Orange marmalade

Jams and marmalade are my favorites. And summer are best for preserves and canning..It was my first attempt and was very happy with the results. The only thing you need to be careful while making marmalade and jams is its consistency. Many of us make mistake with it and atlast it remains no spreadable. I have mentioned below in the recipe to test its spreadable consistency so as to avoid any mistakes. Please have a look. 

Ingredients:

12 oranges
2 lemons
4 1/4 cup water
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 cup good quality caster sugar

Recipe:

Properly wash all the oranges and lemon. Half all of them in two. Squeeze the juice from all (Make sure seeds, pulp and piths do not get mix with the juice, if it gets mixed, strain it).

In a large vessel, pour water and mix juice of oranges and lemon with a tsp of salt. Now finely slice the Orange skin ( a very thin slices of 6 oranges) and add the same in juice mixture.

Remove the remaining pulp and piths from inside of the squeezed oranges, with the help of the spoon. Tie it in a muslin cloth. (See the picture below)

Gather the sides of the muslin cloth (with pulps and piths inside) and tightly tie it with a cotton thread. 

Place the tied cloth bag in the vessel having juice mixture. (let the bag float in juice mixture).

Pour all the mixture in deep heavy vessel pan and let the mixture come to boil. Once it boils, turn the flame to

medium low and cook further for about 45 minutes, until fruit inside (sliced Zest) is very soft.

Squeeze the juice from the cloth bag inside as much as possible. The Extract in the pulp has lot of pectin (take a help of a colander here and squeeze all the juice out of it). 

Discard the remaining.

                                       

 Once the cloth bag is removed. Cook the mixture more for one hour. (U'll notice the qty will reduce)

In between you 'll be doing two things: 1) Sterilize the jar in hot water in which you'll be storing a marmalade. And
2) Place a 2 small empty plates in a freezer.

Add the sugar in the pan, turn the flame on low. Cook Gently so that the sugar inside, dissolves. Stir in between.

Now turn the flame to medium-high and let the mixture come to boil. (Do not stir while marmalade coming to boil).
Once you see the mixture starts boiling with large bubbles, turn the flame to medium-low and let the mixture cook for about 15-20 minutes more. (Here you have to be very particular with the correct consistency)
To test the consistency, remove those plate from the freezer and spoon a little mixture on it, let it stand for a minute and check the marmalade consistency. It should be not be runny. but a little stiff , almost like marmalade or jam like consistency. (If it is still runny, cook the mixture little more and check again following the same process).
Once you get the correct consistency, turn the flame off and allow the mixture to stand for few minutes (about 15 min) and later transfer it in sterilized jar. Cover the jar and let it cool completely at room temperature.
This Ready home made marmalade stays good up to a year. (You can label it to remember the dates).
And here you are ready to Enjoy it with a buttered toast...:)