This Easy 3-Ingredient Strawberry Chia Jam recipe is the perfect healthy homemade jam made with chia seeds and fresh fruit. Only 3 healthy, natural, whole-food ingredients and it’s quick and easy to make!
Limiting refined sugars is such a tough job these days because almost all processed foods contain refined sugar in some form. On our family’s journey to healthy eating, conventional jam is one of the foods I completely eliminated from my diet almost immediately because it’s so high in refined sugar and low in nutrients.
I grew up with my mom and grandmothers making jams and jellies every spring and summer for our family to enjoy all year around and because I was spoiled with homemade jam, I had no problem giving up the store-bought stuff.
I’m so excited to be sharing this Easy 3-Ingredient Chia Seed Strawberry Jam with you today, because it’s become one of our family’s favourite snacks. My husband’s favourite treat is a slice of homemade bread slathered in nut butter and jam, so giving up jam like I did just wasn’t an option for him.
And since I didn’t want our little ones filling their bellies with all that refined sugar, I knew there had to be a better option. I was skeptical that any jam recipe I found could compete with conventional jam in the taste department, but this Easy 3-Ingredient Strawberry Chia Jam REALLY does!!
This Easy 3-Ingredient Strawberry Chia Jam is made from only 3 ingredients: strawberries, chia seeds and honey! That’s it! No refined sugar, no gelatin, no pectin. Just healthy, simple ingredients packed with nutrition. The chia seeds do all the hard work of creating a jam-like texture, and the honey brings just enough sweetness. I’ve been making this delicious recipe for years and I was originally inspired by this recipe and this recipe.
If you’re looking for a plant-based recipe that doesn’t call for honey, feel free to add maple syrup or even agave nectar in place of the honey in this recipe.
To make this healthy jam at home, you’ll need (affiliate links):
- a large pot
- a silicone spatula
- measuring cups and spoons
- a cutting board
- a sharp knife for chopping
- a blender or an immersion blender (optional)
To make this strawberry chia jam recipe you’ll need:
- fresh strawberries
- chia seeds
- honey (or use maple syrup or agave nectar for a vegan version of this recipe)
Time needed: 40 minutes
Follow these steps for the BEST healthy jam recipe with chia seeds!
- Cook the fruit and honey first.
Cook the fruit and honey in the pot until boiling.
- Mash the fruit once it’s hot.
Mash the strawberries as they come to a boil.
- Add the chia seeds after boiling.
Add the chia seeds to the hot fruit and reduce the heat.
- Simmer on low.
Cook on low for 15 minutes after adding the chia seeds.
- Blend to remove chunks, if desired.
If you like a smoother jam, pulse the jam in the blender just to remove large chunks. Or, you can mash the jam in the pot with a potato masher.
- Let it cool.
Add the jam to a jar and let it cool before storing it in the fridge or freezer.
Is this jam shelf-stable?
No. It does not contain enough sugar to become shelf stable. Please follow food safety guidelines, and prepare the recipe as directed.
Is it safe to can chia seed jam?
No, we do not recommend canning this recipe as the sugar content is too low for it to be shelf stable. We recommend storing it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Can I freeze this healthy jam?
Yes. This jam can be frozen in an airtight container or in a freezer jam jar for up to 6 months.
Can I make this jam with other types of fruit?
Yes! If you like this jam, you’ll love our Healthy Chia Seed Peach Jam, our Easy 3-Ingredient Chia Seed Raspberry Jam, or our 3-Ingredient Blueberry Chia Seed Jam.
Can I use chia seeds instead of pectin?
No. It’s best to follow a traditional jam recipe if you’re using pectin, and to follow a chia seed jam recipe if you’re making jam with chia seeds. You should not use chia seeds and pectin interchangeably in jam recipes.
I hope you enjoy this jam as much as our family does! Let me know in the comments below, what’s your favourite jam flavour? I’d love to know!
Looking for more delicious recipes like this? You’ll LOVE these!
Watch the video below to see exactly how I make this fruity spread recipe. You can find more delicious recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
If you made this, share a photo!
