Classic orange marmalade recipe

Ingredients:

(Makes 2.5kg)

900g Seville oranges

3 lemons

2kg granulated sugar

Method:

Put the oranges and lemons in a large saucepan and pour over two litres (70fl oz) of water. Bring to a boil over a high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for two hours. Remove from the heat and leave the fruit to sit in the liquid in the pan for at least six hours, or overnight.

Remove the fruits, leaving the liquid in the pan, and split them in half, scooping out the flesh and pips and reserving these in a bowl. Chop the orange and lemon skins however you like – into fat or thin strips.

Tie the fruit flesh and pips tightly in cheese cloth or muslin (or use any clean cloth). Add the sugar and the chopped skins to the pan with the liquid, along with the cloth tied with the flesh and pips. Bring the pan to a rapid boil over a high heat – be careful it will boil volcanically, so keep a watchful eye – then boil steadily until the marmalade reaches the magic setting point of 105°C/221°F. When you get to this temperature, boil the marmalade for a further one minute.

Remove the pan from the heat and leave the marmalade to stand and settle for at least 30 minutes before spooning into clean, sterilized jars and sealing tight. The marmalade can last for anything up to a year or more.

From Home Cookery Year by Claire Thomson, photography by Sam Folan,published by Quadrille, priced £30