This post is all about canning the best homemade cranberry sauce.

If there is one thing worth making from scratch for Thanksgiving dinner, I think homemade cranberry sauce has to be near the top of the list.

It is incredibly simple.

Fresh cranberries, sugar, and water.

That’s it.

And once I realized how easy canning cranberry sauce is, it made even more sense to make several jars at once instead of buying cranberry sauce every holiday season.

Cranberries are naturally high in pectin, so they cook down into a beautifully thick sauce without needing boxed pectin.

Even better, cranberry sauce can be safely preserved in a boiling-water canner, which makes this a great recipe for beginner canners.

Make a batch while fresh cranberries are inexpensive and plentiful in the fall, and you’ll have homemade cranberry sauce sitting on your pantry shelf when Thanksgiving and Christmas roll around.

It’s also one of those homemade pantry foods that makes a really pretty holiday gift.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This homemade canned cranberry sauce is:

• Made with only 3 ingredients
• Water bath canned
• Beginner friendly
• Made without commercial pectin
• Perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas
• Easy to make ahead of the holidays
• A great way to preserve fresh cranberries
• Delicious with turkey, chicken, pork, and sandwiches
• Beautiful packaged as a homemade food gift

And you can make it whole berry, crushed, or smooth, depending on how your family likes cranberry sauce.

Is Cranberry Sauce Safe for Water Bath Canning?

Yes.

Cranberries are an acidic fruit.

That means you do not need to pull out the pressure canner for this recipe.

Ingredients for Canning Cranberry Sauce

One of my favorite things about this recipe is how short the ingredient list is.

Fresh Cranberries

You’ll need 4 cups of cranberries.

Wash them well and remove any stems, damaged berries, or shriveled berries.

Fresh cranberries are usually easy to find beginning in the fall.

You can also use frozen cranberries. There’s no need to thaw them completely before cooking; they may simply take a little longer to soften.

Sugar

You’ll need 2 cups of sugar.

Cranberries are extremely tart on their own, so the sugar balances their natural acidity and gives us the classic sweet-tart cranberry sauce flavor.

Water

You’ll need 1 cup of water to cook the cranberries until they’re soft.

That’s it.

Three ingredients.

Canning Cranberry Sauce Ingredients

4 cups cranberries

1 cup water

2 cups granulated sugar

Optional: ½ teaspoon butter to help reduce foaming

Yield: approximately 4 half-pint jars

The tested NCHFP recipe may also be doubled.

Equipment You’ll Need

You don’t need anything unusual for this recipe.

Gather:

• Boiling-water canner with rack
• Half-pint or pint canning jars
• New canning lids
• Rings
• Jar lifter
• Canning funnel
• Bubble-removing tool
• Large saucepan
• Potato masher, optional
• Fine sieve, optional

I particularly like using half-pint jars for cranberry sauce.

It’s a convenient amount for a holiday meal, and the smaller jars are beautiful for gifting.

How to Can Cranberry Sauce

Step 1: Prepare Your Canner

Start by preparing your boiling-water canner and jars according to current safe-canning recommendations.

Because this is a hot-pack recipe, you’ll want your jars hot when you fill them.

Wash your jars and inspect them for chips or cracks.

Prepare your lids according to the manufacturer’s current instructions.

Step 2: Wash the Cranberries

Sort through the cranberries.

Remove any stems and discard berries that are damaged or spoiled.

Rinse the cranberries thoroughly under cool running water.

Step 3: Cook the Cranberries

Place 4 cups cranberries and 1 cup water into a large saucepan.

Bring to a boil and cook until the cranberries are soft.

You’ll start hearing the cranberries pop as they cook.

This is when you decide what type of cranberry sauce you want.

Three Ways to Make Your Cranberry Sauce

The tested recipe gives us three different options.

Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

This is probably my favorite.

Cook the cranberries until they’re soft but do not mash or sieve them.

You’ll end up with a beautiful rustic cranberry sauce with whole and partially broken-down berries throughout.

Crushed Cranberry Sauce

For something in between whole berry and completely smooth, mash the softened cranberries with a potato masher or the back of a spoon until you reach your desired consistency.

Smooth Cranberry Sauce

If your family prefers the classic smooth cranberry sauce, press the cooked cranberries through a fine sieve.

This removes the skins and creates a smoother finished sauce.

Step 4: Add the Sugar

Once the cranberries are soft and you’ve chosen your desired texture, add:

2 cups granulated sugar

Stir until the sugar dissolves.

Bring the cranberry sauce back to a boil.

Boil for 3 minutes, stirring to prevent scorching.

NCHFP notes that you can add ½ teaspoon butter after the berries soften to help reduce foaming if desired.

Step 5: Fill the Jars

Place your hot jars on a towel or protected work surface.

Using a canning funnel, ladle the boiling-hot cranberry sauce into the jars.

Leave ½-inch headspace.

Remove any trapped air bubbles.

Check the headspace again and adjust if necessary.

Wipe each jar rim with a clean, damp paper towel.

Center a lid over the jar and apply the ring until fingertip tight.

Step 6: Process the Cranberry Sauce

Place the filled jars into your boiling-water canner.

The jars should be covered with at least 1 inch of water.

Once the water returns to a vigorous boil, begin timing.

