How to Make Homemade Orange Marmalade - Easily!

[Kitchen Witch]

How to Make Homemade Orange Marmalade - Easily!

Making and canning your own orange marmalade is also quite easy. Here's how to do it, in easy steps.
Ingredients and Equipment

* Fruit - 8 whole oranges, thinly sliced (4 cups cut)
3 whole lemons, thinly sliced (1 ½ cups cut)
* Water - 6 cups water (I substitute orange juice instead of water, for extra flavor)
* Sugar - about 4 cups of dry, granulated (table) sugar
* Pectin
* Jar grabber (to pick up the hot jars)

* Jar funnel
* At least 2 large pots; I prefer 16 to 20 quart Teflon lined pots for easy cleanup.
* Large spoons and ladles
* 1 Canner
* Ball jars (
* Lids - thin, flat, round metal lids with a gum binder that seals them against the top of the jar. They may only be used once.
* Rings - metal bands that secure the lids to the jars. They may be reused many times.


Optional stuff:

* Lid lifter




Orange Marmalade Directions

The yield from this recipe is about 18 eight-ounce jars (which is the same as 9 pints). I'll explain both the way to make traditional orange marmalade (which in my opinion has a bitter edge to it) and an orange marmalade without the bitterness.

Step 1 - Select the fruit


Pick fresh oranges and lemons that are not soft, moldy or discolored.

Step 2 - Wash the fruit

I'm sure you can figure out how to wash the fruit in plain cold water.


Step 3 - Get the jars and lids washed

The dishwasher is fine for the jars; you don't really have to sterilize the jars - the boiling water bath sterilizes everything , jar, lid, contents and all; but you DO want to get the jars as clean as you can first. I get the dishwasher going while I'm preparing everything else, so the jars are clean and hot (and less likely to crack when you put boiling hot fruit in them) by the time I'm ready to fill the jars.

Lids: Put the lids into a pan of hot water for at least several minutes; to soften up the gummed surface and clean the lids.




Step 4 -Remove the outer part of the peel

Take a look at Step 10 - if you are going to use method 10a, then with a vegetable peeler, remove only the colored part of the peel and set it aside. This outer portion of the peel is what gives marmalade its bitter taste. If you like it, chop it finely and set it aside for now.

If you don't like the bitterness, then you are going to use the method Step 10b, so just then just peel the fruit with your hands as shown in step 5 (and skip step 4)


Step 5 -Remove the remaining rind

Using your fingers, peel off the remaining white portion of the rind, discard this - it is a tasteless and spongy.



Step 6 -Slice the oranges and lemons in half



Cut the fruit in half, across the segments



The tough, white part in the center must be cut out and discarded - it's too tough and tasteless to leave in!

The easiest way to remove it is with a pair of scissors; just snip it out.

Save any juice that leaks out!




Step 7 - Chop the oranges and lemons



Next, slice the two halves into thin slices



And then chop the slices up a bit! Remove and discard any seeds or tough parts of the orange that you find in the process.



Continue to save any juice that leaks out!




Step 8 - Measure out the sugar

You'll need to follow the directions that come with the pectin, but generally, the lower sugar pectin recipes call for about 4 cups of sugar per box, and the regular pectin calls for 7 cups of sugar.

Mix the dry pectin with about 1/4 cup of sugar and keep this separate from the rest of the sugar.

Note: you can also add some spice at this point, if you like! Some people add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, ginger or cloves. Purists add none of these!


Step 9 - Mix the chopped oranges with the pectin

Stir the pectin into the chopped fruit. Put the mix in a big pot and set aside for a moment.

Notes about pectin: I usually add about 30% more pectin (just open another pack and add a little) or else the jam is runnier than I like. With a little practice, you'll find out exactly how much pectin to get the thickness you like.

Another tip: use the low sugar pectin. It cuts the amount of sugar you need from 7 cups per batch to 4 cups! And it tastes even better! On the other hand; I have never had success with the No-sugar pectin. It always turned out runny and bland. You might want to try using the low sugar recipe with a mixture of sugar and Splenda; that could work.



Is your jam too runny? Pectin enables you to turn out perfectly set jam every time. Made from natural apples, there are also low-sugar pectins that allow you to reduce the sugar you add by almost half!


Step 10 -Cook the fruit - With Peels or Not?

Peels add the characteristic bitterness to marmalade, but some people do not like marmalade BECAUSE it is bitter - so here are both ways to make it:


Step 10a - With the Peels:

If you want the characteristic bitter taste of marmalade, put the peels, 2.5 cups of water (or orange juice for a richer flavor) and 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda in a saucepan.

Bring the mix to a boil. Cover it, turn down the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the chopped fruit and simmer for 10 minutes more.


Step 10b - Without the peels

If you want a less bitter taste, skip the preceding and instead place the chopped fruit and 2.5 cups of water or juice in a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes

Step 11 - Add the sugar and return to a boil

Add the sugar and bring the mixture back to a full boil.

Step 12 - Bring the mixture to a full boil

Stir the mix and bring it to a full boil, hard, for one minute.

Step 13 - Fill the jars and put the lid and rings on

Fill them to within 1/4 inch of the top, wipe any spilled jam off the top, seat the lid and tighten the ring around them. Then put them into the boiling water canner!

This is where the jar tongs come in really handy!


Step 14 - Process the jars in the boiling water bath

Keep the jars covered with at least 1 inch of water. Keep the water boiling. Boil them for at 15 minutes.

Note: Some people don't even boil the jars; they just ladle it hot into hot jars, put the lids and rings on and invert them, but putting the jars in the boiling water bath REALLY helps to reduce spoilage! To me, it makes little sense to put all the working into making the jam and then not to process the jars to be sure they don't spoil!



Step 15 - Done

Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool without touching or bumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight) You can then remove the rings if you like.

It may take up to two weeks for the marmalade to set and thicken up. It will be runny until then!

Once cooled, they're ready to store. I find they last about 18 months. After that, the get darker in color and start to get runny. They still seem safe to eat, but the flavor is bland. So eat them in the first 12 to 18 months after you prepare them!


Answers to Common Questions

* Why should cooked marmalade be made in small batches?
If a larger quantity of juice is used, it will be necessary to boil it longer thus causing loss of flavor, darkening of the maramalade, and toughening of the finished product. It really doesn't work. Trust me; I've tried many times!
* Should marmalade be boiled slowly or rapidly?
It should be boiled rapidly, since long, slow boiling destroys the pectin in the fruit juice.
* What do I do if there's mold on my marmalade?
Discard jams and jellies with mold on them. The mold could be producing a mycotoxin (poisonous substance that can make you sick). USDA and microbiologists recommend against scooping out the mold and using the remaining jam or marmalade.
* Why did my marmalade ferment, and what do I do?
Jellied fruit products may ferment because of yeast growth. This can occur if the product is improperly processed and sealed, or if the sugar content is low. Fermented fruit products have a disagreeable taste. Discard them.