Go Back
Print
Orange Marmalade Recipe

Orange Marmalade Recipe - With and Without Pectin

Orange Marmalade from scratch - including canning instructions and pectin test.  Yield: 10 half-pint jars, more or less.  Time: 2 – 3 hours (depending on your knife skills and your canning skills)

Course Breakfast, Condiment, Jams & Jellies
Cuisine Brittish, Scottish
Keyword Breakfast, Jams and Jellies, Orange Marmalade
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Canning Time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs Navel Oranges (4-5 oranges)
  • 1 Lemon (Zest and Juice, Separated)
  • 6 cups Water
  • 1 Packet Pectin Sure-Gel or Similar
  • 3.5 lbs Sugar

Instructions

  1. Place several metal spoons in the freezer (at least 3, but more won’t hurt!).

  2. Fill your canning pot with water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add your jars, lid rings, ladle and tongs. Boil for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off, add your lids, funnel, and other plastic parts, and let sit in the water until about the time you are ready to can.

  3. Wash the citrus. Using a vegetable peeler or a knife, remove the rind. You may also remove the white pith, if you find it too bitter. Roughly chop the flesh and remove any seeds. Finely julienne the peel.

  4. Add the orange flesh, julienned peels, lemon zest, and lemon juice to the large pot. Add the 6 cups water. Bring to a rolling boil and cook until the peels are tender,  about 40-45 minutes.

  5. Test your cooked juice for pectin by placing 1 tsp in a small container and allowing it to cool. Then, add 1 tbsp of rubbing alcohol to the container and gently swirl. If it creates a clump that you can pick up with a fork, you have enough pectin. If it creates small clumps, you have some pectin, but not enough to set the marmalade. You’ll want to add some pectin.* If there are no clumps at all, add an entire packet of pectin.

  6. Once the orange mixture with the pectin has returned to a boil, add all of the sugar. Return the mixture to a boil again, and using a candy thermometer or instant-read thermometer, monitor the temperature. If you have not added pectin, the mixture will need to reach 220F. But you can start testing at 210 by putting a small amount of the marmalade onto a frozen spoon and returning it to the freezer for a minute or two. When you take it out, it should have the consistency of, well, marmalade.

  7. Remove your jars, lids, etc. from the canning pot onto a sheet tray lined with dish towels. Put your jars on the towel upside down to drain.

  8. Fill each jar to the threads with marmalade. Use a damp paper towel to wipe the rim of each jar before using the lid-lifter to carefully, and aseptically put the lid on top (i.e. don’t touch the part that is on the inside). Place a lid ring on and tighten it “finger tight.” In other words, don’t crank it on there – air needs to escape in order for the seal to work. Process the jars by boiling for 10 minutes. This may take two rounds, depending on the size of your pot.

  9. Let sit at room temperature for 24-48 hours. Then, test each jar by trying to get the lid off with just your fingernail. If it comes off, the processing didn’t work, so you’ll need to refrigerate that one and eat it up. If it won’t come off easily, you have a good seal and your marmalade is now shelf-stable for up to a year.

  10. Congratulations!  You made marmalade!