The Best Homemade Sweet Chilli Jam 55 mins 500
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This flavour packed sweet chilli jam is the champion of ALL jams! It takes a regular old sandwich to the next level, and elevates your cheese board to excellence. Never made sweet chilli jam before? Don't worry! This post is packed full of helpful tips, to ensure great results first time.
Not sure how to sterilise jars?
Download your free printable guide, which includes helpful Do’s and Dont's so you can preserve safely and confidently.
What is sweet chilli jam used for?
Want to make the most of this incredible savoury jam? Here's how...
- Sweet chilli jam goes perfectly with cheese, so a cheese board is my obvious favourite!
- Spread a layer on a sandwich to take it to the next level.
- Bake it onto a savoury cookie, like these rosemary and thyme thumbprint cookies.
- They taste great on crackers!
- Water it down a little and use as a fantastic glaze for meats.
- Smear a little on the base of your next homemade pizza before topping with the usual ingredients.
- Enjoy with cheese on toast.
- Sweet chilli jam makes a lovely homemade gift!
What to put on a cheese board
Want to have the best cheese board in ALL the land? Besides this sensational sweet chilli jam, and your cheeses - you should consider adding a few of these beauties...
- Cheese biscuits
- Pickled onions
- Ham and cheese cracker snacks
- Spicy rosemary thins
- Beetroot chutney
- Pickled red onions
Try thinking outside the box a little. Even zingy delights like quick pickled carrots would be perfect on a cheese board!
Recipe tips and troubleshooting
Here are some tips you might find helpful when making sweet chilli jam.
- Use the widest pan you have. The larger the surface area, the faster it will reduce. If you use a tall, narrow pan, it will take much longer!
- Hand getting too hot when you skin the 'scum' off the top? Wear rubber gloves.
- Unsure if your sweet chilli jam is ready? Use the step by step picture recipe to see exactly what it should look like.
- Make sure that both the sweet chilli jam and your sterilised jars are hot when you bottle. This will ensure they seal properly.
- Jars didn't seal? Make sure they're at room temperature and reseal the lids tightly. Then stand them in a pot of cold water and slowly bring it to the boil (so the jam heats, as well as the jar). Once everything is hot, remove from the pan, dry off, and allow to cool. They should now seal properly.
- Don't place your filled hot jam jars on a cold surface. Or the glass will likely crack/smash due to the change in temperature.
How to Make Sweet Chilli Jam - Step by Step Picture Recipe
(For a printer friendly version, see the recipe card at the end of this post)
Please note, this recipe includes both UK metric and US Cup measurements.
Ingredients and equipment
Here is what you will need to fill 1 x 500ml (2 Cups) jam jar.
Ingredients
- 4 Red Peppers, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 5 Red Chillis, green tops sliced off *
- 5cm sized piece of Fresh Ginger, skin sliced off
- 4 Garlic Cloves, peeled
- 200g (7 oz) Tinned Tomatoes
- 375g (1 Cup + ⅞) Golden Caster Sugar
- 125ml (½ Cup) Red Wine Vinegar
*Leave the seeds in. You need the heat to combat the sweetness.
Essential equipment
- Food Processor
- 500ml (2 Cups) Jam Jar
- A Wide Saucepan/Pot
- Small Bowl
- Spoon
Instructions
First, add all the prepared vegetables into the food processor (4 x red peppers, 5 x red chillis, 5cm fresh ginger, 4 x garlic cloves), along with the tinned tomatoes (200g | 7 oz).
Blitz until everything is finely chopped. Then pour it all into a wide heavy based saucepan/pot, and add in the golden caster sugar (375g | 1 Cup + ⅞) and the red wine vinegar (125ml | ½ Cup).
Give everything a good stir, then turn the heat up to high, and bring to the boil.
Once boiling, you will notice an orange, frothy 'scum' floating to the top. You need to skim all this out.
Get a small bowl and a spoon, and simply scoop it out whenever it appears. This will only last for the first 5 minutes or so, then no more should appear.
Now bring the temperature down to a simmer, and allow to bubble away and reduce. You want it to become thick and sticky. It will look like the image below.
Make sure to stir it every now and then. It could take about45 minutes to an hour. But this depends on the size of your pan and the heat you have it over.
At this stage, It's important to keep a close eye on your Sweet Chilli Jam. Stir more often, so it doesn't catch and burn on the bottom of the pan. It's a good idea to turn the heat down a little too.
When the jam has reduced to the point where, if you run a spoon through it, it leaves a trail - it's ready to be poured (still hot) into a sterilised jar.
Note that this jam will only thicken a little bit when cooled (due to the lack of pectin in the ingredients). So if you would like yours a little thicker, keep reducing until it reaches your desired texture.
