CANNING: Homemade Peach Pie Filling (with Clear Jel)

• Peach Pie Filling Ingredients
• Kitchen Equipment Needed
• How to Can Peach Pie Filling with Clear Jel
• Pantry Storage Tips
• How to Re-Thicken Separated Clear-jel Filling
• Homemade Peach Pie Filling (Clear Jel)

There are few desserts more simply sublime than a slice of luscious peach pie, with a flaky butter crust filled with sun-ripened peaches and a hint of sweet spices.

The only problem? The peach season is short, and good, ripe peaches are so perishable. The solution? Put ’em up! This homemade peach pie filling recipe uses a thickener that’s safe for canning, so you can have jars of almost-instant pies on your pantry shelf year round!

But you can use your home-canned peach pie filling for more than just pies! It’s a shortcut to baking quick peach cobbler, dump cakes, fruit bars, or filled crepes and blintzes, or use it for a fruity pancake or waffle topping. Try it as a simple ice cream sundae topping, or spread it on a plain cheesecake to make it something special.

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Peach Pie Filling Ingredients

Peaches:

You can use clingstone or freestone yellow peaches to can your own peach pie filling. Freestone types are easier to process, but either will work! They do need to be standard yellow peaches, however.

To easily peel the peaches, blanch them briefly (30-60 seconds) in a pot of boiling water, then dunk them into an ice bath or bowl of cold water to stop the cooking and cool them enough to handle. The skins should slip right off with very little help from your paring knife. If not, return them to the hot water briefly again.

Sugar:

Use white granulated sugar for your peach pie filling, to let the bright flavor of the fresh peaches shine through. This pie filling will be quite sweet. You can safely reduce the sugar a bit if you prefer, but try it as-written first. The sugar helps preserve the firm texture and color of the peaches as well as making the filling sweet.

Clear-Jel:

Clear Jel is a thickener that behaves very similarly to cornstarch or arrowroot, but unlike those, it is both safe to can and retains its thickening power after the canning process. Clear jel is a modified food starch, and is heat-resistant, safe for canning, and forms a shelf-stable gel for at least a year if properly canned or frozen.

You must use a cook-type Clear Jel starch for this recipe. Cornstarch, flour, and other regular starches can interfere with the heat penetration during processing that is essential to make sure your canned foods are safe and harmful bacteria are destroyed.

See the pantry storage tips below for more information about storing Clear-jel pie fillings (and how to rescue a separated pie filling).

Lemon juice:

Use bottled lemon juice, not fresh, for this peach pie filling canning recipe. Bottled lemon juice has a standardized acidity level, which ensures your jam will be the correct pH for water-bath canning.

If you are not canning the filling, you can use fresh lemon juice.

Flavoring:

I like to keep my canned fruit pie fillings simple, so they’re more versatile. An accent of spices or flavoring extract is nice, but make sure you don’t overpower the flavor of your fresh peaches!

If you like, you can add a bit of ground cinnamon, vanilla extract, almond extract, or peach noyeaux (a homemade liqueur made with toasted peach pits, with a flavor similar to almond extract).

Kitchen Equipment Needed

large stockpot or saucepan:

You’ll need several pots to make this peach pie filling. You’ll need a pot of boiling water to blanch and peel the whole peaches, and then to blanch the sliced peaches in 6 cup batches.

This recipe is written in one quart intervals, though I recommend making a larger batch of 3-7 quarts of pie filling at a time, or whatever your pots can accommodate.

You’ll need another large, heavy bottomed stockpot large enough to hold all of the recipe ingredients. You will cook the sugar and Clear-jel mixture in this, and then add the hot blanched peach slices and briefly cook the whole mixture together. Opt for a pot that is too large over one that is too small, as this will help to contain any spatters for less mess! A thick bottom will help protect your peach pie filling from scorching.

quart or smaller canning jars and new lids:

I recommend canning this pie filling in quart jars for pies, and in smaller jars for making hand pies, small pies, or using it as a fruit topping. Processing time is the same for quart or smaller jars.

You can also portion and freeze this recipe if you prefer. Use any freezer safe airtight container, label, and use within one year to prevent freezer-burn.

large canning pot:

You need a large canning pot with a lid that will hold all of your canning jars with room for at least an inch of rapidly boiling water to cover the lids. You can use any pot with a lid that will hold all of your jars, plus enough boiling water to cover by an inch or two and room at the top for a vigorous boil.

It’s ok to stack the jars if your pot is tall enough, but it’s best to use a jar rack or a perforated steamer insert separating between the layers so that the jars don’t jostle and break.

sturdy whisk & heat-resistant spoons:

You need to whisk the powdered Clear Jel together with the sugar to remove any lumps, and then mix in the cold water well. Then you’ll want to continue to stir with either a sturdy whisk or spoon, so that the pie filling thickens evenly.

A slotted spoon or wire strainer is also helpful for blanching & peeling the whole peaches, and then to blanch the peach slices.

Canning funnel, ladle, jar tongs, and rack:

These tools are optional but make the job of filling your jars with your hot peach pie filling, and getting them into and out of the hot water bath a lot easier and safer!

It’s best to use a canning pot with a false bottom or fitted with a jar rack to keep your canning jars from scorching or breaking on the bottom. This lets the heat circulate evenly around the jars, and protects the bottoms of the pie filling jars from burning.

