Well everyone, today is the day for strawberry orange marmalade. This recipe is beautifully colourful, totally delicious, and very simple to make. Are you ready to make some marmalade?
What’s the difference between jam and marmalade?
Jam is typically made with fruit, pectin, and sugar. Marmalade, on the other hand, relies heavily on the addition of citrus fruit and peel, which contains a ton of natural pectin, and, bonus: vitamin C!
Rather than focusing on the sweetness of fruit, marmalade typically features the distinct flavours of orange and lemon.
What is pectin?
Pectin is a powder substance that is often used to make jams and jellies “gel” or “set.” It is the plant-based version of gelatine (which is animal based). Pectin is naturally found in many hard fruits, but it is most often taken from apples and citrus (especially the rind, to my understanding). You can purchase pectin from the grocery store in powder or liquid form.
How to make marmalade
Making marmalade is much like making regular jam. The fruit ingredients are washed, de-stemmed or pitted and washed, and then all of the ingredients are combined in a heavy bottomed saucepan with a bit of water (to prevent the mixture from burning), baking soda (to soften the citrus peel), and pectin. Once the mixture has softened enough, sugar is added for an extra minute or two of cooking time. Then your marmalade is ready to can or freeze for storage!
Can you make strawberry orange marmalade with less sugar?
I generally prefer to make my jams and preserves with less sugar than most recipes suggest. The consequence of doing this, however, is that the pectin doesn’t always gel/bind with the sugar properly, so the finished consistency of the jam ends up being a little thinner.
When you look at most jam/marmalade recipes, you will find that the amount of sugar (in cups) is usually about equal to or even sometimes a little greater than the amount of fruit. I typically reduce it drastically, with the amount of sugar being about 1/2 the amount of the fruit in the recipe (in cups). I wouldn’t recommend reducing it more than that, however, unless you have the incredible no or low sugar needed pectin that you can get these days! Believe me, the stuff is like magic!
Note: When I first made this marmalade, and took pictures of it right away, the consistency was a bit on the thinner side… but citrus has a lot of natural pectin in it, so the marmalade ended up setting quite a bit better than I expected. (Note: These pictures were all taken when the marmalade was totally fresh.)
Can you make substitutions in this recipe?
Yes! If you’re using the no sugar pectin, you can omit the sugar (if you like the taste that way), or use a small amount (and I mean much smaller amount… like a couple of Tablespoons) sugar substitute like Stevia or Monk Fruit (I like the taste of this one much better). I would not recommend using honey or maple syrup, since they may cause the jam to crystallize.
Disclaimer: I have never made my own marmalade that way, so proceed with caution if you do try that out. I just know enough about making jam, and using those ingredients (the no sugar pectin, sweeteners, etc) to make those claims.
If you want to try another type of berry in place of the strawberries, or sub some of the citrus for grapefruit, feel free to do those as well! Just make sure your substitutions are similar to the item you’re swapping so that the marmalade doesn’t lose its integrity. I did once make this recipe with quince instead of strawberries, and… Wow. That may have been my favourite marmalade I’ve ever made!
How long does it take to make marmalade
Most of the work is all in the prep of the ingredients. Marmalade is easy to make, and once the fruit and peels are sufficiently softened (about 30 minutes because of the citrus rind), it only takes a few minutes (3-5) to get the gelling process to take place.
My strawberry orange marmalade is too thin: what went wrong?
I’m embarrassed to say it, but I’ve definitely made this mistake, and at the time, I had no idea what went wrong. A little bit of experience down the road, however, and I now know what the problem was: too little cooking time with the pectin added to the mixture.
The solution? Add your pectin right from the beginning, and make sure it gets lots of time on the heat, with the greatest heat being applied after you add the sugar. Also, try the freezer test to make sure it has gelled with the sugar properly before removing it from the heat.
Often, especially when making low-sugar jams or jellies, I have the tendency to feel like that’s the reason my jam didn’t set. I have found, however, that marmalade especially (since it is naturally high in pectin), sets up beautifully (even with less sugar) if it is allowed to boil (hard) for an extra minute or two after you add the sugar.
