Dandelion jelly tastes a bit like honey.
It’s true! My youngest took a taste and proclaimed the honey good.
Dandelion Jelly was a fun project to try out. I was a little leery as to how it would taste so I only made one batch the first time. I didn’t want to use all that sugar and find we really didn’t like it.
I had no reason to fear. It is delicious. I made another 2 batches to have for Christmas gifts. (Uhm….. if you are a relative of mine pretend you didn’t read that.)
There are three sections to this page…
- first make your Dandelion ‘Tea”,
- then make your jelly out of that ‘tea’.
- then preserve it by canning.
If you want to just store it in the refrigerator you can skip the canning portion. Just jar the jelly up and put it in the refrigerator. It will set up in there.
Know your Canner
If you are going to can your jelly please be familiar with using your canner. You ahve two choices for processing dandelion jelly.
These posts will familiarize you with how a canner works and what steps to take to get set up for any canning project.
How to Make Dandelion Jelly
First make the ‘tea’
Pick your flowers. Be sure and pick your dandelion flowers where you know they have not been sprayed.
Pick at least 10 cups of dandelion blossoms. Just blossoms no stems. (they are bitter)
When we asked our neighbor farmer if we could go out in the field and pick dandelions. He said sure. Then he looked at me a little funny! His crazy neighbor lady picking dandelions in his field. 🙂 I gave him a little jar of dandelion jelly as a thank you.
I sent my sons and a visiting friend out foraging with a gallon drink pitcher and they were back in a jiffy. I think their friend probably though I was a little kooky too! I think I’m getting a reputation!
Snip off base of each flower until you have just yellow petals. You need to end up with 4 cups dandelion petals. I tried several methods of getting the petals. I finally settled on pinching the flower and using a scissors to cut off the base. This is a little tedious… ok it is a lot tedious. But it is worth it!
Then I used my fingers to pull off any green parts that were left. It is ok if there are little bits of green.
Next pour boiling water over the flower petals. (Use 1 cup water for every 1 cup of blossoms.) Let this sit until room temperature or overnight if possible. When this has brewed you will have a darkish yellow dandelion “tea”.
Strain the “dandelion tea” through a coffee filter or or jelly bag to remove all petals. Add additional water if needed to measure the correct amount of liquid for your recipe. 3 cups of liquid will make one batch jelly.
How to Can Dandelion Jelly
Gather your canning supplies.
Fill your canner 2/3 full of water and begin heating the water as you make your jelly.
Which pectin should I use?
I only have instruction for using powdered pectin for this recipe. I’ve tried to use a liquid pectin, but I had issues with it setting up. I had better luck with powdered.
Having said that, if you prefer liquid pectin give it a try! Just follow the instruction on the packaging. Maybe you’ll have better luck that me. It certainly won’t hurt to try.
Dandelion Jelly Recipe with Powdered Pectin
Ingredients
- 3 Cups dandelion tea (see above on how to make your tea)
- 4 1/2 Cups sugar (yep! Lots of sugar. Remember it’s a treat, you won’t be eating it by the spoonful. well… you could... but probably shouldn’t. 🙂 )
- 2 Tbsp. lemon juice – you need this to help the pectin set up.
- 1 box powdered pectin
- yellow food coloring (optinal)
Follow the directions on your box of pectin if it differs from my directions here. Yours might have slight differences.
Add dandelion tea, lemon juice and 1 box of pectin into a large saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil. Add the sugar to the mixture and stir.
Bring back to a boil. Continue boiling 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and add yellow food coloring if desired. I do not add food coloring. My jelly color varies a little sometimes lighter sometimes more yellow. If you want a strong yellow add a couple drops. It doesn’t take much.
Process in a water bath canner.
Pour hot jelly into hot canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Wipe the rims of the jars clean and place on the lids and screw bands.
Use pints or 1/2 pints.
Process for
- 10 minutes if you are below 6000 ft elevation.
- 15 minutes if you are above 6000 ft elevation.
Then hide the jelly jars from the kids….
…. or you’ll find this on your counter by the end of the day. Empty jar… notice the bread crumbs all over the counter?
You may have heard that you can eat dandelion greens. Just add clean to a salad. But did you know you can even eat the roots? Check this out.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Toast! or crackers. Honestly toast or crackers is what we put it on. But you could use it just like any jelly. Add it to ice cream, yogurt, sweeten up some muffins.
I know there are benefits to dandelions. Dandelions do have vitamins and minerals. It’s been included in many herbal health teas and salves. The Jelly? I don’t think it should be considered a ‘health’ food. You’ll be eating a tiny amount at a time. And there is the sugar factor. Yep this has a lot of sugar. I’ve seen people say it has the same health benefits. But personally… I consider it just a wonderful jelly.
Yes, absolutely. Dandelions themselves are edible, it is a flower jelly. And super good too!
Question regarding the amount of petals, are your measurements loose or packed down?
I’ve seen some recipes where they put in a quart canning jar but most don’t specify if the petals are loosely packed or packed down
Your recipe recommends using pint or 1/2 pint jars. Would there be any changes if I used 4 oz quarter-pint jelly jars w/ a 1/4″ head space?
