pint canning jars (Grocery stores, like Publix, Kroger, Safeway carrythem, as do some big box stores - about $7.50 per dozen pint ounce jarsincluding the lids and rings)
Jar funnel ($5 at Target, other big box stores, and oftengrocery stores; and available online - see this page) or order it aspart of the kit with the Jar grabber .
Lids - thin, flat, round metal lids with a gum binder thatseals them against the top of the jar. They may only be used once.
Rings - metal bands that secure the lids to the jars. Theymay be reused many times.

Optional stuff:

Lid lifter (has a magnet to pick the lids out of the almost-boiling water where you sanitize them. ($4 at big box stores or it comes in thekit at left)

Fig Canning Directions

This example shows you how to make canned (or bottled) jam;regular or with added seasoning. The yield from this recipe is about 7 pintjars.

Step1 - Pick the figs! (or buy them already picked)

It's fun to go pick your own and you can obviously get better qualityones!

Step 2 - How much fruit?

Itdepends upon how much you want to make. I generally use pint jars forcanned figs. An average of 11 pounds is needed per canner load of 9pints. That's about 4 dozen medium to large figs.

If you are using quart jars, an average of 16 pounds is needed per cannerload of 7 quarts; An average of 2-1/2 pounds yields 1 quart of canned figs.

Step3 - Wash the jars and lids

Now's a good time to get the jars ready, so you won't be rushed later.The dishwasher is fine for the jars; especially if it has a "sanitize"cycle, the water bath processing will sanitize them as well as thecontents! If you don't have a dishwasher with a sanitize cycle, you canwash the containers in hot, soapy water and rinse, then sanitize the jarsby boiling them 10 minutes, and keep the jars in hot water until they areused.

NOTE: If a canning recipe calls for 10 minutes or more of process time in the canner, then the jars do not need to be "sanitized" before filling them.But really, sanitizing them first is just good hygeine and common sense! See this page for more detail about cleaning and sanitizing jars and lids.

Put the lids into a pan of hot, but not quite boiling water (that's what the manufacturer's recommend) for 10 minutes, and use the magnetic "lid lifterwand" to pull them out.

Leave the jars in the dishwasher on "heated dry" until youare ready to use them. Keeping them hot will prevent the jars frombreaking when you fill them with the hot jam. Some newer dishwashers evenhave a "sanitize" setting.

Step 4 - Get the lids warming in hot(but not boiling) water

Lids: put the very hot (but not quite boiling; around 180 F, steamingwater is fine)
water (or on the stove in a pot of water on low heat) forat least several minutes; to soften up the gummed surface and clean andsanitize the lids.

Step 5 -Wash the figs!

I'm sure you can figure out how to gently wash the fruitin plain cold water.

You should not cut off the stems or the bottom ofthe fig, nor peel them. You want them intact! Also, don't useoverripe or nasty looking ones (example photo below)

At left, sample figs with unappealing peels (skins).

At right is a sample slice of a perfectly ripe but not over-ripe fig.It depends on the variety, but generally, they should be pink/yellowish andnot brown inside....

Step 6 - Make the syrup

Depending upon which type of sweetener you want to use (sugar, no-sugar,Stevia (but you will have to experiment with amount, each brand of Stevia is a different concentration), or Splenda, or a mix of sugar and Stevia (or Splenda) or fruit juice) you will need touse a different syrup from below. Adding syrup to canned fruit helps toretain its flavor, color, and shape. It does not prevent spoilage of thesefoods. Heat the syrup to near boiling in a pot. Most people prefer the verylight syrup!

	Type of syrup (Choose ONE)	Water (cups)	Fruit juice (cups)	Sugar (cups)	Powdered Stevia (in a prepared form like Truvia, it measures same as sugar; if you use another form, you will need do your own conversion) - or Splenda, if you prefer it
Sugar syrup proportions for 7 to 9-pint jarsof figs (double it for 9 quart jars)
1	Plain water	7	0	0	0
2	no calorie sweetener	7	0	0	1/4 cup
3	Fruit juice (white grape or peach juice works well)	0	7	0
4	Reduce calorie / fruit juice	4	3	0
5	Fruit juice and Stevia (in a prepared form like Truvia, it measures same as sugar; if you use another form, you will need do your own conversion) - or Splenda, if you prefer,	0	7	0	1/2 cup
6	very low calorie	7	0	1/4	1/4 cup
7	very light (10% sugar)	7	0	1	0
8	light (20% sugar)	6	0	2	0
9	medium (30% sugar)	6	0	3	0

Step 7 - Blanching

Putthe figs in a large pot of already boiling water (so all the figs are coveredwith water) and boil 2 minutes. Quickly but gently remove the figs at 2 minutesand drain.

Step 8 - Boil the figs in the syrup

Gentlyboil the figs in sugar or fruit juice or other syrup for 5 minutes.Light syrup is generally preferred for taste!

