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squirrelydan76
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PdfPlace cherries and lemon juice in a wide, heavy-based pot over high heat. Bring to a hard rolling boil that cannot be stirred down — this takes 8-10 minutes for cherries (longer than berries, since they're denser and hold their shape). Mash roughly half the cherries with a potato masher partway through if you want a smoother set rather than whole fruit chunks.
Whisk the pectin into the sugar in a separate bowl (never add pectin directly to hot liquid — it clumps and won't activate).
Add the sugar/pectin mixture to the pot. Stir until fully dissolved, then return to a hard rolling boil that cannot be stirred down.
Boil hard for exactly 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Skim any foam. Confirm 104-105°C on a thermometer.
Set test: drop a small amount onto a frozen plate, wait 30 seconds, push with a finger. If it wrinkles and holds shape, it's set. If it runs, boil 1 more minute and retest. Pull off heat the moment it passes.
Rest off heat for 5 minutes to stop fruit floating.
Ladle into hot sterilised jars, 5mm headspace, seal immediately. Invert 2 minutes, then turn upright to cool. (Water bath 10 minutes if you want it properly shelf-stable rather than relying on hot-fill inversion alone.)