Delicious, nutritious homemade Jellied Cranberry Sauce with a hint of orange is just what your cranberry sauce lovers want at your Thanksgiving meal this holiday season! Tangy, sweet, and a holiday classic, your own cranberry sauce is the perfect complement to any roast you serve!
Serve this delightful homemade cranberry sauce right after it has been made and chilled, or you can can it to make it shelf-stable for longer storage. And it’s easy to make to boot!
My eldest son has -year after year- requested a giant Thanksgiving style feast on his birthday that falls about a week and a half before Thanksgiving. It’s his favourite meal of the year and he sees no reason to be confined to having it only once.
He also sees no problem with having the gigantic meal twice in one month. …And he knows what he likes.
Since he was able to serve himself at the table, the thing he has grabbed for first from the table is the bowl of cranberry sauce. According to him, it has to be smooth.
He and I both feel strongly about this. Even though Martha and legions of foodies present the beautiful relishes and whole berry sauces with the recognizable berries peeking out of it, I continue to hew the middle-America, smooth, quivering, ruby-red, can-shaped tube of sauce like the one I grew up eating.
My son loves this version the very best, too. Is my love for it nostalgia?
Perhaps, but it’s what I like. …And I know what I like.
(I do like some of the whole berry stuff, but it HAS to be like this homemade sweet and spicy one or all bets are off!)
Fresh Cranberry Sauce
But what I like very best of all is this homemade Jellied Cranberry Sauce. It has all the punch of fresh cranberries, less sugar, and a hint of orange juice all in a smooth, jelled package.
Wonder of wonders, you can whip this jellied cranberry sauce up with minimal prep time, easy to find ingredients, and very little hands-on time. This easy homemade cranberry sauce is a staple of the holiday table.
And I feel like I’m standing on pretty firm ground when I assert that Thanksgiving leftovers are one of the best parts of the season. Leftover turkey sandwiches made from rolls topped with roast turkey breast, leftover cranberry sauce, and a thin layer of pan fried stuffing with a ladle of gravy over the top is one of the best holiday meals in existence.
If you’re a fan of canned cranberry sauce and it’s classic slices, take heart! Homemade cranberry sauce can be umolded like it’s cousin-in-a-can by gently running a little hot water over the outside of the jar, running a flexible, thin spatula around the inside of the jar, and plopping it onto a plate or into a bowl. If you follow the instructions, it’ll be as firm as the commercially available canned stuff.
If you do not bring the sauce to 215ºF after adding the sugar, it may end up softer set. It is still marvelous either way.
Can I Can Homemade Cranberry Sauce?
We have fresh cranberry sauce at our Thanksgiving table without fail, but that’s not the only time we eat it. If you’re like us, you may be wondering if you can can homemade jellied cranberry sauce.
The short answer here is yes. I can homemade cranberry sauce every year.
EVERY YEAR. The great advantage to canning it is that you can store it on pantry shelves for up to a year!
Given that cranberries are usually on wicked sale this time of year, and that we eat it year ’round, it makes sense to make it in massive quantities and can it up. That way we have homemade classic cranberry sauce available year-round.
Do I have to can it?
The short answer is no. If you’re can-phobic, you can certainly pour it into jars or another airtight container, put the lids in place, and refrigerate it up to 10 days before serving.
While I’ve not tried freezing it, I imagine the taste would hold up beautifully in the freezer. Would the gel hold up? I couldn’t say.
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Why make your own jellied cranberry sauce when the cans are so inexpensive at the store? Because it just plain tastes better!
Homemade jellied cranberry sauce has a better texture, more vibrant, fresher flavour than the stuff that you purchase and you control what goes into it. You can even add a little minced jalapeño if you like a kick to your homemade cranberry sauce or simmer a stick of cinnamon in it if you’d like to spice up your life or Thanksgiving dinner.
How to Make Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- Fresh Whole Cranberries
- Juice and Zest of an Orange
- White Sugar
- Optional: Minced Jalapeño Pepper or a Whole Cinnamon Stick
Equipment Needed to Make Cranberry Sauce
- Liquid Measuring Cup
- Microplane or Zester
- Heavy Bottomed Saucepan or Stockpot
- Long Handled Wooden Spoon
- Fine Mesh Sieve
- Immersion Blender or Potato Masher or Blender/Food Processor
- Instant Read Thermometer or Cold Spoon (store a handful of spoons in the freezer.)
Are you looking for more cranberry goodies? Try out this jiggly and delicious Cranberry Ginger Finger Gelatin, Cranberry Eggnog Doughnut Bread Pudding, Cranberry Brussels Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette, and Simple Candied Cranberries + Cranberry Syrup.