Are you trying this recipe? Use the comment form below to share your take; now with support for image uploads and comment voting!
Easy 3-Ingredient Strawberry Chia Jam
Recipe: Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, and sliced
- 3 tbsp honey add 1 more tablespoon if you like your jam very sweet, or other vegan honey substitute
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
Recipe: Instructions
- Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat and add the strawberries. Add the honey and place on the stove over medium heat.
- As the strawberries begin to soften over the heat, stir them around in their juices and the honey.
- Once the berries have softened to the point that they’re starting to fall apart, use a potato masher or fork to break them up even more.
- Let the mixture come to a slow boil, stirring almost continually. Once you see some big bubbles break the surface, add the chia seeds.
- The chia seeds will help the jam achieve a gelatinous texture while also adding fibre, protein and healthy Omega-3 fats.
- Continue stirring the mixture over low heat for about 15 minutes, and then remove the pan from the stove.
- If you enjoy jam with small chunks of fruit in it, then you’re done! Simply pour the mixture into a mason jar and cover it tightly with a lid.
- If you’d prefer jam with a smoother texture, feel free to add the mixture to your blender and pulse it a few times before pouring it into a mason jar. Or, use an immersion blender and pulse only a few times.
- While the jam is still hot it may seem more fluid that you would expect. The chia seeds need a bit of time to do their work, so let the jam cool to room temperature in the jar and then put your jar of jam in the fridge for a few hours and it will achieve the perfect texture.
- Enjoy on toast, gluten-free crackers or scones, over yogurt or even ice cream.
Recipe: Notes
Storage Instructions
This jam keeps for up to 2 weeks in the fridge, but beware: since it doesn’t contain any preservatives, has a low sugar content, and hasn’t undergone the proper canning process it must be kept refrigerated or frozen. We do not recommend canning this jam as it does not have a high enough sugar content to be shelf stable.Freezer Instructions
This jam can be frozen for up to 6 months.Recipe: Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
i love chia seeds! I've never made jam with them though I will have to try it! stopping by from healthy eating habit! Anne@simpelandsavory
Thanks Anne! I hope you give this recipe a try!
Can I use raspberries or other fruit? I am not really a strawberry fan.
Feel free to use raspberries or blueberries – just adjust the amount of honey as neither of these fruits are quite as sweet as strawberries! 🙂
Can this jam be made with sprouted grounded chia and flax? Jane
I’m sorry, I couldn’t tell you as we’ve never tried that. If you try, let us know! 😊
Just made the jam
and it came our fabulous! I thought the honey would overpower the strawberry flavor. That wasn't the case. All you taste is yummy strawberries! Thank you for posting this recipe.
So glad to hear you are enjoying it!!
It looks like it will be delicious and quick to make and good for Xmas gifts thanks happy holidays
Yes! That’s such a great idea!!😍
Hi! Wondering how much jam this makes? Approximately 2 cups? I am going to be canning another big batch of jam so I would like to process this so it is shelf stable. Thanks!
It yields about a cup and a half to 2 cups. I hope you enjoy it!
Did it work to can it?
I’ve never canned it, so I can’t comment on that process unfortunately. Sorry!
I think it’s dangerous to can anything with honey bc of botulism…?
Regardless, going to try this today 🙂
Looks excellent!
Thanks! I wouldn’t suggest canning this recipe as it is a freezer or fridge jam. Hope you like it!
So you can freeze this jam? I knoe in fridge it ladts for 2 weeks. How long with it last in freezer?
Yes, this jam freezes well for up to a couple months.
Pasteurized honey is safe
Hi. Canning products with Chia seeds is not recommended for shelf stable products due to lack of testing from USDA. This would be a fantastic freezer jam!
Can i use maple syrup instead of honey
Yes you can, although you made have to add a little more or a little less to your tastes!
How long does the jam last?
The jam lasts for several days in the fridge, but it’s also possible to freeze it. 🙂
Specific suggestions for freezing?