No changes needed. Including processing time. Just process as if it were 1/2 pint jars.
I know the dandelions on my lawn aren’t sprayed 🙂
However dont know if I could get enough at one time.
Would it be OK to pick trim and freeze until you have enough
I would think so…
I have not done that… but I agree with you. I don’t see any reason not to.
Or make the tea and freeze it
Sounds like this would be good drizzled over slow churned vanilla ice cream!
You say leave the tea overnight, if possible. Can that be left out on the counter, or must it be refrigerated? Thanks!
Put it in the refrigerator if you leave it overnight.
Thank you!
Hi Sharon – have you tried making this with Pomona’s pectin so amount of sugar can be decreased? If so, might you have idea of amounts for ingredients? TYIA
I have not tried it myself but I know the pomonas pectin recipe book has a recipe for dandelion jelly. So yes it is possible. Sorry, I don’t have the ingredient amounts.
Can you leave the petals in for asthetic purposes? I know they’re edible, but do they cause it to be a different taste? Thanks!
Good question. I recommend following the recipe as written and not adding petals. I know they are edible but I’m not sure about the storage safety aspect of leaving the petals in your jelly.
Hi Sharon. I am so glad to be canning again and the dandelion jelly sound adventurous. I have been canning pinto, black, and lima beans like crazy just waiting for fresh fruit and veggies. A question: I remember that you suggested Clear Gel for jelly and jam. Is this still the best for a good set?
Actually Pat, clear jel is for canning pie filling. I’ve got a page here on clear jel. What you want is some sort of pectin for jam and jelly. This page might be helpful for knowing the difference in the different products. Pectin, Gelatin, or Clear Jel?
I hope that helps!
You are so lucky! We still have snow on the ground. The earliest I have ever planted is May 15, the latest June 20. However, we do have sugar maples so we are making maple syrup. I am going to make this jelly when we do have dandelions.
Tapping trees for syrup is on my bucket list! Since we moved East maybe I’ll have good trees for it now. I didn’t get to it this spring but maybe next year.
I love making dandelion jelly. But I love my warm spices also so I add cinnamon, nutmeg, Ginger and cloves. My grandkids go wild over it and enjoy helping me pick and trim.
Do you use powdered? How much
Sandy, I did try this with powdered pectin but I found that it didn’t set up correctly.
Hi I just made this last night and at it didn’t gel, it’s runny. Can I try adding another box of Sure Jell and reprocess?? Any thoughts?
Hi, Ellyn,
Thanks for trying the recipe! Did you measure the set of the jelly using a certain temperature or another method (like the spoon test)?
Rachel (Sharon’s assistant)
How long does it the jelly usually last?
About 12 months is the general rule, though it’s a quality consideration more than a safety consideration. You can read more here: https://www.simplycanning.com/food-canning/
-Rachel (Sharon’s assistant)
What is the boiling water to blossoms ratio for tea?
Good catch, Tara! It’s a 1:1 ratio (1 cup blossoms to 1 cup water. We’ll get it updated on the page!
-Rachel (Sharon’s assistant)
I don’t see the recipe for using liquid pectin. Where do I find it?
Hi Sherry, I had better luck with the powdered and then I was receiving feedback that others were having issues with their jelly setting up and they were also using liquid pectin. So… I removed that recipe. I thought I removed any reference to the liquid but I do see where I still mention it on the page. I can see where it would be confusing. I just edited the post to be more clear. Sorry for any confusion!
I made the jelly last year, but I included zest of1 lemon, it was incredible!
Very excited to try thisnrecipe! Will be our first venture in eating dandelions. I was going to buy pectin and saw the boxes come in 2 different sizes. One was 1.75oz and the other is 2oz. Which one is proper amount for this recipe?
Either should be fine. The only pectin I’ve had issues with is liquid pectin. For some reason I don’t get as consistent results.
Powdered pectin comes in different sizes/brands. Can you tell me how many ounces to put in?
You’d need to use whatever amount is recommended for a single batch. Since I use the bulk pectin, I use the Tablespoons indicated on the container for one batch. If you use a box, most often the box is considered one batch.
Hi Sharon, I am very interested to try your dandelion jelly. Can you please clarify what consistency the liquid should be before pouring into jars? Do I perform the usual ‘cold saucer’ test as is standard process for checking if the jam is ready? Thanks.
In this case, you are using pectin which won’t thicken up and gel until after it cools. So, your jelly will be very runny. Just follow the directions here or on your pectin packaging and it should thicken up fine. 🙂
How much jelly do the two recipes make
Hi, Pat! I know the recipe with powdered pectin makes about 3 half pint jars. I’m checking with Sharon on the liquid pectin version, however.
-Rachel (Sharon’s assistant)
Pat – Sharon said the liquid pectin recipe will make more jars, but she doesn’t remember how many more. (It was likely from a pectin package.) Plan on having a few more jars handy if you make it.
-Rachel (Sharon’s assistant)
Make sure you use cane sugar only or it won’t set.
try using what we fireweed using same as dandelion