How To Make Corn Cob Jelly

My first time making corn cob jelly was during the Pandemic. I was fortunate to live next door to my sister’s farm and share her gardening and canning chores. Since we couldn’t go anywhere but had many fields to wander, I made jelly out of everything available: Mayhaws, blackberries, blueberries, dewberries, pea pods, and, yes, even corn cobs.

After 300+ ears of corn were cut off the cob, blanched, and frozen, I began to see the possibility of using those scraped cobs for something other than hog feed. So this is what I did. I took some of those corn cobs and went to work.

Corn Cob Jelly

Ingredients:

• 3.5 cups Prepared Juice (Using 1 dozen scraped corn cobs)
• 4 cups Granulated Sugar
• 1 pkg Fruit Pectin

Directions For Juice:

1. Prepare the juice by placing a dozen ears of freshly scraped corn cobs into a stock pot. Cover them with water, bring them to a boil, and cook for 20 minutes.
2. Remove the corn cobs and strain the juice through a fine mesh strainer. Measure 3.5 cups of prepared juice for the jelly.

Directions For Jelly:

1. Bring a boiling water bath pot to a full rolling boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and cover until needed.
2. Wash and sterilize six eight-ounce jars and leave them in the boiling water until needed.
3. Prepare a pan of water to heat the lids. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer until needed. Just before pouring the jelly into the jars, turn the heat off under the pot of simmering water and add the lids.
4. Combine the prepared juice and pectin in a Dutch oven. Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring until the pectin has dissolved.
5. When the juice mixture comes to a full rolling boil, add the sugar and stir well. Bring the mixture back to a full rolling boil.
6. Once the mixture returns to a full rolling boil, set a timer for 3 minutes.
7. Turn the heat on high under the boiling water bath to bring it back to a full rolling boil.
8. After cooking the jelly for 3 minutes, skim the foam from the jelly and pour it into the prepared jars.
9. Wipe jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth. Add lids and rings to the jars and hand tighten.

Directions For Boiling Water Bath:

1. Place the jars into the boiling water bath. Once the water comes back to a full rolling boil, set a timer for 5 minutes.
2. When the jelly has been processed for 5 minutes, remove the jars to a prepared area and leave them undisturbed for 24 hours.
3. After the jelly has cooled and set, wash, rinse, and dry the jars, and check for a good seal. Then label the jars with the contents and the date, and store them in a cool, dry area away from any heat or light source until needed.

Yield: This recipe makes 5 or 6 eight-ounce jars of jelly.

Final Thoughts:

Although corn cob jelly may sound strange to many, it has quite a flavorful and unique taste. So, if the time comes when you have at least a dozen ears of corn that you plan to remove from the cobs, rather than just throwing those cobs away, consider making a batch of corn cob jelly. You’ll be glad you did.

Thanks for stoppin’ by!

Jelly Grandma