• Rinse the apricots and dry them with a kitchen towel. Slice them in half and remove the seed. If the apricots are large, quarter or cut into even smaller pieces. I had about 6 cups of apricots after pitting and cutting.
• Place the apricots in the instant pot. Add the sugar and lemon juice to the instant pot. Stir well.
• Close lid and let them sit for about 30 minutes. This helps to release the juices from the apricots.
• Open lid and stir the apricots. Close lid again with vent in sealing position and pressure cook for 2 minute at high pressure.
• When the pressure cooking time is done, let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes. Then manually release the pressure.
• When you open the lid, there will be a lot of liquid, but don't worry we will sauté and this will change completely.
• Use a potato masher to mash the apricots if making a preserve. You can use a hand blender to make it completely smooth to make jam. We did the later and made jam.
• Put instant pot on sauté mode. Let it cook for about 5 minutes while stirring frequently and the jam will thicken. Remember that jam also thickens as it cools. Press Cancel and turn off the instant pot.
• Let the jam cool before you transfer to a jar to store it. Refrigerate and enjoy!

Stovetop Method:

• Follow the same steps as above using a heavy bottom pot to make the jam. In place of pressure cooking, cook on medium heat for about 12-15 minutes until the apricots have softened. Then follow the steps to mash the apricots, thicken and store the jam.