Easy Sweet Chili Jam

Close up, over head shot of chilli jam in a glass jar, with a gold spoon picking up some jam.

5 from 3 votes

This easy sweet chili jam recipe is one you NEED in your repertoire. Sweet, spicy, sticky, and absolutely loaded with flavor, it's a versatile kitchen hero. Spoon it over salads, sandwiches, cheese boards, grilled meat, and pizzas, or use it as a gorgeous dipping sauce. Plus, it keeps well and makes a wonderful homemade gift.

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Course: Condiments

Cuisine: asian

Keyword: chilli jam, sweet chilli, sweet chilli jam, sweet chilli sauce

Servings: cups

Calories: 121kcal

Author: Kate Phillips

Equipment

1 food processor or chopper, or blender
Glass jars to store

Ingredients

1 whole head of garlic cloves peeled
2 oz fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped (or use 2 tablespoons of crushed ginger or ginger paste) (60g)
6 long red chilies de-seeded and roughly chopped (keep the seeds for a spicier jam)
Zest of 2 limes
2 ¼ cups superfine (caster) sugar (450g)
½ cup rice vinegar
⅓ cup water
3 tablespoons fish sauce or a vegan alternative
1 teaspoon light soy sauce or tamari

Instructions

Prepare your jars.
Water bath method: Wash the jars and lids in hot, soapy water and rinse well. Place the washed jars in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, and boil for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off, then leave the jars in the water until you're ready to fill them. Simmer the lids separately for 10 minutes.
Oven method: Wash your jars and lids in hot, soapy water, then stand them upside down on a lined baking sheet. If you have rubber seals on your jars, remove them and simmer them on the stovetop for 10 minutes (the oven can damage them). Pop the jars into the oven at 250°F (120°C) fan for 15 to 20 minutes until dry. Leave them in the oven until you're ready to fill them.

PRO TIP: Glass reacts to extreme temperature changes, so don't add hot chili jam to a cold jar, or the glass may shatter. Adding hot jam to warm jars will be fine. I like to prepare my jars as the jam is simmering, and this works out well timing-wise.

Blitz the garlic, ginger, and chili.
Add the peeled garlic cloves, chopped ginger, and deseeded and chopped chilies to the bowl of a food processor. Blitz for about 2 minutes, until a thick paste forms.
You may need to scrape down the sides of your bowl a couple of times to make sure everything is mixing evenly.
Combine the jam ingredients.
Add the chili, ginger, and garlic paste to a large, high-sided pot. Add the lime zest, 2 ¼ cups sugar, ½ cup rice vinegar, ⅓ cup water, 3 tablespoons fish sauce, and 1 teaspoon light soy sauce.
Set the pot over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves (you’ll be able to feel this with your spoon - initially it will feel quite heavy and be harder to stir, and when the sugar dissolves, it’ll become more liquidy).
Simmer the chili jam.
Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and leave the jam to simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom and it’s cooking evenly.
It will start bubbling up - this is what you want. You want the liquid to reduce by roughly a third so the jam looks thick, sticky, and deeply red.

If your jam is still a little watery after 30 minutes, continue cooking it for another 10 minutes, keeping an eye on it so it doesn't reduce too much. Remember that the jam will thicken as it cools.

Transfer the jam into jars.
Carefully spoon the hot jam into the warm, sterilized jars, leaving a little space at the top. Seal the jars with their lids. You can store the chili jam in the sterilized jars for up to 3 months at room temperature, then store it in the fridge once you've opened it.

REMINDER: Don't spoon your hot jam into cold jars, as the glass may shatter. If your jars are cold, leave the jam to cool on the stovetop for about 30 minutes, and then transfer it to the jars.

Notes

STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Always use a clean spoon when getting jam from the jar. This will prevent cross-contamination and ensure the jam lasts longer. You can keep it in the fridge for months in this way after opening.

SUBSTITUTIONS: If you're vegetarian or vegan, you can switch out the fish sauce for an extra tablespoon of light soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of lime juice, or use a vegan alternative. For ease, I often use frozen chopped chilies - you can throw them straight into the pot (there's no need to defrost).

I love making this chili jam as gifts for my friends over Christmas and the holidays - the recipe is easily scaled, so you can make a big batch and prepare as many jars as you like. The jam will take a little longer to reduce, so make sure to give yourself a little more time to make it. Just make sure you share storage instructions when you give the jars as gifts.

The recipe makes approximately 2 cups, or 500ml of sweet chili jam (depending on how long you let it reduce!) While jar sizes vary wildly, I find this is usually enough to fill 1 medium jar (300ml to 400ml), with a little extra, or 2 smaller jars. If you want to be exact with it, just check the capacity of your jars, then divide the total yield (say 500ml) by that number.

I have a whole guide that shares more about how to sterilize jars if you'd like to explore that further.

Nutrition