Perfect Seville orange marmalade recipe
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Jam Jelly and Preserves | 265 comments
As the topping for the best slice of toast of the day, good marmalade is a joy. We like it dark, chunky, hand cut and never in moderation.
Marmalade was the first preserve that we made. We were so proud of it that we could hardly bear to move it from the worktop to the larder, let alone eat it. Eventually we opened the first jar and lavished it on slice after slice of hot buttered toast.
We immediately christened it Intellectual Marmalade as so much ground work, research and care had gone into its manufacture. Visitors who spotted the label were wary of it at breakfast. Would it somehow have an effect on the brain? When they saw us slopping it onto our toast they happily did the same. No one ever mentioned the name.
We like dark old fashioned marmalade. We couldn’t find a recipe for this so we based our recipe on the classic Seville Orange Marmalade in Delia’s Complete Illustrated Cookery Course
Marmalade can be a bit of a palaver. It starts with hunting down and bagging the fruit. Despite many forays I couldn’t find any Seville oranges this year. Just as I was about to give up I saw them twinkling out in the Cambridge market on Monday. Investing my small change in three kilos of the fruit, I staggered back to the car park with just enough cash to release Jalopy from the gloomy depths.
Having made no notes on the timings of our Intellectual Marmalade recipe, I couldn’t face another day/night of babysitting the bubbling vats. I was determined to find the best old fashioned marmalade recipe, with proper timings. A couple of days ago I discovered a Dark Chunky Marmalade recipe on Delia Online. It’s made in two steps, so it’s great if you are working full time as you can spread the process over two evenings (I would recommend a spreading the task over a weekend unless your evening starts at 15.00 hours). Seville oranges will survive happily in the fridge for at least a week. They keep for months in the freezer and, if you have the room, you can stash them and make fresh marmalade throughout the year.
We have finally made Delia’s Dark Chunky Marmalade. We combined her recipe with our method and simmered ours for a good six hours before setting point was reached. It looks divine and tastes even better than my mum’s. I’m amazed that Paddington Bear hasn’t dropped by.
N.B. If you try this recipe, the poaching liquid is used in the final marmalade. The recipe isn’t very clear on this point and I found the answer in the DeliaOnline forum (press the Community button on her site to access this great resource). Also you need a very large pot! To stop all the peel rising to the top of the jars let the marmalade cool a little before bottling in sterlised jars.
Update January 14th 2011
We now have several new recipes for Seville orange marmalade to suit every taste:
A super three fruit marmalade. A best seller on our gateside stand.
Easy Seville orange marmalade. This fine shredded marmalade is a classic and gets the thumbs up from my mum and is really easy to make!
Seville orange and quince marmalade. Lots of deep flavours in this orange and quince mix.
Leave a reply
Mildred – Thanks again for your help. I am going to have a second shot at it!
I found a Whisky Marmalade Bread and Butter pudding recipe in a Daily Telegraph magazine today, and as had no whisky, I substituted Rum. The result was superb. Thank you for the recipe!
Jim
I have a really easy microwave marmalade recipe.Half and squeeze juice of two lemons into a large bowl.Remove outer rind not pith of 2lb. of oranges, shred and reserve. In a food processor chop oranges including the pips. Add mixture to lemon juice with one and a half pints boiling water. Cover and cook for 14 mins. at power level 7. Tip into sieve and press out all juice using wooden spoon.Discard contents of sieve.Add orange rind to juice and cook for 13-15 mins. stirring occasionally until rind is tender. Add 2lbs sugar and stir until dissolved. Cook uncovered for about 10 mins. stirring once or twice until setting point is reached. Stir in knob of butter then remove any scum. Allow marmalade to cool for about 15 mins. then pot and cover. This is the easiest recipe I have ever used.