You can also break up homemade jellied cranberry sauce with a fork until it is spreadable and use it between layers of cake or to stuff French toast.
Jellied Cranberry Sauce
Combine the cranberries, orange juice, water, and orange zest in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. If you’re using a cinnamon stick or minced jalapeño peppers, add it here. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes while the cranberries pop open.
Use an immersion blender, potato masher, or a blender to carefully blend the mixture until it is mostly smooth. It does not need to be perfect, but the smoother the puree, the faster it’ll move through the sieve.
Pour into a fine-mesh sieve over a heat-proof bowl and use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon to press it through the sieve until all that remains is a paste of little twiggy bits and seeds from the cranberries and orange zest. Return the cranberry sauce to the pan.
Return the pan to medium high heat, add the sugar, and stir until dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently, and boil until your cranberry mixture reaches between 215ºF and 217ºF.
Pour into sterile canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Wipe the rims, place new lids on the jars, and screw the rings into place until finger-tip tight.
Store in the refrigerator OR place the jars filled with hot cranberry sauce in a canner and cover with hot water. Bring to a boil and process for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the lid from the canner and let the jars remain in the water for five minutes. Transfer the jars to a wire rack or towel to cool overnight, undisturbed. Wipe the jars down, label them, and store in a cool, dark place for up to a year.
If you do not have an instant read thermometer, you can test the doneness of the sauce by dipping a cold spoon into the simmering sauce and lifting it up. The cranberry sauce should gel against the spoon and hold a clean line when you draw your finger through it.
Jellied Cranberry Sauce {canned or refrigerated}
Rate RecipeEquipment
- 1 liquid measuring cup
- 1 microplane or zester
- 1 heavy-bottomed stockpot
- 1 long handled wooden spoon
- 1 fine mesh sieve
- 1 instant read thermometer
Ingredients
- 9 cups fresh cranberries
- 4 cups sugar
- The juice of one orange plus enough water to equal 3 1/2 cups
- The zest of 1 orange
Instructions
- Combine the cranberries, orange juice, water, and orange zest in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes while the cranberries pop open.
- Use an immersion blender, potato masher, or a blender to carefully blend the mixture until it is mostly smooth. It does not need to be perfect, but the smoother the puree, the faster it’ll move through the sieve.
- Pour into a fine-mesh sieve over a heat-proof bowl and use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon to press it through the sieve until all that remains is a paste of little twiggy bits and seeds from the cranberries and orange zest. Return the cranberry sauce to the pan.
- Return the pan to medium high heat, add the sugar, and stir until dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently, and boil until your cranberry mixture reaches between 215ºF and 217ºF.
- Pour into sterile canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Wipe the rims, place new lids on the jars, and screw the rings into place until finger-tip tight.
- Store in the refrigerator OR place the jars filled with hot cranberry sauce in a canner and cover with hot water. Bring to a boil and process for 15 minutes, whether in a pint, pint and a half, or quart sized jar. Turn off the heat, remove the lid from the canner and let the jars remain in the water for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack or towel to cool overnight, undisturbed. Wipe the jars down, label them, and store in a cool, dark place for up to a year.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
did you make this recipe?
Make sure to tag @foodiewithfam on Instagram and #hashtag it #foodiewithfamily so I can check it out!
Originally published November 2013, updated November 2020 with additional notes, and November 2022 with improved instructions.
Reader's Thoughts...
Bonnie Satterthwaite says
I did not see fruit pectin in the ingredients list, but you mentioned it in the article. Is it necessary to made the sauce jell?
Love the idea of making my own, just to say I did!
Rebecca says
Believe it or not, the pectin is naturally occurring in the cranberries so you don’t need to add any! Hooray!
donna smith says
i scoop the jelly with a melon baller into a nice bowl for the table..
Patricia Gensemer says
I wish I found this BEFORE Thanksgiving! I have a son the same who will eat cranberry sauce straight from the can. I tried making my own, and it came out a little too sweet because the recipe I found has twice the sugar this one has! I’ll be making a quarter batch tomorrow to see if he will accept the addition of orange juice and zest.
Sherri P says
I made this for Thanksgiving dinner, since we all prefer jellied sauce. I was excited that I could make my own, as I had never seen a recipe for it before. I had a can of the store bought stuff chilling in case the recipe failed or somebody missed the old standard. No need, it was never opened and the homemade sauce was a big hit. I cannot believe how easy it was to make and how great it tastes! I even sent a jar home with a very satisfied friend. This will now be a yearly go-to. Thanks so much!