Be sure to freeze in a freezer-safe container and leave lots of room at the top for the jam to expand as it freezes. Thaw in the fridge and enjoy as normal!
Can this recipe be canned.
I believe it could be canned, however you’d have to follow proper canning procedures to make sure it stays properly preserved 🙂
Do you think this would work with frozen berries? I have plenty of those during this off-season.
Yes it does work with frozen berries, however just be sure to cook off all the extra liquid that is produced with frozen fruit!
Do I cook the frozen berries first before adding the honey and chia seeds?
Yes, you can.
do the Chia seeds make this a very seedy jam or do they soften during the cooking process?
The chia seeds soften quite a lot and they blend in very nicely with the texture of the jam. It doesn’t have a very seedy texture.
Where can we buy chia seeds?
Any grocery store with a healthy food section should have them, or at your local health food store!
Chia seeds are pretty much everywhere- even Wal-Mart. 🙂
I purchase mine at Sams Club or Costco. You can also purchase online via Amazon.
How do you freeze this jam? In jars?
I like to freeze it in those plastic jars you can buy for freezer jam. Stores like WalMart carry them, and probably also most grocery stores – especially during canning season.
What kind of seeds do you get
Chia seeds are available from your local grocery store with a health section, or from any health food store.
Can you do this recipe with grapes?
I can’t say as I’ve never tried this. I doubt it, since when making grape jelly you use the juice only and pectin to create the gelatinous texture. It’s probably best to stick to a fruit that you’d use whole in jam, rather than jelly.
I made concord grape jelly once…delicious..but the amount of sugar was staggering..I wish this recipe worked for grapes.
Unfortunately it doesn’t work for recipes using on the juice from the fruit (to make jelly) – but you can also use other berries in this recipe and it will work great!
I just made jam with blackberries (just the juice), agaive nectar and chia seeds and it worked well. Maybe double the amount of. His seeds?
hi…I am going to try this for sure….I wondered if you could add cia seeds to rhubarb jam to for thickening…
thanks for you help
I can’t speak to how it would affect rhubarb, but I would assume it would react the same way as with the berries. You’d have to adjust the sweetness with more honey, since rhubarb is more sour than berries 🙂
It’s just a suggestion. Put the honey when the strawberries and chia seeds cool down. It’ s not good to overheat the honey.
Great suggestion! However to achieve the proper texture, it’s best to add the chia seeds in the early stages.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting this amazingly easy recipe with whole ingredients!!! Made it tonight but switched out the strawberries for raspberries and it is scrumptious 😊!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment! 🙂
Will the heat not affect the health properties of the honey and chia seeds? Can I cook the strawberries and cool it down a bit before adding the honey and seeds?
It’s possible that the heat will, however I have found that not adding the chia seeds in early enough causes them not to create as much of a gelatinous texture as is needed for this recipe. The earlier you add them the more jam-like the consistency is 🙂
I grow and can my strawberries do a single jar isn’t very efficient. It would be helpful to know if this is a recipe that can be processed for use later.
This is a fridge/freezer jam. Of course you can make and freeze a large batch! 🙂
To preserve the jam would I not need to use sugar as well as honey as when making normal jam? When i process/pasturise my jams they normally have a shelf life of 2years due to the fruit to sugar content.
I can’t speak to that as this recipe is a fridge/freezer jam. If you want to can it you’ll probably have to change the recipe like you suggested.
I’m positive I need some of this in my morning oatmeal!!!!! LOL! Can this be frozen too?
It can be frozen, absolutely! Enjoy!
Oh my … have my brain going now …. bet you could do this with just about any berry too. Blueberries, blackberries, gooseberries, raspberries. Mmmmm. Have you tried with other berries?
I’ve made it with blueberries with great success! Enjoy!
This is my all time favourite jam. Incredibly easy and delightful fresh strawberry taste. I made a double batch, followed recipe exactly, put one jar in the fridge and one in the freezer. On removing the freezer jam I noticed it was a little bit thicker which made it absolutely perfect !!! Not too sweet, a little tart, wonderful, thankyou !!!
