Marmalade recipe (with a couple of variations)

Recipe Details

  • Cook oranges for a couple of hours until skin is tender. There needs to be enough water to cover the oranges.
  • Cool water and oranges down, then measure 1.5l of the cooking water, add extra water if needed.
  • Cut the oranges in half, take out the flesh and the pith and put into the water. Juice the lemon(s), and put both juice and pips into the water.
  • Bring water with flesh etc. to the boil and cook for 6 min, then sieve it all thoroughly.
  • Slice the peel as thinly as your patience will allow.
  • Heat the sugar in a low heat oven, i.e. do it at 140 C while also sterilising the jars.
  • When all is sliced, combine with the cooking water and the warm sugar.
  • Gently bring to boil while the sugar dissolves.
  • When dissolved boil vigorously for probably 20 min. (Could be less, could be well more). Start testing for a set when temperature gets to 103 C if using a thermometer, it should set at 104 C.
  • When set, stir in a small knob of butter to dissolve the foam.
  • Rest for 10 to 15 min., then pour in sterilised jars.
  • Makes about 8 jars in varying sizes.
  • If you want bigger quantities I recommend making them in several batches, it's easier to get to set when not too big a portion.

Variations

This can be varied with blood oranges, doing exactly the same, apart from using more lemon juice (125 ml, approx. 2 lemons) for one kg of blood oranges.

You can also make a ginger variation with fresh ginger (cooked with the oranges, then sliced), as well as stem ginger. Use approx. 100 ml syrup and use the equivalent less of sugar. Use 3 stems and a (small) thumb size fresh ginger. Measures obviously depends on how gingery a marmalade is wanted, this one you can taste the ginger, but marmalade is still the main taste.

TIME: 20 min. (Could be less, could be well more)

SERVING: 8 Jars

Temp: Medium heat

Ingredients:

  • 1 kg Seville oranges
  • 2 kg preserving sugar
  • 75 ml lemon juice (about 1.5 lemons)

Marmalade comments

If you are great at marmalade making, just ignore these comments. I still don’t find it totally easy to get the right set, but if I get it wrong I have at least got better at fixing it. If it’s too runny you basically have to decide to keep it like that or get it all out of the jars and then cook it for longer – not fun! On the other hand if you have got a too stiff set, you can take some of the marmalade out of the jar and put boiling water into it, mix well and leave to settle. If needed, repeat the operation.