Author Topic: Another marmalade question (Read 13101 times)

suziequeue · « **on:** January 27, 2013, 07:01:36 am »

So the Seville season is upon us and once again I find myself making marmalade.......

Problem is - once I have boiled the peel to oblivion, the volume of liquid is tiny - certainly not enough to accommodate all the sugar I am about to add.

Is it OK to add a bit more water just to dissolve the sugar and then I presume set point will be reached once the excess water has boiled off and the temperature starts to rise.....

Can anybody advise?

Bionic · « **Reply #1 on:** January 27, 2013, 08:53:43 am »

Having just made mine thats exactly the problem I had although it hasn't happened to me before.
This time I did add some more water.
When the marmalade had reached setting point it seemed runnier than usual. Although I left it for 10 mins to cool slightly the peel has mostly risen to the top in the jars ( I guess it wasn't thick enough to suspend the peel) so I am a bit disappointed. Still, it has set well and OH said it tastes good.
Next time I will probably let it cool for a bit longer before putting in the jars.
Sally

suziequeue · « **Reply #2 on:** January 27, 2013, 09:59:43 am »

Thanks Bionic. I am using weight for weight oranges and sugar although the recipe I have says to use twice as much sugar........ but then the forum comments say it's too much sugar ...... so I'll just see what happens

Fleecewife · « **Reply #3 on:** January 27, 2013, 11:18:08 am »

To deal with peel rising to the top of the jars you can either leave the marmalade in the preserving pan for five mins after setting point is reached and before you pour, or stir the jars after five mins with a long-handled teaspoon. This allows the jam/marmalade to begin to cool and thicken, so when you stir it, it can hold the peel better.

suziequeue · « **Reply #4 on:** January 27, 2013, 05:06:56 pm »

Well - I added a load of water and lit the gas. I didn't use half and half muscovado and granulated like the recipe said - I just put in all the half opened packets of sugar that I had accumulated over Christmas. What a great way to have a clear out

I had a jam thermometer in the pan but took it off the heat long before it got to the set point temperature. I don't know why I did but it just looked and felt like it was OK.

I left it for some time in the pan and gave it a real good stir.

I have to say it is FABULOUS!!! Rich, dark and tangy with just enough jammy stuff between the peel to enable it to spread but thick with tangy peel.

Really lovely.

The final arbiter will be my step-mother. I will be sending her a jar for her vote.

Sudanpan · « **Reply #5 on:** January 27, 2013, 09:14:41 pm »

We made our marmalade today as well

The recipe I use is dead easy - juice the oranges, collect the pips, put juice and water in pan, whizz up the rest of the orange and add to pot - put pips into a muslin bag and dangle in pot, bring to boil then simmer for 20 mins. Remove muslin bag of pips and squeeze to get all the pectin out. Then slowly add the sugar, dissolve and then bring to rolling boil for 25 mins.
Test for setting (plate in freezer, dollop of mixture on cold plate, let cool then draw finger through, if groove is left then marmalade is ready) put in sterilised jars - voila

2.5 kg seville orages, 4 kg sugar, 5 pints water
Makes about 16 jars

Anke · « **Reply #6 on:** February 01, 2013, 04:23:08 pm »

And if your marmalade won't set (like mine, as I put in 1 more litre of water than I should have, and yes I used to work in a chemical laboratory....), there is a faboulous ice cream recipe I recently found in my new-to-me Sarah Raven Garden cook book:

350g Marmalade (runny or not)
300ml double cream
300ml full fat yoghurt3 tablespoons of orange juice (if your marmalde has set properly, I don't need them)

Just mix all up and churn in the ice cream maker. It is divine....

HesterF · « **Reply #7 on:** February 05, 2013, 12:07:26 am »

Anke, that sounds amazing! WIll definitely be trying that! This is my first year of marmalade making & I'm using my mum's two favourite recipes with my own added twist when I realised I didn't have the right ingredients. So the Three Fruit (grapefruit, lemon and sweet orange) has become Four Fruit (grapefruit, clementine, seville orange and lemon) and is currently soaking overnight. That and the Oxford Thick Cut will be finished tomorrow (if I can find the odd few hours required to boil it away - 20 minutes sounds amazing, both her recipes require 2 hours simmering and reducing liquid before I even get as far as adding sugar and starting all over again to get to setting point). I imagine this will keep us in marmalade for a few years though....or marmalade icecream.

H

Mel · « **Reply #8 on:** February 24, 2013, 12:07:00 pm »

This is the only one I ever have problems with, can never get a "set" on a plate, when I do the marmie ends up like toffee! and I love marmalade! I shall have a go at this though, thanks for this!

Skirza · « **Reply #9 on:** February 26, 2013, 12:38:36 pm »

You're all lucky to be able to get Seville oranges, up here it's impossible to find any

HesterF · « **Reply #10 on:** February 26, 2013, 11:04:16 pm »

Down here they're available from Waitrose (or were, not sure whether they're still there now). Not Tesco or Sainsbury or my other mainstream sources. I had one hit (husband has already consumed most of it) and one tastes OK but too runny (even after two days of boiling on and off). Thought I'd reached setting point (Mel, do you put your plates in a freezer first? not sure how much difference it really makes because I guess either it sets or it doesn't) but I think it was not quite there. Not awful but I'm going to tweak the recipe too next time - needs more fruit. Just have to wait a year before trying again...

H