Hi Jim, I slice them all up BUT I tend to chop the ends off and any marked bits and pop them in the muslin bag (cut up small) that way all the pith can help with the pectin level (I sometimes use 2 muslin bags if there’s a lot). When you cut the fruits in half and ‘reamer’ them to remove the juice, a lot of the pith a bits comes out then too which goes in the muslin bag (see all the details above anyway, in 2 or 3 different comments!). Also, when it is a nice small quantity I take my time to cut the peel up very thin. Finally, DO ensure you really squidge the muslin bag hard (after that first simmering) to remove every bit of gunge – you will notice it is thick and jelly like, this is the pectin. And lastly (!) when you add the sugar and it has disolved and you bring it up to the boil, don’t stir it too much, just once or twice (gently) to check it isn’t sticking on the bottom of the pan.
It is funny, when you make jams etc regularly, you take it for granted really. Now I am writing it down I keep remembering lots of little things I do by instinct. Good luck!!
Hi Mildred – Thanks for the advice, which I will certainly follow.
Just the one question, Do you slice all the oranges, or just half or threequarters of them.
Jim
Hi James
I agree with Mildred. You can’t remake your spoilt marmalade. But you can use it for other things. The juice is great as a sauce for roast pork, for instance.
As we make our marmalade very slowly it is much easier to preempt disasters. But the result is a strong dark marmalade that doesn’t suit all tastes.
Hi Mildred
Thanks for your help!
Love the idea of the damson cheese paperweight…
Hi James, how very frustrating for you. I know from experience how it feels after all that careful chopping and cooking – you would expect it to behave just as the recipe suggests!
First of all, you can use your marmalade up in puddings – steamed sponge and bread and butter are always a popular treat! Also it is nice with a banana baked in the oven – just put a tablespoon on a sliced in half banana, add a dot or two of butter and pop in the oven for 15 minutes – check it and turn the bananas in the syrup as it becomes more liquid. I am sure there are good savoury recipes too, I wonder if it would work with duck for example.
The only real solution is to simply get back in the pan and make some more! Try a small quantity (see my suggestion on the previous comment, above Fi, using grapefruit etc). Read the recipe thoroughly (you will see more advice in another post earlier still) to ensure you understand exactly what is involved and what stages to expect the marmalade making process to pass through – it really is a bit like Chemistry. Once you know how it should work it seems much easier . . . . to give you additional confidence, use half sugar with pectin added to ensure a nice set.
We have all had our preserving disasters – I still have some Damson Cheese stuck solid in a jar to remind me that fruit and sugar can sometimes make a superb art noveau paperweight.
I have just finished my first marmalade attempt.
I have 6 one pound jars of very heavy, far too rich marmalade.
I cannot handle the metric scale, and all the recipes are metric. I must have got my conversion calculations wrong.
I sliced evry single one of the Seville oranges very finely. Is this correct, or should I have cut just half or threequarters of them? It took hours!
I have read every one of the comments and pieces of advice on this web page, – all good stuff.
I would appreciate some advice too. Can I use my stock of far too rich marmalade in some way. I don,t want to throw it out. Can I rectify it and reduce the richness?
I would appreciate some help.
Hi Mildred
We used to collect the golly badges when we were children too. I don’t know what happened to them all as I haven’t seen them for years. They are quite collectible nowadays, I expect.
You are spot on with quantities. Smaller to begin with is so much easier than sweating over a vast vat and not feeling confident about what you are doing. The process should be fun!
Hello Willie M, I still have my Golly broach – he is pinned on the front of my dresser and must be almost 30 or 40 years old!
I agree with you and Fi, marmalade B&B pud is lovely, and it is nice in a steamed sponge pud too (!).
And Fi, you are exactly right re the setting test on a cold plate. After a minute, when the little drop of marmalade is cold, and you push it with a finger it crinkles on top and feels set!
I was also thinking about how I would advise someone who hasn’t even made marmalade how to proceed . . . . I would say go get 2 pink grapefruits, a lemon and an orange – all medium sized. Follow my processing details as before but using 2.2pints of water and then 2.2lbs of granulated sugar. This quantity is more managable, the pan can often be heated better on the hob compared to a huge maslin pan, and the chopping up stage isn’t such a drag! Funnily enough, this is also my favourite marmalade!
Hi Mildred,
A huge thank you for your input! Once again you saved the day, thanks and your recipe looks great too.