All you need is 4 simple ingredients to make this delicious guava jam recipe. Juicy guavas made into a delicious spread perfect for toast, biscuits, pancakes, and more. This is one recipe to have in your arsenal of homemade goods.
Tropical flavors make the perfect fruit spreads and guava ranks among the best. Sweet, yet tangy. Vibrant pink hues. The ultimate spreadable goodness.
Homemade just tastes better. And all you need is 4 ingredients. That’s right, just 4.
Guava jam ingredients
- 5-10 ripe guavas (to yield 2 cups guava puree)
- 4 cups water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons pectin
Let’s talk guavas.
Guavas are a tropical fruit that is thought to have originated in Mexico, central America, and northern South America. There are many different varieties and colors.
Hawai’i is well known for it’s guava as well. Everything from guava juice to guava bars to savory smoked meat.
Guava trees are plentiful in Upcountry Maui where I grew up, so much so that if you hail from Upcountry you were often called a guava.
Where can I find guava?
In Hawai’i guavas can be found at most farmer’s markets or grocery stores or on a tree on the side of the road. On the mainland or elsewhere you may need to search a little harder to find these gems.
I can’t find guava, can I use guava puree?
If you can’t find fresh guava you can use already packaged guava puree for this recipe as well.
What does guava taste like?
I’d say guava tastes like a cross between a strawberry and a pear.
Can you eat guava seeds?
While guava seeds are edible, I prefer not to have them in my jam. You can remove them from the puree after cooking with a sieve.
Let’s talk sugar.
Granulated sugar works well for this recipe, however you could also use other forms as well. I have not tried sugar replacements, but I suppose those could work as well.
If you like your jam less sweet you can definitely add less sugar or even a little bit of lime to counteract the sweetness. Conversely, if you like your jams on the sweeter side add a little more sugar.
And lastly the pectin.
Guavas have a high concentration of naturally occurring pectin, however I like to add a little more to ensure the jams set and gel up. You can opt to leave the pectin out, however it’s a little more difficult to get it to set up all the way.
How to store guava jam?
Jams are best kept in a sealed glass jar like Ball or Kerr. If you want to read more about canning check out this site.
How long goes guava jam last?
Homemade guava jam in an unopened, sealed glass jar will last 1 year in the pantry. Once opened place in the refrigerator for about 6 months.
Check out these other yummy spread recipes:
How to make guava jam?
Rinse all guavas. Cut off the top stem and the bottom nub. Then cut into fourths.
Place cut guavas in a large pot and cover with about 4 cups of water. Set to high and boil for 20-30 minutes or until the skins have softened.
Once softened, lower heat to low. Using an immersion blender, mix guava and water into a puree.
Place a sieve over a large bowl and pour the puree mixture through. Using a rubber spatula push the puree through the sieve retaining all the seeds. Discard the seeds.
Measure the amount of puree you have. You will need a 1:1 ratio of guava puree to sugar. For this recipe I used 2 cups of puree, therefore you will need 2 cups of sugar.
Return puree back to the pot and raise the heat up to high. Add sugar and mix until well combined.
You will need 1 tablespoon of pectin per cup of puree used. So for this recipe add 2 tablespoons of pectin and continue stirring until the pectin has dissolved and the puree has thickened.
Remove from heat and place in sterilized canning jars. Cool to room temperature and place in the refrigerator to chill. ENJOY!
Guava Jam
All you need is 4 simple ingredients to make this delicious GUAVA JAM recipe. Juicy guavas made into a delicious spread perfect for toast, biscuits, pancakes, and more. This is one recipe to have in your arsenal of homemade goods.
Ingredients
- 5-10 ripe guavas (to yield 2 cups guava puree)
- 4 cups water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons pectin
Instructions
- Rinse guavas. Cut off the top stem and the bottom nub. Then cut into fourths.
- Place cut guavas in a large pot and cover with about 4 cups of water. Set to high and boil for 20-30 minutes or until the skins have softened.
- Once softened, lower heat to low. Using an immersion blender, mix guava and water into a puree.
- Place a sieve over a large bowl and pour the puree mixture through. Using a rubber spatula push the puree through the sieve retaining all the seeds. Discard the seeds.
- Measure the amount of puree you have. You will need a 1:1 ratio of guava puree to sugar. For this recipe I used 2 cups of puree, therefore you will cups of sugar.
- Return puree back to the pot and raise the heat up to high. Add sugar and mix until well combined.
- You will need 1 tablespoon of pectin per cup of puree used. So for this recipe add 2 tablespoons of pectin and continue stirring until the pectin has dissolved and the puree has thickened.
- Remove from heat and place in sterilized canning jars. Cool to room temperature and place in the refrigerator to chill. ENJOY!
Notes
*If you do not have an immersion blender, you can also use a potato masher or even a fork.
*For the recipe video attached to this recipe I used 10 guava yielded 5 ½ cups of puree. I only used 2 cups of the puree for this recipe.
*If you like your jam less sweet you can decrease the amount of sugar used and if you'd like it sweeter you can more sugar.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 64 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 43Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 1g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
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I couldn’t figure out what to do with our guavas! Thanks to Relle I now know how to use them and my kids approve!!! Tonight we made Guava Jam and it turned out yummy. Instead of sugar we used monk fruit sweetener and it was absolutely delicious 😋. Our guavas will no longer rot on the ground! Mahalo Relle!!!😊
PS. We couldn’t wait for it to cool and made toast with the leftovers in the bowl😬
Yay. So awesome to hear. Thanks for sharing and glad you loved it!
Did you use the same amount of Monk fruit as the real sugar?
I haven't tried it with monkfruit before, but from my understanding monkfruit can be more concentrated than sugar, therefore you need less. But I'd be interested to hear what Heidi says.
My mom grew up in Makawao. My grandfather was a stable boy for the Baldwin family. I love upcountry Maui. I wish I could live there. I’m slowly gathering guavas to make jelly. There’s a tree at the end of a street where I go walking, and right now, I get 1 or 2 every other day. Free is good.
Makawao is amazing!
Could I use liquid pectin?
I have never tried the liquid version, but I'd assume it would work.
Can this also be processed for longer shelf life?
I have not tried it, but I assume you could.
How long to I chill, been over 12 hrs and it seems a little runny..can i freeze for like 20 minutes? Thank you.
Two problems generally cause runny jam: not enough pectin or it was not cooked down enough to thicken. You could consider throwing it back on the heat and cook it down a little more to thicken up. Hope that helps.
Hi Relle! This recipe was amazing and so helpful. Very detailed and made the process very easy. THANK YOU! I've actually never had guava or guava jam but found this recipe on your page during my research and decided to give it a try. I am so pleased! Can't wait to use this for pastelitos (a Cuban dessert with cream cheese and puff pastry)! I really love your blog and thank you for all that you share with the world!
Hi. Thank you so much. I appreciate your kind words. That sounds so yummy. Can't wait to see it. Happy holidays!
Can you use frozen guavas?
Fresh guava juice is best, but if you can not get this you can sub out for frozen guava juice or puree.
hello! thank you for this recipe, i cannot wait to try it! when placed in a tight sealed container, about how many days or weeks does it last in the fridge?
If you don't pressure seal the jar it can last about 3 months.