How to Sterilise a Jam Jar
If you're using a clip jar (like me), make sure you remove the rubber seals.
With the jar open, place it on a baking tray, and pop into a preheated oven at 190°C/Fan 180°C/374ºF for 20 minutes. You now have a sterilised jar.
However, make sure you don't touch the insides. As this will contaminate it.
How to Preserve Sweet Chilli Jam
Place the rubber seal back on if required. Then, while the jam AND jar are still warm, spoon the jam into your hot jar and seal.
Allow to cool completely at room temperature. If you sealed them properly and used glass jars with metal lids, you will hear a pop when they're cooling.
How to store sweet chilli jam
Sweet chilli jam will last up to 12 months if sealed properly, and stored in a cool dark place. Sometimes, even longer.
Once you've opened it, store in the fridge and consume within 3-4 months.
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The Best Sweet Chilli Jam Recipe
This flavour packed sweet chilli jam is the champion of ALL jams! Makes a lovely homemade gift, and pairs perfectly with cheese.
Ingredients
- 4 x Red Peppers, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 5 x Red Chillis, green tops sliced off *
- 5cm sized piece of Fresh Ginger, skin sliced off
- 4 x Garlic Cloves, peeled
- 200g (7 oz) Tinned Tomatoes
- 375g (1 Cup + ⅞) Golden Caster Sugar
- 125ml (½ Cup) Red Wine Vinegar
Essential Equipment
- Food Processor
- 500ml (2 Cups) Jam Jar
- A Wide Saucepan/Pot
- Small Bowl
- Spoon
Instructions
- Add the red pepper, chillis, ginger, garlic cloves and tinned tomatoes to a food processor. Blitz until finely chopped.
- Tip the mixture into a very wide saucepan or pot, and add the caster sugar and red wine vinegar. Place over a high heat and bring to the boil.
- When the orange scum floats to the top, skim it off into a bowl with a spoon. (This will subside the longer the jam cooks.)
- Reduce the heat to a simmer, and continue to cook until the jam has reduced, and is very thick. It will take around 45 mins to 1 hour, but could be longer. When you run a spoon through it, it should leave a trail.
- Pour the jam into a hot, sterilised jam jar. Seal and allow to cool completely at room temperature.
Notes
*Leave the seeds in. You need the heat to combat the sweetness.
If you would rather use a more in depth picture recipe, please see the main body of this post. Where you’ll also find lots of extra FAQs and helpful tips, should you need them.
Please note, this recipe includes both UK metric and US Cup measurements.
Storage
Sweet chilli jam will last up to 12 months if sealed properly, and stored in a cool dark place. Sometimes, even longer.
Once you've opened it, store in the fridge and consume within 3-4 months.
Tips
- Use the widest pan you have. The larger the surface area, the faster it will reduce. If you use a tall, narrow pan, it will take much longer!
- Hand getting too hot when you skin the ‘scum’ off the top? Wear rubber gloves.
- Make sure that both the sweet chilli jam and your sterilised jars are hot when you bottle. This will ensure they seal properly.
- Jars didn’t seal? Make sure they’re at room temperature and reseal the lids tightly. Then stand them in a pot of cold water and slowly bring it to the boil (so the jam heats, as well as the jar). Once everything is hot, remove from the pan, dry off, and allow to cool. They should now seal properly.
- Don’t place your filled hot jam jars on a cold surface. Or the glass will likely crack/smash due to the change in temperature.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 30 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 213Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 17mgSodium: 345mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 1gSugar: 25gProtein: 6g
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Emma is a British recipe writer, home cook, and founder of Kitchen Mason. For over 15 years, she has been creating simple, comforting recipes and practical kitchen tips that help tired, everyday people make dinner feel easier and more enjoyable again. Passionate about British home cooking, Emma shares reliable recipes, comforting classics, and realistic kitchen guidance designed for real life. Her work has also been featured in publications including Food Network, Cosmopolitan, and The Huffington Post.
Knowledgeable On: British home cooking, Easy dinner ideas, Comfort food recipes, Recipe writing
Lasts six months in the fridge. Hah! you're joking right. Lucky if it lasts six days.
The only problem I have is that I gave several away at Xmas and now they all want me to make more, lots more.
Hi Simon. Hahaha! So glad you love it!! It’s a firm favourite mine too, I refuse to have a fridge that doesn’t have it in! Emma x
Made this Chilli Jam for Christmas presents in November 2020 will it be ready to use this Christmas 2020
Hi Ken. In all honesty, when I make it - it barely makes it a day before it’s opened and being eaten so 1 month will be absolutely fine! Emma x
@Emma,
Thanks Emma look forward to trying the jam
Ken
Hi, having a little trouble. Now my jam is cold it has gone watery. Made yesterday 06/11/20. Can I return it to pan and reboil to get it thick again .
