What Is Currant jelly and How Can I Use It?

Wondering what to do with currant jelly? This guide covers how to pick it, cook it, store it, and swap it — with 76 recipes to put it to work.

Nutrition

Where found

Currant jelly is usually found in the condiments section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group

Currant jelly is a member of the Sweets US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

How much does currant jelly weigh?

Related

Sweets

Recipes using currant jelly

There are 76 recipes that contain this ingredient.

Venison & Redcurrant Casserole

This is a wonderful recipe for either a dinner party or Sunday lunch. Whether or not you use redcurrants in the actual sauce or purely as a decoration depends very much on the time of year and variety of redcurrants you can find. End of summer home-grown redcurrants add a wonderful sweet tartness to the sauce, however imported under-ripe fruits can impart a certain bitterness and are probably best left for garnish. If you do not use fresh berries add a little extra redcurrant jelly.

Rosemary Chicken Skewers with Berry Sauce

I've always been a fan of combining sweet fruits with savory spices, it sets up a certain flavor balance that just works so well. Mango with chili pepper, peaches and thyme, rhubarb and rosemary. They're all delicious, so can there be any question that blackberries and rosemary would just be a match made in heaven?

Octoberfest Braised Red Cabbage with Bratwurst

German braised red cabbage with bratwurst, simmered low and slow with Granny Smith apples, caraway, and a sweet-tart hit of vinegar and currant jelly. A classic Oktoberfest plate of silky ruby cabbage and juicy sausage.

Strawberry or Raspberry Custard Tart

We took these tartlets with us to our friends place to dinner, they disappeared quickly, and they were so tasty, almond crust was a hit, and whole milk custard turned out creamy and delicious. Definitely a keeper!

Rosehip, Hibiscus & Currant Pie or Cake Filling

Rosehip, Hibiscus & Currant Pie or Cake Filling recipe

Glazed Chicken Legs with Cornbread Stuffing

Microwave glazed chicken legs over a bed of cornbread stuffing, brushed with a sweet currant jelly glaze. A complete chicken dinner ready in about 30 minutes.

Roasted Red Currant & Sherry Beef Ribs

Red currant jelly is brillant in this marinated sauce. A few ingredients create this juicy and delicious roasted beef ribs.

Sweet Tart Sauce

A 2-ingredient sauce of currant jelly and prepared mustard, microwaved until smooth. Sweet, tangy, and ready in 5 minutes. Glaze a ham, dip meatballs, or drizzle over chicken.

Venison Sauces

Three classic venison sauces: a sharp champagne vinegar sauce, a sweet currant jelly and wine sauce, and a rich pan gravy with walnut pickle. Also pairs with hare or mutton.

Carrageen Pudding with Rhubarb & Rosehip Jelly

Traditional Scottish carrageen pudding set in a ring mould with lemon milk and egg, served with rhubarb compote and a scarlet rosehip or redcurrant sauce.

Avocado Mousse Melba

Avocado Mousse Melba blends avocado with sweetened condensed milk and lemon, folds into whipped cream, and serves with raspberry Melba sauce on decoratively swirled cream. A restaurant-worthy dessert.

Jelly-Filled Pears in Puff Pastry with Caramel Sauce

Whole Bartlett pears cored and filled with currant jelly, wrapped in golden puff pastry and baked, served pooled in Calvados caramel sauce. A bakery-window dessert that looks impossible but isn't.

Peach Melba

Classic peach Melba: vanilla ice cream crowned with a poached peach half, glossy raspberry-currant sauce, crushed macaroons, and a piped collar of whipped cream. Auguste Escoffier's signature dessert from 1893.

Fruited Cheesecake

Fruited cheesecake: a creamy ricotta cheesecake on a vanilla wafer crust, crowned with fresh fruit arranged in concentric circles and glazed with currant jelly. A bakery-style summer dessert for eight.

Crockery Ham

Slow cooker spiral ham glazed with currant jelly, dry mustard, cinnamon, and clove. Studded with whole cloves for that holiday-table look without heating up the oven.

Glaze for Corned Beef

Sweet and tangy corned beef glaze made with currant jelly, mustard, and horseradish. Three ingredients that transform leftover corned beef into a glazed showpiece.

Ruby Pears

Ruby pears poached in Beaujolais wine with currant jelly, rosemary, vanilla bean, and whole cloves. Pressure cooked and chilled 24 hours for deep ruby color.

Gravy with Sherry

Quick sherry pan gravy with currant jelly, orange juice, soy sauce, and a splash of sherry, thickened with cornstarch. A sweet-savory sauce ready in 15 minutes for roast game, duck, lamb, or holiday turkey.

Lemon Tea Snow with Strawberry Sauce

Lemon tea snow with strawberry sauce: a light, airy gelatin dessert flavored with lemon and instant tea, beaten with egg whites into a cloud. Served with a warm-set strawberry-currant sauce. Retro Southern tearoom fare.

Summer Fruit Saute

Quick summer fruit saute with peaches, dark plums, and raspberries in a buttery currant jelly glaze. Served warm over frozen yogurt for a 15-minute seasonal dessert.

Sauteed Turkey with Citrus Currant Sauce

Sauteed turkey cutlets with a quick citrus currant pan sauce made from orange juice, lemon juice, currant jelly, and tarragon finished with butter.

Thumbprints

Classic walnut-crusted thumbprint cookies with tender shortbread base and jewel-toned jelly centers perfect for cookie swaps and holiday gift boxes.

Thumbprints

Classic walnut-crusted thumbprint cookies with tender shortbread base and jewel-toned jelly centers perfect for cookie swaps and holiday gift boxes.

Barbequed Pork Ribs/Currant Glaze

Spice-rubbed pork ribs finished with a sweet-tart currant jelly glaze spiked with orange juice, lemon, and Dijon mustard. Grilled low and slow until the meat pulls clean.

Sweet-Sour Franks

Slow-cooker sweet and sour cocktail franks simmered in chili sauce, currant jelly, mustard, and pineapple chunks. Retro mid-century party appetizer that holds warm in the crock for serving.

All 76 recipes