Orange marmalade is a classic and delicious spread that can be enjoyed on toast, scones, or used as a glaze for meats. It is a perfect way to preserve the sweet and tangy flavors of oranges while adding a burst of citrusy goodness to your favorite dishes.

This easy orange marmalade recipe is a favorite wintertime treat of ours. Why? It’s flavorful, easy to make, and only requires a few ingredients to make it!

It’s the perfect way to preserve a bounty of oranges while they’re in season and it freezes well or can be canned for the ease of storing at room temperature or even utilized as a great Christmas gift!

What I really love about this delicious homemade orange marmalade is it’s easy and doesn’t require any long processes or difficult steps. A lot of recipes will have you in the kitchen soaking and splitting things for hours, or even overnight! But this recipe comes together really easily with just a bit of prep work.

Ingredients for Orange Marmalade

This easy recipe only requires a few ingredients to make and doesn’t require any pectin because the fruit contains so much natural pectin.

Fresh oranges – any type of orange will work in this recipe. That said, it’s best to choose organic oranges so the rinds aren’t treated and waxy, but any type will do. That said the best oranges are navel oranges, blood oranges, mandarins, tangerines, or Cara Cara.

Note: If you are lucky enough to find Seville oranges at the grocery store or locally during their short season from January to February, even better. Their flavor is really suited for marmalade!

Lemon – again, choosing organic is best as you will use some of the lemon zest in addition to the juice.

Sugar – this recipe doesn’t use as much sugar as some recipes that often call for pound-for-pound use of fruit and sugar. You can reduce it a little more if you want to, but less sugar will result in a runnier marmalade that you probably won’t want to can.

Water.

Orange Marmalade VS Orange Jam

Marmalade and jam are very similar. The general difference is that marmalade uses peel or rind and jam does not. Marmalade is really more of an orange preserve like other chunky fruit preserves than it is jam.

People also consider marmalade a citrus preserve, though non-citrus fruits have been used to make a marmalade.

Easy Orange Marmalade Recipe

Prepare fruit. Begin by peeling the outside of the orange rind with a vegetable peeler. Then, cut the pieces or rind into thin matchsticks using a sharp knife.

Then, remove the rest of the peel from the oranges, taking care to remove as much of the bitter white part as possible. Chop the oranges into pieces or shred them lightly and juice the lemon. Discard seeds.

Add to saucepan. Place a plate in the freezer for later. Then, combine all of the ingredients in a large pot.

Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat then reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes until mixture is thickened and forms sheets when dripping off a spoon.

To check for proper gel take a spoonful of marmalade and place it on the cold plate you put in the freezer earlier. It should only move slightly, not run. If it runs, it’s not finished cook a little longer.

Jar it up. If you aren’t canning, you can simply place the marmalade in clean jars. It will keep in the refrigerator for 1 month or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If freezing leave a 1/2″ of headspace and use straight-sided jars.

Prepare canner, jars and lids. Wash jars and lids in hot, soapy water. Place jars in a water bath canner, filled 2/3rds full. Bring water to 180°F and keep it at that temperature until ready to pack jars.

Pack jars. Using a canning funnel, ladle hot marmalade into hot half-pint jars leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove any air bubbles, and adjust for proper headspace if necessary.

Wipe jar rim, center lid, and finger tighten screw band. Place jar back into the waiting hot water bath on the jar rack. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process. Be sure the tops of the filled jars are covered by at least an inch of water. Place the lid on the canner and bring the vessel to a full rolling boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling process jars for 10 minutes, adjusting processing time for altitude if necessary.

Once jars of marmalade have been processed, turn off the heat and carefully remove the lid. Allow the jars to sit for 5 minutes before removing to a towel-lined counter.

Leave hot jars undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours before checking for proper seal. Remove rings, wash, and store in a cool dry place for up to 18 months.

Delicious Marmalade Tips and Variations

While this is a simple and easy marmalade recipe, here are a few tips and a few variations if you’re struggling or looking to add some flavor.

Don’t overcook. When testing your marmalade on the frozen plate, pull it off the stove. That way if it’s done you aren’t overcooking it and drying it out.

Be patient. Since we’re utilizing the natural pectin in the oranges to set this marmalade up, it can take a day or two to set up properly. If it looks runny in the jars, but you did the plate test and it wasn’t running, give it a day or two and check again.

Remove the white pith. If your marmalade has a bitter aftertaste, it’s likely you left too much of the white pith on the oranges. Thinner skinned oranges make it easier to remove that bitter white part, so those are the best to use to make marmalade.

Fruit variations. You can use any citrus to make this marmalade or a combination of citrus. Try some grapefruit or a combination of grapefruit and oranges.

Liquid variations. You can use some orange juice in place of some of or all of the water content for a more citrusy flavor.

Flavor variations. Add some spice with a bit of diced jalapeno, mellow out the flavor with a bit of vanilla bean added at the end, or feel free to add some cinnamon sticks or whole cloves to the mixture while cooking to infuse those flavors. Another option would be to grate a little fresh ginger. But this recipe is amazing all on its own.

More Homemade Jam Recipes to Try Next:

• Old-Fashioned No Pectin Raspberry Jam Recipe
• The Best Blackberry Jam Recipe (without Pectin)
• Low Sugar Strawberry Jam

If you try this delicious orange marmalade recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section below! Also, I’d love if you could leave me a five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ recipe review on the recipe card below. If you want more recipe inspiration, make sure to follow me on Facebook or Pinterest!