Notes:

Nutrasweet (aspartame) will NOT work - it breaks down duringheating).
Stevia (in a prepared form like Truvia, it measures same as sugar; if you use another form, you will need do your own conversion) - or Splenda, if you prefer, (sucralose)substitutes with sugar BUT even the manufacturers of Splenda will tellyou that you get best results if you just use a 50-50 mix; half regularsugar and half Splenda (or less of Stevia)
Sugar not only affects the sweetness, but also the color andflavor. It does not affect the preserving or spoilage properties - thathas to do with acid and the processing method.
you can use "no sugar" pectin in place of "low sugar" pectin - youcan still add sugar or other sweeteners.

Step 9 - Add the natural preservative

Add 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice per quart jar or 1 tablespoon perpint jar to each of the jars. Alternatively, you may add 1/2teaspoon citric acid (also goes under the brand name "fruit fresh") perquart or 1/4 teaspoon per pint to the jars. This is to increase theacidity and help prevent discoloration and spoilage.

Step 10 - Fill thejars with figs

Filljars with hot figs, gently tapping the bottom of the jar on thecountertop to help pack the figs down gently (tapping does it withoutbreaking the figs)

Step 11 - Fill theairspace in the jars with syrup

Addthe hot syrup (in which you heated the figs in step 8), leaving 1/4 to 1/2-inchheadspace. Wipe any spilled jam off the top,

Step 12 - Put the lid /rings on and put inthe canner

Seatthe lid and tighten the ring around them. This is where the jartongs and lid lifter come in really handy! Place them into the canner

Step13 - Process the jars in the boiling water bath

Keep the jars covered with at least 2 inches of water. Keep the waterboiling. In general, boil them for 45 minutes at sea level. I say "ingeneral" because you have to process (boil) them longer at higher altitudesthan sea level, or if you use larger jars, or if you did notsanitizethe jars and lids right before using them.

To adjust, process according to the recommendations in the table below:

Table 1.Recommended process time for Figs in a boiling-water canner.
Process Time at Altitudes of
Jar Size	0 - 1,000 ft	1,001 - 3,000 ft	3,001 - 6,000 ft	Above 6,000 ft
Pints	45 min	50	55	60
Quarts	50	55	60	65

Step 14 - Remove and cool the jars - Done!

Liftthe jars out of the water and let them cool without touching or bumpingthem in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight) You can then removethe rings if you like, but if you leave them on, at least loosen themquite a bit, so they don't rust in place due to trapped moisture. Oncethe jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that thelid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with yourfinger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is notsealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can stilluse it. Some people replace the lid and reprocess the jar, then that's abit iffy. If you heat the contents back up, re-jar them (with a new lid)and the full time in the canner, it's usually ok.

Once cooled, they're ready to store. I find they last about 18 months.After that, the get darker in color and start to get runny. They stillseem safe to eat, but the flavor is bland. So eat them in the first 12 to18 months after you prepare them!

Other Equipment:

From left to right:

Jar lifting tongs
to pick up hot jars
Lid lifter
- to remove lids from the pot
of boiling water (sterilizing )
Lids
- disposable - you may only
use them once
Ring
- holds the lids on the jar until after the jars cool -
then you remove them, save them and reuse them
Canning Jar funnel
- to fill the jars

You can get all of the tools in a kit here:

Summary - Cost of Making Home Canned Figs - makes 7 pint jars, 16 ozeach**
Item	Quantity	Cost in 2024	Source	Subtotal
Figs	11 lbs (about 2 gallon, or 4 dozen large figs)	$10.00/gallon	Pick your own	$10.00
Canning jars (8 oz size), includes lids andrings	7 jars	$11/dozen 8 oz jars or $0.92/jar	Grocery stores, like Public, Kroger, Safeway andsometimes, Big Lots, local hardware stores and big box stores	$7.50
Sugar	1 cup	$0.50	Grocery stores, like Public, Kroger, Safeway andsometimes, Big Lots, local hardware stores and big box stores	$0.50
Total				$18.00 total or about $2.55 per pint jar
* - This assumes you already have the pots, pans, ladles,, andreusable equipment. Note that you can reuse the jars! If you alreadyhave jars or reuse them, just buy new lids (the rings are reusable,but the flat lids are not)!

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Answers to Common Questions

Can I use frozen figs instead of fresh?
Yep! Yes, I wash my figs as they ripen, then put themstraight into a ziploc bag, squeezing out any air spaces, then puttheminto the freezer until I am ready to make jam or can them.! Frozenfigs work just fine, and measure the same.
What do I do if there's mold on my cannedfigs?
Discard jcanned fods with mold on them. The mold could beproducing a mycotoxin (poisonous substance that can make you sick).USDA and microbiologists recommend against scooping out the mold andusing the remaining figs, jam or jelly.

Comments and Feedback

A visitor writes on July 25, 2013: "Just used your recipe for canning figs in water w/small amount sugar & natural lemon juice. Never canned before nowand it was super easy!! Thanks for the step by step. What is theapproximate shelf life for the figs? Thanks" -
Thank you!The figs should have good quality for about a year, then slowlydecline (but will still be safe, as long as the seal, jar and lidremain intact!