This delicious Four Citrus Marmalade combines oranges, Meyer lemons, limes and lemons for a fresh and delicious preserve that is an ode to citrus season!
Over the years I have really come to be a lover of marmalades. My family never really ate marmalade growing up and it wasn't until I met my British husband that I really developed a taste for this bitter sweet preserve.
This Four Citrus Marmalade combines Myer lemons, oranges, lemons and limes for a zesty fresh preserve that brings the sunshine to your morning toast. You can easily substitute any of the fruit for another citrus so feel free to add in blood oranges, grapefruit or whatever you fancy. Enjoy!
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What is water bath canning?
Canning is simply the process of applying adequate heat to high acid food that is sealed in jars for the allotted time necessary to kill off bacteria and micro-organisms that cause food spoilage. During heating, oxygen is driven out of the jars, causing a vacuum seal to form when the jars cool down. This prevents any outside micro-organisms and oxygen from getting back into the food. When done correctly, canning preserves food safely for at least a year, although probably much, much longer.
You can check out my guide on How to Safely Water Bath Can at Home more resources on safe home preserving.
Other safe canning resources.
If you are new to canning you can find great resources, recipes and tutorials at Ball Canning and the National Center for Home Food Preservation.
More preserving recipes you will love.
Equipment
FOR THE FOUR CITRUS MARMALADE:
- Large pot
- Peeler: I use a basic Oxo potato peeler.
- Cutting board & knife
- Measuring cups
- Candy thermometer: I like this Oxo Glass Candy and Deep Fryer Thermometer.
FOR WATER BATH CANNING:
- Mason jars: Make sure the jars are clean and that the lids are brand new. You cannot reuse canning lids.
- Large pot with rack OR Electric Canner: If you only can once in a while using a large pot with a canning rack works just fine. As someone who personally does a lot of canning and I absolutely LOVE my Ball FreshTech Electric Canner.
- Jar lifter: You will need a jar lifter to remove the hot jars from the water bath.
- Funnel: I personally love this canning funnel because it also allows you to measure the headspace easily.
- Ladle: This Prepworks Canning Scoop is my favorite.
Ingredients
- Oranges
- Meyer Lemons
- Limes
- Lemons
- Sugar
- Water
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Made this Four Citrus Marmalade recipe? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Recipe
Four Citrus Marmalade
Equipment
- Large pot
- Vegetable peeler & knife
- Measuring cups
- Water bath canning supplies
Ingredients
- 5 lb citrus fruit, a mixture of oranges, Meyer lemons, limes and lemons (about 4 to 5 cups broken down) Notes: The more limes and lemons you use the more bitter the marmalade. Choose your ratio depending on personal preference.
- 4 cups water
- 5 cups white granulated sugar
Instructions
Make the Four Citrus Marmalade:
- Wash the fruit thoroughly. Using a vegetable peeler remove the zest from the fruit and chop into thin slices. Set aside.Remove the remaining white pith from the whole fruits and discard. Then use a knife to separate the fruit segments from the membranes, being careful to remove any seeds as well. Chop the fruit segments and combine with the zest in a large pot on the stove.
- Into the same pot add equal parts water to fruit. *So if you have 5 cups of zest and fruit you will add in 5 cups of water.* Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Then cook over medium high heat for about 20 minutes until the zest has softened.
- Add in 5 cups of sugar all at once and then bring the mixture back to a boil. Boil over high heat for about 30-40 minutes or until the marmalade reaches about 220 degrees F for at least 1 minute. Be sure to stir constantly so that the marmalade doesn't scorch. *Do not take the marmalade above the 220-221 degree mark or it might harden in the jar.*
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir.
Process in a water bath canner:
- Ladle the marmalade into jars leaving about ¼th to ⅓rd inch of headspace.Remove air bubbles and wipe the jar rims. Place on new, clean lids and bands and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes (adjusting time for altitude).Turn off the heat and allow the jars to rest in the warm water for 5 minutes before removing and placing on a towel on the counter (do not place directly on the counter).Allow the jars to cool undisturbed for about 24 hours until all the lids have sealed.Store sealed jars in a cool dry place for 12-18 months for best quality.*Note* If any of the jars do not seal simply store in the refrigerator and consume within 10-14 days.
Mandy
I have been making this marmalade recipe and its nit thickening. I weighted the fruit to 5lb then cut it up and the added it to the pot, then I added the equivalent water so 5lb of fruit was 9 cups so I added 9 cups of water. Then I see it should of been 4 to 5 cups of each which isn't 5lb of fruit. I then added 5 cups if sugar now it won't Thicke. Ehat a mess I am in?
jamjarkitchen
Hi Mandy- so when I make this recipe I typically use a potato peeler to take off the zest and then segment out the inside of the fruit, rather than adding the white pith. When I do this it comes out to about 4-5 cups of packed fruit. Did you add the pith as well? That might be why you got so much more fruit.
