Seville Orange Marmalade
A thick, amber jam made from bitter Seville oranges, studded with fine strips of peel, at once sour, bitter, and sweet. The condiment that wakes up the morning toast.
A thick, amber jam made from bitter Seville oranges, studded with fine strips of peel, at once sour, bitter, and sweet. The condiment that wakes up the morning toast.
At Oxford, breakfast without marmalade was no breakfast at all. You wanted them bitter, those Seville oranges—the ones you never eat raw—and it's precisely their bitterness that makes everything. A few strips of peel on buttered toast, and the morning could begin. It's something that keeps all year: you make a great cauldron of it in January, and you enjoy it until the following winter.
- •Bitter Seville oranges — a large quantity (January season) (fruit, pectin, bitterness)
- •Sugar — equal weight to juice (preservation, sweetness)
- •Lemons — a few (pectin, acidity)
- •Water — qualitative (extraction)
Seville Orange Marmalade
A thick, amber jam made from bitter Seville oranges, studded with fine strips of peel, at once sour, bitter, and sweet. The condiment that wakes up the morning toast.
Why this dish? Bitter orange marmalade is the emblem of the English breakfast—and especially of Oxford, where Wiles studied at Merton College and where the famous “Oxford marmalade” of Frank Cooper was born. A jar in the cupboard, and a whole year of Andalusian sunshine preserved.
At Oxford, breakfast without marmalade was no breakfast at all. You wanted them bitter, those Seville oranges—the ones you never eat raw—and it's precisely their bitterness that makes everything. A few strips of peel on buttered toast, and the morning could begin. It's something that keeps all year: you make a great cauldron of it in January, and you enjoy it until the following winter.
Ingredients (period version)
- Bitter Seville oranges — a large quantity (January season) (fruit, pectin, bitterness)
- Sugar — equal weight to juice (preservation, sweetness)
- Lemons — a few (pectin, acidity)
- Water — qualitative (extraction)
Ingredients
- Bitter Seville oranges — 1 kg (main fruit)
- Granulated sugar — 2 kg (gelling, preservation)
- Lemons — 2 (pectin and acidity)
- Water — 2.5 litres (cooking)
Method
- Wash the oranges and lemons. Squeeze the juice and reserve the pips (rich in pectin) in a muslin bag.
- Finely slice the peel. Put peel, juice, water, and the muslin bag of pips into a large pot.
- Let soak overnight, then simmer for 1.5-2 hours until the peel is tender.
- Remove the muslin bag, add the sugar, dissolve, then boil rapidly until setting point (105°C, or test on a cold plate).
- Pour into hot sterilized jars and seal immediately. Store away from light.
How it was made : Citrus marmalade as we know it took root in Britain in the 18th-19th centuries. In 1874, Sarah Jane Cooper of Oxford cooked a surplus of bitter oranges: the famous “Frank Cooper's Oxford Marmalade” was born, sold to university students. Seville oranges, too bitter to eat raw, are only available in winter.
The contemporary twist : A spoonful of Scotch whisky added at the end of cooking gives a “don's marmalade” worthy of a High Table—for adults only.
Sources : Jane Grigson, English Food, 1974 · C. Anne Wilson, The Book of Marmalade, 1985
Andrew Wiles · Charactorium