Preserving plums and prunes

The terms “plums” and “prunes” are used interchangeably. A prune is a plum that can be dried to your satisfaction.

There are two main types of plums: European and Asian. The Asian plums are generally clingstone and best for eating fresh, made into plum sauce, juice, jams and jellies. The European plums are freestone and are suitable for eating fresh, drying and canning.

Some good varieties for jellies and jams are Santa Rosa, Satsuma, Methley, flowering Japanese plums and wild plum. For canning, choose Early Italian, Parsons, Yellow Egg, Italian, Green Gage or Brooks. For drying, Italian, Brooks and Green Gage are excellent.

Canning plums and prunes (halved or whole)

Quantity

An average of 14 pounds is needed per canner load of 7 quarts; an average of 9 pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pints. A bushel weighs 56 pounds and yields 22 to 36 quarts, an average of 2 pounds per quart.

Quality

Select deep-colored, mature fruit of ideal quality for eating fresh or cooking. Plums and prunes may be packed in water or syrup.

Procedure

Stem and wash plums. To can whole, prick skins on two sides of plums with fork to prevent splitting. Freestone varieties may be halved and pitted. If you use syrup, prepare very light, light or medium syrup.

Hot pack

Recommended method. Add plums to water or hot syrup and boil 2 minutes. Cover saucepan and let stand 20 to 30 minutes. Fill jars with hot plums and cooking liquid or syrup, leaving ½-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rims and adjust lids. Process using table below:

Raw pack

Fill jars with raw plums, packing firmly. Add hot water or syrup, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rims and adjust lids. Process using table below: Note: Raw pack plums usually result in floating fruit.

Process time for plums, halved or whole, in a boiling water canner

Style of pack	Jar Size	0-1,000 ft	1,001-3,000 ft	3,001-6,000 ft	Above 6,000 ft
Hot and raw	Pints	20 minutes	25 minutes	30 minutes	35 minutes
Hot and raw	Quarts	25 minutes	30 minutes	35 minutes	40 minutes

After processing, take canner off heat, remove lid and wait 5 minutes before removing jars.

Freezing

Select firm, ripe fruit. Wash, halve and pit. Plums can be frozen in a sugar pack (using 5 parts fruit with 1 part sugar) or syrup pack (using a 50% syrup) or frozen whole with no added sugar or syrup. Plums and prunes can also be cooked in a sugar syrup before freezing to make a sauce.

Place a piece of crumbled plastic wrap on top of fruit to hold it under the liquid when freezing in containers.

Drying

Most plums and prunes dry very well. Select fully mature, fresh, sweet fruit, free from soft spots and blemishes.

Wash and cut in half. Press to flatten fruit. Halves can be steam blanched for 1‑2 minutes to hasten drying. Dry at 130^o‑135^oF until pliable with no pockets of moisture.

Dried prunes are great eaten as snacks or used in breads, fillings, salads and fruit soups.

Jams, jellies and sauces

Plums can be made into excellent jams, jellies and preserves. There are many excellent recipes in pectin packages and home canning books.

Plum Sauce

(Yield: about 4 pint jars)

4 pounds plums (about 12 large)
2 cups light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
¾ cup chopped onion (about 1 medium)
2 tablespoons mustard seed
2 tablespoons finely chopped green chili peppers (about 3 medium)
1 1x¼ inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
1 tablespoon salt
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup cider vinegar, at least 5% acidity

Note: When cutting or seeding hot peppers, wear rubber gloves to prevent hands from being burned.

Prep

Wash plums and chili peppers under cold running water, drain. Cut plums in half lengthwise and remove pits and fibrous flesh. Chop plums. Peel and chop onion. Measure ¾ cup chopped onion. Remove stem and seeds from chili peppers. Finely chop chili peppers; measure 2 tablespoons chopped chili peppers. Finely mince ginger.

Cook

Combine all ingredients, except plums, in a large saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to a gentle boil. Add chopped plums. Cook until sauce is thick and syrupy.

Fill

Pack hot sauce into a hot jar, leaving ½-inch headspace. Ladle hot syrup over pears, leaving ½-inch headspace. Clean jar rim. Center lid on jar and adjust band to fingertip-tight. Place jar on the rack in boiling-water canner with simmering water (180°F). Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process

Water must cover jars by 1 inch. Adjust heat to medium-high, cover canner, and bring water to a rolling boil. Process pint jars 20 minutes, adjusting for altitude (see chart below). Turn off heat and remove cover. Let jars cool 5 minutes. Remove jars from canner; do not retighten bands if loose. Cool 12 hours. Check seals. Label and store jars.

Boiling-water canner altitude adjustments

Altitude in feet
1,001-3,000	Increase time by 5 minutes
3,001-6,000	Increase time by 10 minutes
6,001-8,000	Increase time by 15 minutes
8,001-10,000	Increase time by 20 minutes

Plum Sauce recipe used with permission. Source: Newell Brands Inc. Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving. 38th ed., Hearthmark, LLC, 2024.

Spiced Plums

(Yield: About 4 quart jars)

4 quarts plums
6 cups sugar
1 cup distilled white vinegar (5%)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground cloves

Wash and drain plums. Prick each plum with a fork to prevent the skins from bursting. Place plums in a large crock. Combine sugar, vinegar, and spices, boil 5 minutes. Pour syrup over plums and let stand 24 hours in refrigerator. Drain syrup, heat and pour over plums again the second day. Let stand 24 hours in the refrigerator.

The third day, pack the plums in hot jars, leaving ½-inch headspace. Fill jar to ½ inch of top with boiling hot syrup. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims. Adjust lids. Process 10 minutes in Boiling Water Bath.

Process time for Spiced Plums in a boiling water canner

Style of pack	Jar size	0-1,000 ft	1,001-3,000 ft	3,001-6,000 ft	Above 6,000 ft
Hot	Pints	10 minutes	15 minutes	15 minutes	20 minutes

Source: Spiced Plums from: So Easy to Preserve, 6th Edition.

Canned peppers in glass jar (photo Lynn Ketchum)

Want to learn more about this topic? Explore more resources from OSU Extension: Home food preservation, Home food safety and storage

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