If I use blueberries or blackberries how much sugar would I need?
If using other berries I’d add several more tablespoons of honey to taste.
I typically make strawberry freezer jam. I don’t cook it. I have used chia seeds in recipes and smoothies. I hadn’t thought to use them in place of pectin. I wonder if the consistency would be too far off if I didn’t cook it. With freezer jam you just add pureed strawberries to sugar and pectin and stir for three minutes. Then you let it sit for a few minutes (I think 10). I’m not really familiar enough with the chia seeds to know if that would work with them to get the right consistency or if they would need to be cooked. I’ll have to give it a try though. I’ve only been using 1/3 the amount of sugar it calls for in my current recipe and we don’t notice the difference. It keeps in the freezer really well.
The chia seeds will help it thicken up even if you don’t cook it, but cooking the berries helps to reduce the water content and concentrate the flavour. I always cook my jam when I make this recipe, so I can’t really comment on how it would turn out without cooking. Good luck!
Could I do this with peaches…has anyone tried?
I’ve never tried with peaches, so I can’t comment on exactly how it would work. Sorry!
Wondering if one could use stevia & drop the honey in this recipe. Or, at least reduce the amount. I’m sure you could reduce it but not sure about deleting it totally.
Yes, you can reduce the honey. I’ve never tried adding stevia, but I’m sure it would work since it doesn’t have an effect on the texture.
Has anyone tried replacing the honey with Agave Syrup? Same ratio?
Yes, it works roughly the same!
I made this recipe last night and doubled it to make a bit more. I only used 3 TBS chia seeds that I ground first. It was perfect. I have tried other recipes but this was hands down the best!
So glad you loved it so much! Thanks!!
Does this recipe come out 0k if i double or triple? I have a lot of strawberries. Cant wait to try this.
Absolutely! I almost always double the batch 🙂
Would you have suggestions for making this with a sugar substitute? I’d like to make some for my mom and she’s on the keto diet.
A sugar substitute would work as long as it doesn’t alter the texture of the jam. I don’t personally have experience with this, but the honey only lends flavour here and not texture, so replacing it wouldn’t affect the jam too much.
Do you use this jam in your other recipes? Could it work in a jam tart or cake?
Just wondering if it would affect the consistency or structure of the bake. I’m planning a Bakewell Tart and would like to keep the sugar down where possible, but don’t want to lose the structural integrity with sloppy jam!
I’m sorry, I can’t say how this would perform in a Bakewell Tart as I’ve never used this jam in a recipe like that. However, it does set up pretty well and isn’t any sloppier than the store-bought jam that’s available. Good luck!
Great Jam!
I plan to make jam with peaches from our tree. Will Chia be ok still? This is my first go at homemade jam, so should I adjust any of the measurments. Can’t wait to try it.
I can’t comment since I’ve never made this jam with peaches. Sorry!
I was looking at the nutrition label, although the numbers are per serving I did not see a serving size, i.e. tbsp, tsp.
One serving is about 2 tablespoons.
I was reading nutrition label also, so 2tbs are 97 carbs and 74 sugars?
No, 1 serving (2 tbsp) is 38 kcal, 8g of carbs and 6g of sugars.
I love this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing. It’s going on my on my recipes to try list!
Glad to hear you like it so much! Let us know how it goes!🙂
Hi! Thanks for the great recipe! Fo you think I could use flaxseeds (ground) in place of chia seeds?
Flax seeds don’t create as much of a gelatinous texture as the chia seeds do, so the end result won’t be the same.
Thanks for recipe, I also added a little cinnamon, have to say, it is fabulous.
So glad you liked the recipe! 🙂
I don’t have any strawberries at this time but lots of mangoes. I made the recipe with mangoes and it turned out great. The onl change I will make next time is to use only 2 tbsp of honey.
Happy to hear it turned out delicious with mangoes too!!🙂
I already made it and it’s delicious,thank you.
How long does it last when refrigerated?