If you added 9 cups of water and 9 cups of sugar rather than the amount indicated in the recipe it will thicken eventually but it will take much longer. At that volume you’ll need to boil off a lot of liquid so it could take almost double the time.
Continue to cook and keep checking for gel stage. You can do this by placing a small plate in the freezer and then once it’s very cold dollop a little of the hot marmalade on the cold plate and give it a minute to cool. Then push your finger through the middle. If you see an open line where your finger went and the marmalade did not flood the space then it is ready to can.
I hope this helps!
Marilyn Morton
From five pounds of citrus, I got four cups of juicy fruit. The zest yielded two cups of very small uniform sticks of peel with NO pith. I added 6 cups of water and 5 cups of sugar. I boiled for close to 20 minutes at 4,500 feet above sea level to reach 219 degrees F. Canned for twenty minutes at 4,500 ft. Perfect marmalade yielded 5 jars filled to 1/4 inch from the top. For all this work, I wish the yield was a lot more.
Christina Bellet
I did wonder whether to make the sugar amount match the amount of fruit & water that I yielded from the fruit. I had 6 cups compressed and you said to match the water to the fruit/rind mixture but nothing about adjusting the sugar to equal that amount. I went down the middle and used 5.5 cups of sugar to my 6 + 6 cups, perhaps that’s why it took longer to boil but I also realized my thermometer wasn’t reading accurately. Thankfully I checked with a second one. Side note: if you can actually do this preparation in 30 minutes you must be an octopus. It took me all day & night to make this! It seems to be a success however & I filled 3x 250 ml jars and 8 x125 ml jars
jamjarkitchen
Hi Christina - Glad you enjoyed the marmalade but sorry it took so much longer to make than you expected. I did adjust the prep time to an hour. I try to accurately time myself making the recipes but my husband says I need to take whatever that number is and add another 50% to the time, haha. Hope it wasn't too much of a hassle and that your friends enjoy their gifts!
Andrea
Hi! 4.5 pints from 4 C oranges and Meyer lemons plus peel matchsticks are in the canner now. I have the same sugar question as above. Are the best ratios 1:1:1? I decided to diminish the 5 C sugar by 1/3 C; the cooking marm tasted pretty sweet. I will continue to prep my fruit in the evening and finish up the next day. Thanks for this straightforward recipe!
jamjarkitchen
Hi Andrea- Yes, I tend to do 1:1:1 ratio, but if you feel it's too sweet you can definitely reduce the sugar. Hope you enjoy!
Christina Bellet
Turned out great but took much much longer to prepare than noted and then almost an hour to stir on the stove. I dehydrated orange slices to adorn the jars for gifts this Christmas ? Thanks for the recipe!!
Lucy
Just made it but it is very liquidy despite being an experienced canner. 5lbs of fruits yield four cups of fruit and rind so I used four cups of water and five cups sugar. Boiled it for the suggested time but now seeing my final product would have boiled much longer.
jamjarkitchen
Hi Lucy - Did you check to see if it was at the gel stage before canning? Boil times can vary with different stoves/pots etc. The best way to check if it will set is to use a candy thermometer and take it to 220 F mark. Or you can put a plate in the freezer and then. once it's very cold, spoon some of the jam onto it. If you can run a finger through it without it seeping into the space then it has reached the gel stage.
Also, keep in mind that the marmalade will continue to thicken as it cools. It will seem quite liquidy when you spoon it into the jars, but should set fully within a day or two. Hope this helps!
Alex
Are you supposed to crush the fruit slices before starting to cook them?
jamjarkitchen
Hi Alex - They will break down as you cook them and you can crush them while they boil. Hope this helps!
LKH
Followed instructions. Was about to match amount water but it looked way too watery. So used 2/3 of water only. Still ended up with a citrus soup. I have been cooking it for over 3 hours and it wouldn't thicken. Very disappointing.
Even added more sugar as thickening option. Still nothing.
Wasted money, time and energy.
jamjarkitchen
Hi there, I’m so sorry to hear you had trouble with this recipe. Were you cooking the marmalade at a full rolling boil? It really shouldn’t take 3 hours. For marmalade, you’re not trying to reduce the mixture through evaporation like you would with some jams. You’re looking to bring it to a high enough temperature (around 220°F) for it to set. Citrus peel naturally contains a lot of pectin, so even if it looks watery when cooking, it usually thickens up as it cools in the jars. Did you happen to check the consistency the next day after it had fully cooled?
Dd
I I followed the recipe exactly - it is delicious but did not set
At all, and I will
Have to re do it with Certo.
jamjarkitchen
Hi there - Two questions, did you do a set test before pouring into jars and did you give it a full 24 hours to set up before checking it? If it passed the gel test it should set up within a day as Citrus peels are naturally full of pectin. Let me know if you need more help troubleshooting. Thanks!