Sugar syrup or pectin can be used to thicken orange marmalade.
Orange marmalade, a tart and slightly bitter combination of orange and lemon fruit and finely chopped rind, was traditionally thickened by adding sugar and slowly heating the mixture until the sugar, water and citrus juice formed a thick sugar syrup.
Today, many cooks use pectin to speed the process of thickening orange marmalade. Low-sugar pectin reduces the amount of sugar needed to jell the marmalade, making it an attractive option for health-conscious orange marmalade lovers.
Instructions
Thickening Orange Marmalade with Sugar
1. Add 1 cup of sugar for each cup of cooked orange and lemon fruit and chopped rind in water. Stir the sugar into the fruit mixture with a wooden spoon.
2. Heat the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat on the stove top. Stir occasionally.
3. Scoop up a spoonful of the marmalade in a metal spoon 10 minutes after adding the sugar. Allow the marmalade to drip from the spoon back into the pan.
4. Observe the drip pattern. When the marmalade begins to thicken, two large drips will form on the edge of the spoon. When the two drips combine and fall from the edge of the spoon in a smooth sheet, the marmalade has thickened sufficiently. This may take up to 30 minutes of cooking.
5. Remove the marmalade from the heat. Pour it into sterilized jars for further processing and storage.
Thickening Orange Marmalade with Pectin
6. Mix pectin in the amount recommended by the manufacturer with 1/4 cup of sugar. Stir the mixture into the orange and lemon fruit and rind.
7. Mix sugar in the amount recommended by the pectin manufacturer into the fruit mixture and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil on the stove top.
8. Boil the marmalade mixture vigorously for one minute. Remove it from heat and pour it into sterilized jars for processing and storage.
Tags: , orange lemon, orange lemon fruit, , amount recommended, chopped rind