Thank you!
You’re welcome Albert! It keeps for a couple weeks in the fridge.🙂
Made it from my own strawberry garden:)) Great tasting jam!! Thank you ☺️
So glad you liked it! 🙂
You’re welcome Maria!🙂
Hello! I’m a bit unclear on what’s allowed with homemade freezer/fridge jams. Can I freeze this, take it out when I want to use it, return it to the freezer, etc?
This recipe sounds great, I can’t wait to try it!
Once the jam has been frozen and you remove it from the freezer to enjoy, store it in the fridge and use it within 2-3 weeks. It’s called freezer jam because you need to store it in the freezer instead of on a shelf at room temperature.
I made this recipe except it’s already made and I need it sweeter? Anything I can add even though it’s already made?
The overall sweetness of the jam depends a lot on how sweet and ripe your strawberries are. You can add some honey to taste in the jam at the end to make it as sweet as you like. Enjoy! 😊
Hi.
Love the recipe because it has no sugar. Under Nutrition, is that 453 calories for two tablespoons?
Thanks.
Kevin
Hi Kevin, the whole jar is 453 calories!
What an excellent recipe! Delicious as well as healthy too! Definitely on my list to do. Just waiting for the strawberries in my area. Thanks for sharing
You’re welcome Samira!!
This was so easy to make and is wonderful!
Thank you so much for sharing.
Thanks for feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed it! ☺️
Hi! this recipe adds the Chia seeds in step 4 after mashing With a potato masher and bring to a boil.
However the video chose them added right at the beginning along with the strawberries and honey.
Then in your comments, I see the following:
“I have found that not adding the chia seeds in early enough causes them not to create as much of a gelatinous texture as is needed for this recipe. The earlier you add them the more jam-like the consistency is 🙂”
Can you help clarify?
Good question! Whether you add the chia seeds right at the beginning or just as the mixture comes to a boil (before you boil it for 15 minutes) won’t make much difference. They key is to add the chia seeds before the jam cooks down and not after the 15-minute boiling period. Some readers were suggesting to add the chia seeds right at the end (after boiling), which means the seeds don’t absorb as much liquid and become as gelatinous as they should. I hope that helps clarify things for you!
This looks delicious! Can pure maple syrup be substituted for the honey? Thanks!
Yes it can! Happy cooking ☺️
Hi. I’m goning to make this jam. Sounds perfect. Just want to use sugar instead of honey. How much sugar do you suggest? (I want it to be as healthy and low-sugar as possible)).
Thanks
Marzie
Just add the same amount of sugar as honey, and then add a bit more to taste if desired.
Is the nutrition info for 1 jar or 1 serving? What is the size of 1 serving? Is the 456 calories per serving?
One serving is 2 tbsp and has 38kcal. The whole recipe (1 jar) has 456 kcal.
I made this recipe, however I personally have found 4tbsp {I made 2lb} of strawberry jam, I would only add 1-1:5 tabsp of Chia seeds, I also chose to not add organic honey, but I used Ciconut Sugar, and fresh basil leaves from my garden’ I shall make the next batch with fresh rosemary and maybe try with a little organic honey, here we have Palm honey {not to be cnfused with Palm oil} our palm trees here in the Canary Islands are totally different..This honey is very sweet but an absolutely fantastic flavor.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Those sound like great additions. Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
I am going to have to try this out.
Let us know how it turns out!
Looking at the nutrition info – it says 1 gram of trans fat?? Where does the trans fat come from?
There’s actually 0.036 grams of trans fats in the whole recipe (that are rounded up) and they come from the chia seeds.
I made this the other day, and after reading the comment recommending to add extra chia seeds I decided to try it with an extra tablespoon. It turned out great! I will definitely be making this regularly. Thank you!
We’re so happy you enjoyed it! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
This sounds wonderful! But I would never use that much jam in 2 weeks by myself. Do you think I could freeze it in an ice cube tray, then place the cubes in a freezer proof bag and thaw out a little at a time?
For sure! That is such a great idea.