Tara says
when do you add the zest?
Rebecca says
Hi Tara- Add the zest at the beginning with the rest of the ingredients. 😀 (I noticed it wasn’t in the recipe either, except at the ‘strain out’ bit. Thank you for the heads up. I fixed it.)
Cathy says
I’m making cranberry jelly for gifts – tastes wonderful! But I don’t have a canner. Can I just boil the 4 oz canning jars in a pot for 15 minutes? I have never canned before. Where does the water come up to on the jar? Thanks for any help.
Penny says
@Cathy, I’ve read that you don’t want your jars sitting directly on the pan bottom. Perhaps a washcloth under them if I remember correctly. Water needs to cover jars by an inch or 2.
Penny says
Pennyy, I’ve read that you don’t want your jars sitting directly on the pan bottom. Perhaps a washcloth under them if I remember correctly. Water needs to cover jars by an inch or 2.
Kelly says
How much pectin do you need to use in this recipe and which one is best to use?
-Thanks-
Linda Martin says
I made this for Thanksgiving. It was a huge hit. It didn’t gel, but that didn’t make a difference. And I actually decided to ‘crush’ the cranberries and leave them in. I will be making this again! oh and I only made 1/4 of the recipe and had no problems at all.
tara says
I was so excited for this but left quite bummed. My sauce seemed thick enough when I poured it into jars but hasn’t really thickened into a jelly from Wednesday night. I too am going to reheat and reduce and see where that gets me. I’d like to know what it looks like, thickness stage wise before it gets jarred. Is it already somewhat jellied or just a thick reduction? I’ve never made jelly or canned but am pretty baking and cooking savvy.
Jaime says
Hello, Did you end up reducing this? Did that work?
Debbie Buch says
I made this per directions and got 5 pints instead of 4 cups. It’s jelling and sealing. It’s all good but I am unclear about why I got so much. Ideas? thanks
Brooke says
Followed this recipe to a T and my jelly never set. Its total soup. What happened? 🙁
Rebecca says
Try putting it back in the pan and reducing it further. Make sure it’s at a good solid boil and not a gentle simmer… You’ll also want to be sure to keep stirring the bottom well so that it doesn’t scorch!
Debbie Buch says
Mine didn’t gel either and I got 5 pints–see below. I did press out the berries in the sieve but how would that be different that just pureeing the whole batch and canning that?
So should I unseal the processed jars of ‘syrup’ and put them back on the burner to reduce? I like the syrup but still would prefer some jars of the jellied berries that I wanted in the first place.
Is there any problem with keeping some of the processed jars of syrup to use on ice cream or pancakes? I put the juice of a large orange in there with the zest so I hope that’s enough acid. to be food safe.
Rebecca says
There’s not a thing in the world wrong with keeping some of that. It sounds delicious!!!!! Now, as for the ‘syrup’ you’d like to jel… you have a couple of options. You can use some Knox unflavoured gelatine to set it up or you could unseal the jars, pop it on the burner, and reduce, stirring carefully to prevent scorching until it reaches gel stage. (Like you’re making old-fashioned jam.) The Knox version would be far faster, but the reduction version would be more old-fashioned.
Debbie Buch says
Oh happy day! I went to unseal my second try at the jelled cranberries to reprocess them and SURPRISE they had jelled! So now I have one batch of jelled and one of syrup–for pancakes and ice cream. yum……..Also am considering giving some as gifts but I will have to talk myself into giving them up haha
I am thrilled and retiring my canner for the time being. oh yeah! thanks so much for all you do.
AppleHillCottage says
I’m generally of the whole berry variety person just because I hate to waste things (like pulp) but you made this look so good and I thought it would be a great gift idea. Some of it is canning away now, and some is going straight into the fridge. It’s delicious. But now I have three cups of beautiful looking pulp left… Not seedy, no sticks… any suggestions?
I think I’m going to stick it in the freezer while I mull this over. Maybe some yummy conserve or something?
Regina says
I dehydrated my leftover pulp. I’ll use in tea, lemonade and other drinks that cran/orange flavor will work.
Rebecca says
Great idea, Regina!