If you don’t have a jar rack, use a silicone trivet or extra canning jar rings (tie them with butcher’s twine so they form an elevated platform above the bottom of the pot for your jars), or even an old folded cotton kitchen towel under the jars (make sure it’s 100% cotton so that it doesn’t melt!).

You can read more about these and our recommendations in our guide to canning equipment if you don’t already have these or are new to canning.

How to Can Peach Pie Filling with Clear Jel

peel peaches:

• Wash the peaches. Bring a medium-large pot of water up to a boil, and fill a large bowl or another pot with ice water.
• Prepare a third container with cold water and either lemon juice, a teaspoon of ascorbic acid powder, or several crushed vitamin C tablets.
• Working in batches, blanch the whole peaches for 30-60 seconds.
• Using a slotted spoon or strainer, transfer the blanched peaches to the ice water to stop the cooking and cool them enough to handle.
• The skins should easily slip off of the blanched peaches. If the skins are stubborn, return them to the boiling water bath to blanch a second time.
• Immediately dunk the skinned peaches into the vitamin C water to prevent the peaches from oxidizing and browning.
• Keep working in batches until all of the peaches have been peeled.
• Pit and slice the peaches into 1/2″ thick slices, and return them to the treated water to protect the cut edges from browning.

blanch the peaches:

• You will need about one gallon of boiling water in your blanching pot for the next step. Top up the blanching pot with more water if necessary and bring it back up to a boil.
• Blanch the sliced peaches six cups at a time in the boiling water. Cook for one minute after the water returns to a boil, then remove them with a slotted spoon or strainer.
• Place the blanched peaches in a covered pot or bowl and keep them warm while you continue to blanch the remaining peach slices in batches and make the pie filling base.

prepare canning pot & jars:

• Wash your canning jars and rings with hot, soapy water and rinse well.
• Inspect the jars for cracks, nicks, or defects in the sealing surface, and discard any damaged jars.
• Fill your canning pot with water and bring it up to a low simmer. You can pre-heat and sterilize your jars if you like, though it isn’t necessary as long as they’re clean.

cook the Clear Jel base:

• In a pot large enough to hold the total mixture of peaches and other ingredients, combine the sugar, Clear Jel, and enough of the cold water to make a slurry.
• Whisk well to dissolve and remove any clumps. Add the rest of the water, and any ground spices you may be using.
• Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens and begins to bubble.

combine peaches with filling:

• Add the lemon juice and bring back to a boil for one minute. Stir constantly, then add the vanilla or almond extract (optional).
• Fold in the warm, blanched peach slices.
• Stir constantly over the heat for three full minutes.

fill jars:

• Remove the pot from the heat, and immediately pack the hot pie filling into the prepared canning jars.
• Use a jar funnel if you have one to keep the jar rims cleaner, and carefully ladle the thickened peach pie filling into the jars.
• Using a debubbling tool, chopstick, or thin spatula, stir gently to remove air bubbles. Top up jars with more filling if needed after removing any large air bubbles.
• Leave a 1 1/2″ headspace in the jars. This thick pie filling mixture tends to expand while it’s in the canner, so leave the full amount of head-space so that your jars seal properly!
• Wipe the jar rims with a damp, clean cloth to remove any residue.

water-bath:

• Using jar tongs or a jar rack, carefully place the filled jars of peach pie filling into the hot water bath.
• Make sure the jars are covered by at least one and preferably two inches of boiling water. Top up the pot with hot water from a kettle if necessary.
• Cover the pot, checking until the pot of water has returned to a rolling boil.
• Start a timer for 30 minutes once the water bath is boiling, and cover the pot.
• Adjust the processing time for elevations higher than 3001 ft (see chart in recipe notes for longer processing times for higher elevations).
• After the 30 minutes are up, turn off the heat, and set another timer for 5 minutes, leaving the pot covered and the jars undisturbed.

cool, check seals, store:

• Remove the jars from the canner when the 5 minute timer is done, and set them on a folded towel or wire rack to cool. Use your jar tongs again or the jar-lifter rack… I prefer removing the jars individually with jar tongs so they don’t clang together, break, or drip as much, even if I’m using a jar lifter rack.
• Leave the jars undisturbed overnight (or until completely cooled, at least 8-12 hours).

Pantry Storage Tips

After jars are cooled and seals are set (I leave them at least overnight but no more than 24 hours), check that all jars of pie filling are sealed, carefully wash jars, label them, and remove rings before storing.

• Sealed jars with metal lids will not flex when the seal is pressed, and the lid has a firm vacuum seal with the jar.
• Any jars of pie filling that did not seal can be reprocessed with new lids within 24 hours of canning. For any jars that didn’t seal, check the jar rim surface for chips and the ring for dents.
• If you don’t want to re-can the jars that didn’t seal, they may be immediately refrigerated and used first.

• Gently wash jars or wipe with a damp cloth to remove any sugary residue or hard water deposits from the canning bath.
• Clearly label your jars with the name and date of your product, and store them in a cool, dark pantry.

• Store your sealed jars of peach pie filling in a cool, dark pantry. 
• Temperature swings and direct sunlight will shorten the shelf life and damage the quality & flavor of your home canned foods.
• Home canned goods are best consumed within 12-18 months, but should be safe much longer as long as the seal is intact and the jars show no signs of spoilage.
• Discard any jars that lose their seals in storage, bubble or hiss when opened, or have an off smell or visible signs of spoilage.
• Once you open a jar of peach pie filling, use it right away, and refrigerate any leftovers. They’ll last for up to a week in the fridge.