Saskatoon Berry Sauce
This saskatoon berry sauce recipe is small enough to make for a quick family treat, cook up the berry sauce in 20 minutes and drizzle over ice cream. Add a vanilla cookie and it becomes a quick and easy berry dessert fancy enough for company. Saskatoon sauce is one of the easiest berry sauce recipes to make and can, and it is a fantastic way to preserve saskatoons to enjoy year-round.
What are Saskatoon berries exactly? They are a delicious purple berry you can use blueberries instead of saskatoon berries for this recipe. I am very lucky to to have loads of free wild saskatoons in our yard so that is what I am using. You need to make sure your saskatoon berries are clean. Here is how to clean and freeze saskatoon berries, the post is packed with all kinds of information on saskatoons, what else they’re called, and just how healthy and good for you they are. They are one of my top contenders for berries, if you haven’t tried them before you are in for a treat.
Canning Equipment
You need a few basic items for the canning Saskatoon sauce.
- Water bath canner with metal ring bottom
- Canning jar lifter tongs
- A large canning funnel is handy to have
- Sealable canning jars with rings, and brand-new metal lids. Do not reuse canning lids.
Making Saskatoon Berry Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups Saskatoon berries (fresh or frozen)
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp cornstarch (optional)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Directions
In a medium size pan add the water, saskatoon berries, and granulated sugar. Cook over medium-low heat until it boils and then continue to cook it for 10-15 minutes until the saskatoon berries start to soften. Saskatoon berries have a thick skin and seeds so cooking helps break the fruit down into the sugar juice providing more flavour.
(If you want a thicker sauce remove 1/4 cup of the juice, and stir in the cornstarch. Add it back into the berries and let cook until thicker.) I did not use cornstarch in this batch.
Once your saskatoons are cooked, place in a bowl and let chill until ready to use.
Canning Saskatoon Berry Sauce
To can Saskatoon sauce I suggest quading the above recipe, starting with 8 cups of Saskatoon berries. This will make you 8 jam-sized (1 cup) jars of sauce.
Start by washing and sterilizing your jars and lids by boiling them in water for 10-15 min.
Once your berry sauce is cooked fill your jars so that you have half an inch of space on top.
Place on the lid and ring and finger tighten.
Canning Saskatoons
Modern recipe instructions will tell you to water process your saskatoon sauce for 10 minutes after it’s been jarred. I was not taught to do it this way, as the berries are hot-packed into the jars. If you feel better doing the extra step please do so.
To can the saskatoon sauce, place them into a waterbath canner with a metal ring bottom filled with boiling water. Use the jar tongs to lower the jars into the water. Make sure the lids are covered by 1 inch of water. Let the saskatoon sauce process for ten minutes for half pints or pints.
Note: One of the best online references for canning is the USDA’s Complete Guide to Home Canning It’s a great resource and free to use.
Set your jars aside and let them cool to room temperature, it could take up to 12 hours to completely cool. Your lids should pop letting you know the jars are sealed. Once cooled and sealed place them in a cool dark space with the date marked on the lid.
If some of the jars don’t seal, place them in the fridge and use them within 7 to 10 days.
Ways to Use Saskatoon Sauce
This saskatoon sauce has no thickener so it produces a sauce perfect for over pancakes or waffles. Its also amazing over plain vanilla ice cream. I made a vanilla cake with vanilla icing when my granddaughter was visitng. She asked me to place the saskatoon sauce right on top of the icing. It was so good.
You can also use the sauce on poached salmon, porkchops, turkey or chicken.
Pin this Post so you have it for next summer.
Saskatoon Berry Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 cups saskatoon berries fresh or frozen
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp cornstarch optional
Instructions
- In a medium size pan add the water, saskatoon berries, and granulated sugar.
- Cook over medium low heat until it boils and then continue to cook it for 10-15 minutes until the saskatoon berries start to soften.
- If you want a thicker sauce remove 1/4 cup of the juice, stir in the cornstarch. Add it back into the berries and let cook until thicker.I did not use cornstarch in this batch.
- Once your saskatoons are cooked, place in a bowl and let chill until ready to use.
Canning Saskatoon Berry Sauce
- To can Saskatoon sauce I suggest quading the above recipe, starting with 8 cups of Saskatoon berries. This will make you 8 jam size (1 cup) jars of sauce.
- Start by washing and sterilizing your jars and lids by boiling them in water for 10-15 min.
- Once your berry sauce is cooked fill your jars so that you have half an inch of space on top.
- Place on the lid and ring. Finger tighten.
- Your lids should pop letting you know the jars are sealed. Let them sit until completely cool before placing them in a cool dark space. If some of the jars don't seal, place them in the fridge and use within 7 to 10 days.
- Set your jars aside and let them cool to room temperature, it could take up to 12 hours to completely cool. Your lids should pop letting you know the jars are sealed. Once cooled and sealed place them in a cool dark space with the date marked on the lid.If some of the jars don’t seal, place them in the fridge and use them within 7 to 10 days.
Other Saskatoon Berry Recipes
You can substitute blueberries in any of my saskatoon berry recipes, but if you can find saskatoon berries they are so worth trying.
Saskatoons, Saskatoon Berries or June Berries
What are saskatoon berries? What else are saskatoon berries called? Saskatoon are considered a super berry. How to pick saskatoons, where to find them, how to clean them, and how to freeze them. This Saskatoon Berry post will answer all your questions.