Jen L says
I’m so excited! My first attempt and it is popping away! I love how it smells. I am leaving it chunky because the kids love the whole cranberry version best. Thanks much!
kjh says
Definitely didn’t get this one right last night. I think that my fear of overly aggressive heating (see: reduction of apple pie juices fiasco of last week) meant we didn’t truly let the mixture “boil”, perhaps it was more of a simmer. Sorry, boyfriend! You were right! Ended up with four pints of runny stuff and a blind hope that it would magically set. Rookies. 🙂
It was fun, though. I’m going to try to make time to get a half-recipe done this evening. And perhaps enjoy a little of our now-cocktail mix. 😀 Thanks for the recipe. Making your cornbread stuffing, too!
kjh says
PS – Mightaswell ask my silly question. If I put it back on the stove and reduce by 50% is that going to help anything? Or is it likely to ruin it?
Rebecca says
I don’t think that’s a silly idea at all! I’d give it a shot, but remember that you’ll want to make sure it doesn’t scorch! Runny cranberry sauce is still tasty, scorched, well, isn’t. 😀
kjh says
It worked it worked it worked!!
Thank you. 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving!!
Rebecca says
Hooray! I was holding my breath for you!
Samantha says
Mine turned out runny as well. Did you put the runny cranberry mix back on the stove to get it to set? Thanks!
Rebecca says
Samantha- Check out my responses to the folks who had a similar problem in earlier comments! Just remember to keep stirring to prevent scorching!
chefcrembrulee69 says
Put those babies back on stove top, let them simmer…those babies will thicken to gloriousness!
Diana says
Thank you for posting this. I just made a batch and it tastes great! It hasn’t set up yet but it’s already thickening as it cools. I did mine with 3 cups of sugar and the juice of 2 oranges and water to make 4C. Tastes sweet enough but still nice and tangy. Also stick blended it and still strained it. What a beautiful color!
My jellied-cranberry-sauce-nut daughter will be very happy and you’ll get full credit at the table Thursday.
Thanks again and Happy Thanksgiving!
Anne says
Pectin needs sugar to set up – most recipes won’t work quite right with even reduced sugars. In fact, when bottled pectin first came out, one selling point was that you could use less sugar, and boil the fruit less, so you got more and fresher tasting jelly from your fruit with less sugar… (Talking about peaches and such, with less natural pectin than cranberries.)
However, there is now packaged pectin that doesn’t require sugar. Pomona’s Pectin, and also one made by Ball, that I know of. I haven’t used it, yet, but I wonder if that might be an option for people who want a sugar free version.
I prefer chunky sauces and chutneys and relishes, myself – but I have friends who long for the canned jellied sauce they now avoid… This might be a nice gift item, if I make it work well. Thanks for the idea!
Nutmeg Nanny says
haha I love that he takes advantage and gets two thankgivings 🙂 my kind of kid! This cranberry sauce sounds tasty! Personally, I can appreciate both versions of sauce
Daina says
Mine is processing right now. 🙂 When you say boil so the cranberries pop – wow – they really do pop! I ended up with enough after straining for 5 half pints, but then I saw all that lovely cranberry paste, and being one that hates to waste stuff, I plunked the pasty leftovers into 2 pint jars (with a little leftover for the frig) and tossed them in the processing bath too. I figure that will go lovely spread on leftover turkey sandwiches too.
By the way, my favorite comment in your recipe : “why should I make it from scratch when I can buy it from the store? – Because I can!” Love it! (and that’s why I do it). I seriously need to adopt a large family who will help me consume all my canned stuff.
Thanks for the recipe – I came for the candied jalapenos. I stayed for the joy of reading all your recipes. <3
Rebecca says
Oh, Daina! I love the way you think. Let me know how you like your cranberry spread! 😀
KRISTINE L HAHN says
Ha ha ha! “…becuz I can.” I totally agree with you~ That is exactly why we do this! I did this same thing when I made blackberry Jelly this year. I couldn’t see all the pieces of blackberries going to waste so I threw them into the crock pot and made blackberry butter. (Just like apple butter) omg it is to die for! I hate wasting anything. I’ve learned to make pectin from apple peels/cores. There are just so many ways to use all Gods blessings!
I have a sign in my kitchen, made for me by a friend, that has a ball canning jar on it, and it says: “Get some balls and start canning!”
Kate Ott says
I made the cranberry sauce last night–delicious! BUT, mine is much more sauce–and not firm. What would you suggest we try for round 2 with girlfriends tonight?
Rebecca says
How long have you let it stand up, Kate?
Andrea says
Mine was the same way. I thought it was rely going to set up because I could tell it was jelling as I was spooning it into the jar. I would love to know what went wrong.
Jessica @ A Kitchen Addiction says
My husband always triple checks with me to make sure that jellied cranberry sauce will be present on the Thanksgiving table! I’m going to have to try and see if I can get him to switch to this homemade version!