How to tell if my marmalade is going to thicken: The freezer test
Spoon a little bit of your fully cooked marmalade onto a small plate or bowl. Set the plate in the freezer, and pull it out after 3-5 minutes (keeping the marmalade hot but not boiling while you wait). Touch the marmalade. If it has thickened, you’re good to go. If it still retains a watery consistency, return the marmalade to high heat, bring it to a rolling boil, and cook it for a couple of minutes longer. Test it again to make sure the pectin and sugar have bound together properly.
How to preserve marmalade for storage
You can either can or freeze your jam once it has been made, and store any open jars or containers in the fridge. I recommend my basic canning method as my favourite, easy way, to preserve strawberry orange marmalade at room temperature.
Great ways to serve strawberry orange marmalade:
Strawberry orange marmalade can be served in place of jam anywhere you would normally serve it. Here are some of my favourite ways to eat it:
- On homemade sourdough bread, toasted with butter
- As a topping for cream of wheat
- Smothered on homemade pancakes or waffles
- With my Light and Flaky Scone Recipe
- Inside jam-filled baking recipes, such as thumbprint cookies
To make this recipe, you will need:
- Ingredients (see recipe card)
- A chef’s knife and paring knife
- Cutting board
- Measuring pitcher or measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Medium heavy bottomed saucepan
- Heat proof spatula
- Ladle
- Canning jars or storage containers
- Canning tools (if you are canning the finished product)
Strawberry Orange Marmalade
This strawberry orange marmalade recipe is made with less sugar that most jams and is a personal favourite! Makes 6-7 half-pint jars.
Ingredients
- 2 cups strawberries washed, stemmed, and chopped
- 3 large naval oranges washed, zested, peeled, and chopped*
- 1 large lemon washed, zested, peeled, and chopped*
- 1 cup water
- 1 pkg (57g) pectin crystals
- 1/8 tsp. baking soda
- 3 c. sugar
- *3-4 cups chopped citrus all together
Instructions
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In a large, heavy bottomed saucepan, bring the chopped fruit, rind, pectin, baking soda, and water to a boil; cook for 30 minutes on medium heat.
-
Add the sugar, dissolve, and bring the mixture to a rolling (violent) boil.
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Cook for 2-5 minutes, or until the mixture coats the back of a spoon and begins to drip off the tip of the spoon a little more slowly.
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Can for room temperature storage, or spoon into jars or containers to refrigerate or freeze until ready to use.
Recipe Notes
For the citrus rind:
For this recipe, I used a zester (like the one in the pictures) to get long, thin peels of zest. You can also use a finer zester or box grater to remove the zest from the citrus.
If you like thicker pieces of peel, just shave the coloured part of the zest off of the fruit with a knife, and then cut those pieces into small, thin strips.
The Freezer Test (to make sure the marmalade will thicken):
Spoon a little bit of your fully cooked marmalade onto a small plate or bowl. Set the plate in the freezer, and pull it out after 3-5 minutes (keeping the marmalade hot but not boiling while you wait). Touch the marmalade. If it has thickened, you're good to go. If it still retains a watery consistency, return the marmalade to high heat, bring it to a rolling boil, and cook it for a couple of minutes longer. Test it again to make sure the pectin and sugar have bound together properly.
Other similar recipes:
- Peach Raspberry Jam
- Sweet Apple Butter
- Tart Apple Butter
- Cranberry Apple Butter
- Pumpkin Apple Butter
- Rhubarb Sauce
- Raspberry Sauce
- Strawberry Sauce
So yummy, and so pretty. If you make it, let me know how it turned out! I’d love to hear your comments, and of course, if you feel like it… tag me in your photos on Instagram @naomicakesofficial. I love to see what you guys have been making!
Bye for now,
–Naomi
P.S. This recipe is included in my ebook, “Make Time for Tea”! If you love tea time, make sure to grab a FREE sample chapter at this link or the form below.
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