At present the streets of Seville and many Spanish towns and villages are lined with beautiful orange trees with shiny green leaves and tantalizingly ripe bitter oranges – all perfect for marmalade making. One wonders why the Spaniards don’t pick them but wait for this, the Spanish don’t love marmalade and are very confused and bemused by our love for this bitter preserve.
Spain exports most of its Seville and Malaga oranges to the UK and Ireland for marmalade lovers like me. The season is short, from mid-December to the end of February so if you want to make your very own favourite marmalade, you’ll need to dash to the shops to secure your supply. Buy more than you need, if at all possible,
just throw them into the freezer whole (they freeze brilliantly) so you can make whole orange marmalade at any time of the year.
Marmalade is an intensely personal taste, some like it fresh tasting, others prefer bittersweet.
Seville Orange Marmalade is the real deal, the classic, made famous by our beloved Paddington Bear. You can do lots of riffs on it by adding whiskey, treacle or ginger…It’s stronger, tangier than preserves made with other citrus. Nonetheless, I also make properly delicious marmalade with grapefruit, Amalfi lemons… blood oranges are also in season now, bergamot and clementines, mandarins, tangerines and of course kumquats, the baby of the citrus fruit family which makes one of the most delicious preserves of all. I love to serve it with a pan-grilled duck breast or a burrata and rocket salad.
Most, though not all marmalades are made over a two day period. Juice and squeeze the oranges (buy organic if at all possible), Seville oranges tend to be unwaxed but give the others a good scrub first to remove the food-grade wax, pesticide residues, dust and bacteria acquired during the transportation process on the rind. Slice the orange peel thickly or thinner, depending on your preference. Collect the pips and scoop out into a muslin bag with the membrane (essential for pectin). Leave to steep with the peel in the water and juice overnight. Next day, cook for ages until the peel is tender, heat the sugar but be careful not to add until the peel is really soft and the liquid has reduced to between one-third and half of its original volume. If the sugar is added too early, it has a hardening effect on the peel, resulting in a chewy texture which no amount of boiling will soften it… So disappointing, after all your hard work. I know it doesn’t ‘float everyone’s boat’ but I love slicing the peel by hand, I make it into a Zen like practice, brew a cup of coffee, turn on a little soothing music, pop onto a highchair and enjoy the process. Of course, one could just put into a blender but for me, the result is sludgy and much less appealing. It’s your choice, it will depend on your preference and of course time.
If you really are a marmalade nerd, think about entering a pot into the Marmalade Awards before February 3rd check out www.dalemain.com
For those who love a really fresh tasting marmalade and/or if you are short of time, try this No Cook Marmalade, made in minutes, store it in the fridge and it’ll keep for at least 3 weeks.
There are lots more marmalade recipes in
my Forgotten Skills and Ballymaloe Cookery Course cookbooks published by Kyle
Books.
Old-Fashioned Seville Orange Marmalade
A brilliant recipe for a traditional Seville orange marmalade.
Makes approx. 3.2kg
Ingredients
900g of Seville oranges, organic if possible
2.3 litres water
1 organic lemon
1.45kg granulated sugar
Method
Wash the fruit, cut in half and squeeze out the juice. Remove the membrane with a spoon, put with the pips and tie them in a piece of muslin. Slice the peel finely or coarsely, depending on how you like your marmalade. Put the peel, orange and lemon juice, bag of pips and water into a non-reactive bowl or deep saucepan overnight.
Next day, bring everything to the boil in a deep saucepan. Cover and simmer gently four about 1 1/2 hours until the peel is really soft. Then cook uncovered until the liquid is reduced to between one third to half of the original volume (30 minutes approx.). Squeeze all the liquid from the bag of pips and remove it.
Add the warmed sugar and stir until all the sugar has been dissolved. Increase the heat and bring to a full rolling boil rapidly until setting point is reached 5-10 minutes approx. Test for a set, either with a sugar thermometer (it should register 104°C, or with a saucer. Put a little marmalade on a cold saucer and cool for a few minutes. If it wrinkles when you push it with your finger, it’s done.
Allow marmalade to sit in the saucepan for 15 minutes before bottling to prevent the peel from floating. Pot into hot sterilized jars. Cover immediately and store in a cool dry dark place.
N.B. The peel must be absolutely soft before the sugar is added, otherwise when the sugar is added it will toughen the peel and no amount of boiling will soften it.
Variations
Whiskey Marmalade
Add 6 tbsp of whiskey to the cooking marmalade just before potting and boil for 1-2 minutes.
Treacle Marmalade
Add 175ml of treacle to the marmalade just before setting point has been reached. Bring back to the boil and cook for 4-5 minutes or until setting point is reached.
Ginger Marmalade
Add
175-225g peeled, finely chopped fresh ginger to once the recipe. You may like to substitute Demerara sugar for
a fuller flavour and darker colour.
Seville Whole Orange Marmalade
(made with whole oranges)
With any marmalade its vital that the original liquid has reduced by half or better still two-thirds before the sugar is added otherwise it takes ages to reach a set and both the flavour and colour will be spoiled. A wide low-sided stainless steel saucepan is best for this recipe, say 35.5 x 40.5cm wide. If you don’t have one approx. that size cook the marmalade in two batches.
Makes 13-15 pots, depending on the size of the pot
Ingredients
2.2kg Seville or Malaga oranges (organic if possible)
5.1 litres water
3.6kg sugar
Method
Wash the oranges. Put them in a stainless steel saucepan with the water. Put a plate on top to keep them under the surface of the water. Cover with the lid of the saucepan, simmer gently until soft, 2 hours approx. cool and drain, reserving the water. (If more convenient, leave overnight and continue next day.) Put your chopping board onto a large baking tray with sides so you won’t lose any juice. Cut the oranges in half and scoop out the soft centre. Slice the peel finely. Put the pips into a muslin bag.
Put the escaped juice, sliced oranges and the muslin bag of pips in a large wide stainless steel saucepan with the reserved marmalade liquid. Bring to the boil, reduce by half or better still two-thirds, add the warm sugar, stir over a brisk heat until all the sugar is dissolved. Boil fast until setting point is reached. Pot in sterilized jars and cover at once. Store in a dark airy cupboard.
With any marmalade its vital that the original liquid has reduced by half or better still two-thirds before the sugar is added otherwise it takes ages to reach a set and both the flavour and colour will be spoiled. A wide low-sided stainless steel saucepan is best for this recipe, say, 35.5 – 40.5cm wide. If you don’t have one around that size, cook the marmalade in two batches.
No Cook Marmalade
Use organic fruit for this recipe.
A super delicious fresh tasting marmalade, made in minutes.
Makes 12 x 175ml jam jars
Ingredients
1.8kg approx. fruit (5 oranges, 1 lemon and 1 grapefruit)
1kg 250g granulated sugar
Method
Wash the fruit and cut into roughly 2.5-4cm chunks.
Remove the pips where possible.
Divide the fruit and sugar evenly into 3 batches.
Put one batch at a time into a Magimix, pulse and whizz. Pour into cold, sterilised jars and cover immediately. Taste, add a little more sugar if necessary.
Store in a refrigerator and enjoy as soon as possible while fresh.