Brighten up your January with a vibrant jar of homemade marmalade. Seville orange season is only around six weeks long, so make the most of these delightfully sour citrus fruits while you can. 

MARMALADE Temperature

The setting temperature for marmalade is 105 °C. Make sure to use an accurate and fast-reading thermometer like the Thermapen to make sure you don't accidentally overboil it. 

Ingredients

• 1.3kg Seville oranges
• 1 unwaxed lemon
• 2.6kg preserving or granulated sugar

Tools:

• Thermapen thermometer
• Preserving pan & funnel
• Chopping board
• Sieve
• Glass jars, sterilised

SEVILLE MARMALADE TIP

One of the most common mistakes when it comes to marmalade is overboiling until it looks thick and jam-like. The easiest way to avoid this is to use a thermometer to set your jam to temperature. Then, it will thicken to the perfect consistency as it cools. 

Directions

• Place the whole oranges and juice of 1 lemon into a large preserving pan and cover with 4 pints of water. If the water does not cover the oranges, place a glass lid on top of them.
• Bring the water to a boil, cover and simmer very gently for around 2 hours, or until the peel can be easily pierced with a fork.
• Pour off the cooking water from the oranges into a jug and tip the oranges into a bowl. Return cooking liquid to the pan.
• Allow the oranges to cool until they are easy to handle, then cut in half. Scoop out all the pips and pith and add to the reserved orange liquid in the pan.

• Boil for 6 minutes, then strain the liquid through a sieve into a bowl. Press the pulp through with a wooden spoon – it's high in pectin, so helps the marmalade to set.
• Pour half this liquid into a preserving pan.
• Using a sharp knife, cut the peel into shreds (make them chunky or fine depending on your preference). Add half the peel to the liquid in the preserving pan and add the sugar.

• Stir over a low heat until all the sugar has dissolved, for about 10 minutes. Bring to the boil and bubble rapidly for 15- 25 minutes until it reaches the setting point (105 °C) on your Thermapen.
• Take the pan off the heat and either skim any scum from the surface or add a small piece of butter to disperse it. Leave the marmalade to stand in the pan for 20 minutes to cool a little, and to allow the peel to settle.
• Pour into sterilised jars using a funnel. Repeat from step 3 for the second batch.