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Two jars of canned cherries.

Canned Cherries Recipe

Allyson Letal
Canning can be a fun and easy way to preserve your favorite fruit for the winter. However, it can be hard to know where to start when you're trying to can cherries for the first time. To help guide you through this process, we've put together a step-by-step guide that will take the mystery out of canned cherries! We'll show you how simple it is to make your own cans of fresh sweet cherries in no time! Get started today by following our easy steps below!
4.60 from 5 votes
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Preserved
Cuisine American
Servings 2 quart sized jars
Calories 1295 kcal

Ingredients
 

Instructions
 

Raw pack:

  • Wash and sterilize your jars. Fill a large water bath canner with water and begin heating it over high heat.
  • Meanwhile, wash and pit 3 lbs fresh cherries. They can be left whole or halved, depending on your desired outcome. Set aside.
  • Combine 5 1/4 cups water and 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Prepare sterilized jars by placing them on a heat-proof surface.
  • Add a cup or so of syrup to the jars before packing them with cherries, leaving 1 inch of headspace.
  • Top off the jars with hot syrup, leaving 1/2" headspace.
  • Wipe rims and cover with a lid. Tighten the rings finger tight.
  • Carefully lower the jars into the boiling water bath and process at a rolling boil. See chart below for timing depending on elevation.

Hot Pack:

  • Wash and sterilize your jars. Fill a large water bath canner with water and begin heating it over high heat.
  • Meanwhile, wash and pit fresh cherries. They can be left whole or halved, depending on your desired outcome. Set aside.
  • Combine water, sugar, and cherries in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Prepare sterilized jars by placing them on a heat-proof surface.
  • Fill the jars with the heated cherry mixture, leaving 1/2" headspace.
  • Wipe rims and cover with a lid. Tighten the rings finger tight.
  • Carefully lower the jars into the boiling water bath and process at a rolling boil. See chart below for timing depending on elevation.

Notes

Batch information:

This recipe as written yields 2 quart (1L) jars, it can easily be halved, doubled, or more.

Storage information:

Raw packed cherries may discolor after 3 or so months. Hot-packed cherries will maintain their color for up to 12 months.

processing times

Raw pack:
Elevation / Processing Time
0-1,000 feet / 25 minutes
1,001 - 3,000 feet / 30 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet / 35 minutes
** Processing time stays the same for both quarts and pints.
Hot pack:
Elevation / Processing Time
0-1,000 feet / 20 minutes
1,001 - 3,000 feet / 25 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet / 30 minutes
** If using a pint jar, decrease processing time by 5 minutes.

pit cherries without a cherry pitter

Using a cherry pitter is nice, but if you don't have one there are other options!
  • Place the cherry stem side up on an empty beer bottle and using a stainless steel straw, chopstick, or kebob stick, punch through the top of the cherry and the pit will fall into the beer bottle below.
  • Use a small pairing knife and cut the cherries in half to remove the pit.

Recommended Equipment + Ingredients

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 1295kcalCarbohydrates: 333gProtein: 7gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0.3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.3gSodium: 33mgPotassium: 1515mgFiber: 14gSugar: 312gVitamin A: 435IUVitamin C: 48mgCalcium: 109mgIron: 3mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!