Grandma Abson's Traditional Baking: It’s Marmalade time

Sunday, 18 January 2026

It’s Marmalade time

I’ve been making marmalade for over 15 years now. Once the Christmas and New Year celebrations are over, it’s a fixed date on my calendar to check out the arrival of the Seville Oranges in the shops or online and prepare my jam jars ready for my marmalade making session.

I’ve posted about Grandma Abson’s Marmalade recipes with various citrus fruits and my late mother-in-law, Great Grandma Pat who supplied the family with marmalade well into her 80s, using a pressure cooker.

Creating a marmalade recipe

I’ve tried all their recipes and others over the years and finally created my own version. I think I’ve ended up with something easy and reliable to be sure of a winner every time. Nowadays Seville oranges are sold in string bags weighing a kilo, so I’ve adapted the measurements of ingredients to fit this weight. This recipe makes about 6 jars.

Seville Orange Marmalade

What you need…

1 kg Seville oranges

Juice of 2 lemons

4 pints/approx. 2 litres water

2 kgs granulated sugar

How to make ...

Wash the oranges and place them in a large pan with the water and the lemon juice.

Boil and then simmer for between 1½ and 2 hours until they are soft and the peel pierces easily with a fork.

Remove them from the pan with a ladle and leave to cool on a tray or plate.

Cut the oranges in half and scoop out the fruit, pith and pips and return this mixture to the pan, retaining the peel. Boil for 5-6 minutes.

Strain this mixture through a sieve or a muslin cloth. You can press it through with a wooden spoon.

Cut half of the peel into strips – chunky or thin depending on how you prefer them in marmalade.

Add these to the remaining liquid in the pan with the sugar and stir gently until all the sugar has dissolved. This can take between 6-10 minutes. Be careful not to boil the mixture at this stage.

Once the sugar has dissolved, fast boil rapidly for 15 minutes until the setting point is reached. It can take sometimes up to 25 minutes so keep checking.

How to check for the setting point - use the plate/wrinkle test by putting a small amount on a chilled plate and pushing it with a teaspoon - it should wrinkle.

Leave the marmalade to cool in the pan for around 20-25 minutes and then pot into sterilised jars.

Tips for marmalade making

· To prevent too much froth in the liquid as it boils, add a knob of butter at the fast-boiling stage.

· To sterilise jars, place them in a dishwasher or wash carefully in hot, soapy water. Rinse and place them on a tray in a preheated oven at around 150C for 15-20 minutes to dry.

Love it or not?

It’s true to say that love it or hate it, marmalade is a firm favourite as part of a traditional British breakfast with a wide variety of textures to suit all tastes. Seville Oranges are only around at this time of year between late December and early February so don’t delay.

Start the year and banish the January Blues

Now I’ve made my marmalade, I’m ready to take on 2026 and bake my favourite recipes to banish those January blues. Wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2026!