Plum Sauce Recipe for Canning / Spicy Sweet!
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Plum trees produce abundant amounts of fruit, but there is only so much jam we can eat! This savory and sweet plum sauce recipe makes a special dinner with no extra effort. A perfect combination with chicken.
This is also called a Chinese plum sauce. With a spicy sweet taste it is a traditional condiment for Chinese food.
4 pounds of fresh plums will make about 4 pints of sweet plum sauce.
- I’ve got plum jam recipe (this one is low sugar!) here if you want.
- And I’ve got a spicy sweet plum sauce recipe here just for a change up!
Plum Sauce Recipe: extended directions with expert tips.
The first step is to make the plum sauce.
Ingredients:
- 4 pounds plums
- 1 cup cider vinegar
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/4 tsp. ground ginger (or mince a 1” piece of ginger)
- 1 Tbsp. salt
- 2 Tbsp. mustard seed
- 2 Tbsp. chopped green chilis
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 1 clove garlic
Pit and chop plums. Combine vinegar, sugar, spices, peppers, onion, and garlic. Bring to a boil in a sauce pan. Pour plums into brine mixture.
Simmer until the mixture is syrupy thick, 1 to 1½ hours. Stir often!
This can be done right in the saucepan you started in or you can transfer to a crockpot to cook slow and easy.
You’ll want to cook your sauce down until it is syrupy in thickness. The length of time will depend on how juicy your plums are. A wider pan will give more surface space for evaporation and will shorten the time required. (Be sure to cook on low and stir often to avoid scorching.)
Canning Plum Sauce Recipe
- water bath canner
- canning jars
- canning lids and rings
- large pot
- ladle and bubble tool
- jar lifter and canning funnel
Pour your completed and still hot plum sauce into a hot jar, leaving 1/4″ headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe rim clean, and place on seal and ring. Place the jar in the warm canner. Proceed to fill all jars.
If you are not familiar with waterbath canning please click this link to check Water Bath Canning for all the details on how to use your waterbath, prepping and filling jars.
Process according to water bath canning instructions, adjusting for altitude using the chart below.
Plum Sauce Recipe Tips & FAQs
Yes thos can also be canned in half-pints. Do not shorten the processing time for the smaller jars.
This sauce is perfect for making plum chicken. Just pour some over your chicken and roast, basting a couple of times during cooking time.
Or you can pour it over a pork roast in a slow cooker. It will be a thinner consistency in the slow cooker but is so very good!
It also makes a great dipping sauce for egg roll.
Mix with some bite-sized chicken (or any poultry) pieces and some vegetables for a chicken stir fry.
If you’ve just got a glut of plums and really need to get them taken care of quickly. Canning them is a great option. Here are directions on how to can plums.
And of course there is always the favorite Plum Jam Recipe
If you don’t want to can this you can just skip the canning step and store it in the refrigerator. It will last a week or two.
If you like a little extra heat, you can use spicier peppers. If you want mild, use mild green peppers.
Do not skip the vinegar. This has lots of added ingredients to the plums, and what will keep it safe for the water bath is the added vinegar. You can substitute white vinegar if you don’t have cider vinegar. It will have a slightly different flavor.
A couple Jam recipe options too.
You might also like to check out these jams! Made with plums and a combination of other stone fruit.
Peach Nectarine Plum Jam is Otherwise known as Stone Fruit Jam, a great way to use up fruit before it goes bad!
Low Sugar Plum Jam Plum jam that actually tastes like plums!
Recipe Card
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 pounds Plums
- 1 cup Vinegar cider
- 2 cups Sugar brown
- 1 cup Sugar white
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Ginger or mince a 1” piece of ginger
- 1 Tablespoon Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Mustard Seed
- 2 Tablespoons Green Chillies chopped
- ¾ cup Onion(s) chopped
- 1 clove Garlic
Instructions
- Start by preparing jars and getting water in the canner heating.You want the canner hot, but not boiling, when the jars are ready to be processed. See full water bath canning instructions here.
How to Make Plum Sauce: Hot Pack Only
- Pit and chop plums.
- Combine vinegar, sugar, spices, peppers, onion, and garlic in a large pot. (or a crockpot) Bring to a boil.
- Pour plums into brine mixture.
- Cook on low heat until the mixture is syrupy thick, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Stir often!
- Pour into hot jar, leaving 1/4" headspace.
- Remove air bubbles, wipe rim clean, and place on seal and ring.
- Place the jar in the warm canner. Proceed to fill all jars placing them in the canner.
- Process according to the instructions below.
Notes
Altitude – Pints
- 0-1,000 ft – 20 minutes
- 1,001-3,000 ft – 25 minutes
- 3,001-6,000 ft – 30 minutes
- 6,001-8,000 ft – 35 minutes
- 8,001-10,000 ft – 40 minutes
Sources: Ball Blue Book, Oregon State Extension
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Sources: Ball Blue Book, Oregon State Extension
Can I use canned plums in this recipe?
I don’t know if the texture would turn out the same. Canned plums (either home canned or commercially canned) will already be broken down and more runny. A completely different texture. I don’t think I”d recommend it as I’m not sure how that would affect the ratio of plums to onions and other ingredients. It might affect the acidity levels which would affect the safety.
I have “wild” plums that I juiced/pitted with some water into quarts. Can I use this, and how much, instead of the 4 lbs of plums in the plum sauce recipe?
Sherri it would be hard to estimate how much of what you have to use for canning this recipe. BUT, you could certainly make it and then use it for dinner right away or freeze it. The issue with trying to can it is the safety of the recipe all depends on the acidity of the product and with the changes you made I can’t make guesses as to its acidity. In addition, the texture might be affected. But for sure make it for dinner! It’s super good.