Hi Heather. I don’t see any reason why you can’t bring it back to the boil again. Remember that the texture of this particular jam won’t change that much once cooked so you want to reduce it until it’s quite thick and sticky. If you’re unsure, drop a piece of the jam into a cup of ice cold water to test how the consistency will be once cooled. Hope this helps! Emma x
Can I add pectin powder to this recipe to make it thicker?
Hi Jill. I personally wouldn’t. Your best bet is to continue cooking/reducing it until it’s a consistency you like. This won’t alter much while cooling. Emma x
Hey Emma
This is perfectly balanced and damned easy to create. We ran out of our regular supply of an upmarket brand of sweet chilli sauce and thought it might be possible to make it in the covid lockdown in Melbourne. Your recipe is the best online thing I've found- making my third batch in a month because I give it to everyone and the average feedback is "it's awesome".
Hi Mike. What a lovely comment!! This is one of my all time faves too, I never have a fridge without it! Thank you so much for taking the time to share this with me, you've made my day 🙂 Emma x
Can fresh tomatoes be used? I have some extra tomatoes that are begging to be used.
Hi Mei. I see no reason at all why that wouldn't work! You may need to boil it for a little longer to get rid of the excess liquid but it should still work fine. I would personally remove the skins before adding them to the pot though. Emma x
I finally made this. So good!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Aww that’s fantastic Mei! I’m SO happy you love it! Emma x
Made this today super, delicious, spicy enjoyed by all.
Aww fantastic! I'm so happy you enjoyed my recipe Dorothy 🙂 Emma x
Hi Emma,
I’ve just made your sweet chilli Jam it’s the best chilli jam I’ve ever tasted absolutely delicious. Won’t ever buy sweet chilli Jam ever again.
Many thanks for the recipe.
Hi Linda. Aww that's such a lovely thing for you to say, thank you so much! You've made my day 🙂 Have a lovely weekend, Emma x
hiya Emma, can I replace the tomatoes with Apples ?
Hi Ysanne. I’m honestly not sure, it’s not a substitution that I’ve ever really thought about. Tinned tomatoes and apples are quite different in many ways. Emma x
What is tinned tomato
Can you make this into cups and not cm?
Not sure what 200 and 375 g is equal to
Or 125ml is equal to
This only makes 1 jar?
Thanks
Hi Shelby. I'm based in the UK and we use the metric system as standard. I do include cups/oz in all new recipes but forgot about the jam jar in this one! 500 ml is about the same as 2 cups. As I wrote in the ingredients - 200g of tomatoes is equal to 7 oz and 375g of sugar is equal to 1 Cup + 7/8 Cup. Tinned tomatoes are a can of chopped tomatoes in tomato juice. And yes, this only makes 1 jar as it's boiled down to concentrate and thicken it. Hope this helps! Emma x
Made this fabulous chilli jam, have eaten half of it in a week, definitely will always have to keep some, thanks for the recipe
You're so very welcome June! It's my favourite jam too 🙂 Emma x
can i use fresh tomatoes are do they need to be canned?
I also have a mixture of chillis, i have grown. Not sure what they are, can i use them?
Hi Emily! I see no reason why you can't use an equivalent weight in fresh tomatoes - I'd be inclined to peel and roughly chop them first though and it may take a little longer to simmer off the extra moisture. And go for it on the chillis! The best bit about cooking is experimenting 🙂 Emma x
I have an abundance of red cayenne chillies and came across this recipe so decided to make it
My food processor would not take 4 capsicums so we made it with two large ones and added an extra chillie. Perfect!!! It tastes sensational.
Since we liked it so much, we are making another batch. I can see this becoming a staple in our pantry
Aww that's lovely! Thank you so much for sharing this with me Lynn, you've made my day 🙂 I honestly never have a fridge without this in it. It tastes INCREDIBLE with cheese! Emma x
Do you mean by "Pepper" a red bellpepper?
I live in Holland, we use the word pepper for chillies and bellpepper is paprika.
Hi Yolanda. Yes! Red bell pepper is exactly what I mean 🙂 Emma x
Hi Emma, i have lost you email regarding the varieties of chillis you used in your chilli jam. Could you please resend.
I live in Australia, we have a variety of chillis birds eye which is approx 5mm - 6mm long they are hot. Which chilli did you use. Also we call Capsicum peppers also. So is there anyway you can show a photo of your chilli and peppers so we know what to use please. This chilli jam sounds amazing.
Hi Carol. I’ll send you an email shortly as can’t post images in the comments 🙂 Thanks, Emma x