Originally published on Photoblog by Gethin Thomas AUGUST. 21, 2020
Marmalade is a fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. Most commonly made from bitter orange.
The preferred citrus fruit for marmalade production is the Spanish Seville or bitter orange, Citrus aurantium var. aurantium, prized for its high pectin content, which sets readily to the thick consistency expected of marmalade. The peel imparts a bitter taste. These oranges are very different to any you would eat today, in fact I would say they are inedible as a fresh fruit.
The word "marmalade" is borrowed from the Portuguese marmelada, from marmelo 'quince'. An old story says the name comes from the French "Marie Malade" as it was prepared for Mary Queen of Scots when she was ill and living at the French court. The Portuguese theory is far more likely though as the Quince is most often eaten cooked and preserved in much the same way as modern marmalade, so the name could have easily transferred from one to the other while travelling from Portugal to England.
A lot of people do not realise that the friendship and trade between England and Portugal forms one of the longest partnerships between any two countries anywhere in the world. The Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of 1373 was signed on 16 June 1373 between King Edward III of England and King Ferdinand and Queen Eleanor of Portugal. It established a treaty of "perpetual friendships, unions [and] alliances" between the two seafaring nations. It is the oldest active treaty in the world.
But back to the Marmalade. Here is my recipe evolved from many attempts of making it and experimenting with other written recipes.
1Kg Seville oranges
Juice of two lemons
2.2 litres of water
2 Kg Sugar
You need Seville Oranges. They look a bit gnarly and small and are usually organic and are only available for a short period from about Christmas to the middle of January. My marmalade calendar is first week of January.
Remove the "buttons" and give your oranges a scrub and dry them. The buttons are the only bits of the orange you don't use.
Slice them in half around the middle.
You will notice they have thicker skins and less juice than a modern variety of eating orange.
Squeeze the fruit in a manual juicer and remove the seeds, pulp and any loose fibres with a sieve, putting all into a muslin cloth which you tie with string. Keep the juice. All this pulp and seeds mix contains a lot of the pectin which will help the marmalade to set, but you don't want it in your finished marmalade.
Finely slice the peel, this is a labour of love. The more time taken to do this correctly the better the marmalade. I prefer it quite thin although you can do thicker slices if you prefer. Any way you like.
In a large pan, place the sliced oranges, water, juice and muslin bag. Leave to soak for 24 hours or overnight.
Next day place all in a large open pan, a Maslin pan is best but a large saucepan will do. Bring all the contents to a boil and let it bubble away for two hours uncovered to reduce the mixture by one third, you can do other jobs while this part is happening, you don't have to watch it too closely. Remove the muslin bag. Add the sugar and lemon juice. Bring back to the boil. Now you need to keep an eye on it.
A foam will form on the top, which should be skimmed off. A small knob of butter stirred in at this point will clear a lot of the foam, remove the rest. You should stir it regularly especially towards the end to make sure it doesn't catch on the pan and burn.
Boil till setting point is reached. About 20 to 30 minutes. I have measured the setting point at 103.4 degrees C. Setting point can be tested by dropping a small amount onto a cold plate. As it cools it should form a skin. If you push your finger through it there should be a crinkle on the surface.
Bottle it into sterilised jars. I sterilise mine by putting them through a dishwasher cycle timed to end just as the marmalade is ready. It is easier if you use a jam funnel. This prevents the jam from getting onto the edge of the jar and preventing a good seal.
Seal your jars while still hot to achieve a vacuum. I have found that it keeps well for up to two years. In my opinion, although it can be eaten straight away, it tastes better a month later or more.
One tip. I make several batches in that first week of January for a years supply. I slice and prepare one batch and put it to soak. The next day I set the first batch to bubble away for two hours and during that time I prepare the second batch to be left to soak overnight, and so on.
Comments