Homemade Fig Jam in the Microwave

Are you a fig lover? Microwave this easy, small-batch homemade fig jam in about 15 minutes.

By
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
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Updated September 01, 2022
Elise Bauer
Microwave Fig Jam
Elise Bauer

Late summer is a busy season at my parent's house. The apple trees are loaded with apples and the fig tree has my mother scrambling to find people who like figs.

If it's fig season and you're meeting my mother for the first time, right after "nice to meet you" you'll hear, "do you like figs?" with a look of hopeful anticipation.

Mom can never find enough neighbors, friends, ladies at the exercise class to give figs to so she dries and freezes some, and with others makes a wonderful fig microwave jam.

Microwave jam, what's that?

Microwave Fig Jam
Elise Bauer

Mom's Jamming Secret: The Microwave

That, my friends, is the way my mother makes jams. She learned this technique years ago from Sunset Magazine (1979) and never looked back.

Now that I've finally tried her approach, I can see the appeal.

You make only small batches—a pint at a time—enough for your own use in most cases, and it takes all of 15 minutes of cooking time.

Microwave Fig Jam
Elise Bauer

Since we make only 2 small jars and we use them up quickly, there's no need to sterilize the jars, just use clean jars that have been rinsed, and put the jam in refrigerator after it has set.

This spicy, orange-y fig jam is a cinch to make. We used mild green figs because we grow them, but you could easily use the darker Mission figs. The jam is a wonderful dipping sauce for nutty cheeses such as Gruyere.

More Jams to Microwave
Microwave Blueberry Jam
"Any Fruit" Microwave Jam
Microwave Strawberry Jam

Homemade Fig Jam in the Microwave

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Macerating 30 mins
Total Time 55 mins
Servings 16
Yield 2 half-pint jars

The butter helps keep the jam from foaming up as it cooks in the microwave.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups diced fresh figs (6-10 figs, depending on the size of the figs)

  • 1/2 cup seeded, peeled orange, diced

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar (reduce if you want, though it won't set as well)

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest

  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon butter (see recipe note)

Special Equipment

  • 2 half-pint canning jars

Method

  1. Macerate the figs and orange in sugar:

    Place the ingredients in a large ceramic or glass bowl or casserole (we use a 2-quart Pyrex measuring cup), stir to combine, and let sit for 30 minutes for the fruit to macerate in the sugar.

    Elise Bauer
  2. Microwave for about 15 minutes, pausing to stir:

    Place in microwave. You will cook the fruit mixture on the high setting for approximately 15 minutes.

    As soon as the mixture starts to boil, after about 6 to 8 minutes, stop the cooking and stir. Continue cooking and stir every few minutes.

    At about 13 minutes the mixture should start to get viscous. If you spoon out a bit on to a small plate that has been in the freezer, you can push the mixture around a bit with your finger tip to see how thick it is.

    If it is runny, cook it a couple minutes more. You can also check by seeing how the jam runs off of a spoon. If it seems to firm up a bit as it drips, it's done.

    Microwave Fig Jam
    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer

    If you use a large Pyrex measuring cup as we have done here, you can see that you start with close to 3 cups of liquid. You want to boil it down to 2 cups.

  3. Pour into jars:

    Pour out the jam into jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headroom from the top of the jars. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate.

    The jam should keep for at least several months in the refrigerator.

    Elise Bauer
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
86 Calories
0g Fat
22g Carbs
0g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories 86
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 2mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 22g 8%
Dietary Fiber 1g 2%
Total Sugars 21g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 4mg 20%
Calcium 8mg 1%
Iron 0mg 0%
Potassium 42mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.