For half-pint or pint jars, process according to your elevation:

Elevation	Processing Time
0–1,000 feet	15 minutes
1,001–3,000 feet	20 minutes
3,001–6,000 feet	20 minutes
Above 6,000 feet	25 minutes

Altitude matters in water-bath canning because water boils at a lower temperature as elevation increases, so processing times need to be adjusted accordingly.

Step 7: Remove the Jars

Once the processing time is complete, turn off the heat and remove the canner lid.

I like to wait about 5 minutes before removing the jars.

Use your jar lifter to carefully remove each jar.

Keep the jars upright.

Place them on a towel or cooling rack with some space between each jar.

Don’t tighten the rings.

Don’t press the lids.

And don’t tip the jars.

Let them sit undisturbed for 12–24 hours while they cool and seal.

Check Your Seals

After the jars have completely cooled, check the seals.

The center of the lid should be concave and shouldn’t flex up and down when pressed.

Remove the rings before storing the jars.

Wipe down the jars, label them with the contents and date, and move them to your pantry.

Any jar that didn’t seal should be refrigerated and used first rather than stored at room temperature.

Why Did My Cranberry Sauce Get So Thick?

Don’t panic if your cranberry sauce seems surprisingly thick once it cools.

Cranberries naturally contain a good amount of pectin.

As the sauce cooks and cools, that natural pectin helps everything set.

The finished sauce may look considerably looser while you’re filling your jars than it does after sitting overnight.

Why Is My Cranberry Sauce Too Thin?

Give it time to cool completely before deciding it’s too thin.

Hot cranberry sauce is naturally much more fluid.

As the jars cool, the sauce should thicken.

And once you open a jar and refrigerate it, it can become even thicker.

Can I Add Cinnamon or Other Spices?

Rather than changing the base recipe significantly, I like keeping my canned cranberry sauce simple.

That actually makes it more versatile later.

When I open the jar, I can serve it exactly as it is or dress it up depending on the meal.

You could add complementary flavors at serving time, such as orange zest or warming spices.

Fresh vs. Frozen Cranberries

One of my favorite tricks is buying extra bags of cranberries when they’re inexpensive during the holidays.

Fresh cranberries freeze beautifully.

Toss the bags into the freezer and use them later for cranberry sauce and other recipes.

That means you don’t necessarily have to fit another canning project into the already-busy week before Thanksgiving.

When Are Cranberries in Season?

Fresh cranberries generally begin showing up in grocery stores in the fall.

That’s when I watch for sales.

If you find a really good price, buy extra.

Make a batch of cranberry sauce.

Freeze a few bags.

Then you can preserve cranberries without paying the higher prices you sometimes find outside peak season.

How to Use Home-Canned Cranberry Sauce

Obviously, there’s Thanksgiving turkey.

But that’s definitely not the only way to use it.

Try your cranberry sauce:

• With roast turkey
• With roast chicken
• With pork
• On leftover turkey sandwiches
• On biscuits
• With baked brie
• On a holiday charcuterie board
• Swirled into yogurt
• As a topping for oatmeal
• With cream cheese and crackers
• As part of a holiday appetizer
• With leftover Thanksgiving sliders

One of my favorite reasons to preserve individual ingredients is that a jar on the pantry shelf can become so many different things later.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce Makes a Beautiful Gift

If you’re already making a batch, consider making a few extra half-pints.

Cranberry sauce is one of the prettiest preserves to give around Thanksgiving and Christmas.

That deep red color looks beautiful in a mason jar.

Add a simple label and ribbon and pair it with a loaf of homemade sourdough bread, jam, apple butter, or another homemade pantry item.

It’s inexpensive, useful, and actually something people will eat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to pressure can cranberry sauce?

No. This tested cranberry sauce recipe is processed in a boiling-water canner.

How much headspace does cranberry sauce need?

Leave ½ inch of headspace.

How long do you water bath cranberry sauce?

At elevations of 0–1,000 feet, half-pints and pints are processed for 15 minutes. Processing increases to 20 or 25 minutes at higher elevations.

Can I use pint jars?

Yes. The tested recipe provides the same processing times for half-pint and pint jars.

Can I use quart jars?

I wouldn’t. The NCHFP recipe provides processing instructions specifically for half-pint and pint jars, so stick with those sizes.

Do I need pectin?

No.

Cranberries naturally contain pectin, and the tested recipe doesn’t call for commercial pectin.

Can I make whole berry cranberry sauce?

Yes. Cook the berries until soft, don’t mash or sieve them, then add the sugar and continue with the tested processing directions.

Can I double the recipe?

Yes. NCHFP specifically notes that this cranberry sauce recipe may be doubled.

An Easy Holiday Pantry Staple

I love preserving foods that I know we’ll actually reach for later.

And homemade cranberry sauce is exactly that.

It takes only three basic ingredients.

You don’t need a pressure canner.

You don’t need pectin.

And a small batch gives you several beautiful jars ready for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or an easy homemade gift.

Even better, you can make it while cranberries are abundant and inexpensive instead of adding another recipe to your Thanksgiving-day list.

That’s really what preserving food is all about for me.

Take something while it’s in season.

Preserve it while you have it.

And enjoy the convenience months later.