Have you ever made marmalade?
When we moved to the country, I had idyllic visions of making jam, bustling about bottling things with great big pans bubbling away on the Aga.
We’d harvest the plums from the tree in the secret garden, have family outings to go blackberrying, snap up Seville oranges and then come home and cram it into delicious jewel-bright jars.
I duly hoarded jam jars like the worrying subject of a Channel 4 documentary, and insisted on a special trip to Aldi when preserving pans and jam thermometers were on special buy.
Somewhere along the line, life intervened. The shiny new pan has spent a year stuck at the back of the shelf.
But I still had the best of intentions. My grandmother made marmalade. My mother still makes marmalade. I wanted to make marmalade too, even if I did try to gloss over memories of quite how much chopping, straining and swearing was involved.
As the Seville orange season came and went, I resigned myself to another year without attempting home-made marmalade. So when I saw a battered jar of Ma Made on the reduced shelf in the Co-op, I had to buy it.
The list of ingredients was reassuringly short – seville oranges, water, citric acid aka lemon juice and pectin, as a setting agent. My £1 purchase promised 6lbs of home-made marmalade in 30 minutes, just by adding sugar and water. I only had to follow the instructions on the label.
No peeling and chopping of reluctant oranges would be necessary. Hartley’s had done all the hard work for me, and put it in a tin. (Of course, Hartley’s could do even more of the hard work, and put it into jars of marmalade, but don’t knock the dream here).
It took a mere two months for me to buy the sugar, use the sugar for something else, buy more sugar and finally get round to cleaning the jars and actually making the marmalade.
Here’s my report from the marmalade-making coal face.
HOW TO MAKE CHEAT’S MARMALADE
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| Ma Made, sugar, water. That’s it. |
Ingredients
Handy jar of Ma Made
425ml water
1.8kg sugar
er, that’s it.
Cost
£1 for Ma Made, plus 80p for the sugar needed, so £1.80 for 7 jars, making them 26p each.
I reused jars from jam we’d already eaten.
Method
1. Do lengthy calculations to work out how many jars will be needed, based on normal jars of jam containing 454g and the tin of Ma Made promising 6lbs of marmalade. Only realise that normal jars contain roughly 1lb, so that means 6 jars, after resorting to a spreadsheet. Doh.
2. Liberate some of the massed ranks of hoarded jam jars, with a sense of relief that they are finally coming in useful. Demand your children return some of the jars filched for potion making so you can have matching lids.
3. Remember previous attempts at making cranberry conserve, and running out of sterilised jars. Add an extra one for luck.
4. Bung the jars in a hot wash in the dishwasher, lids and all.
5. Retrieve enormous jam pan from the back of the cupboard and give that a wash.
6. Battle with tin opener to opened dented tin of Ma Made. Somehow succeed in getting the contents out.
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| What Ma Made looks like, when you’ve finally got it out of the tin. |
7. Try a tiny bit of Ma Made. Regret tasting a tiny bit of the Ma Made. Realise the recipe requires adding a truckload of sugar because the starting point is very bitter.
8. Add the 425 ml (3/4 pint) of water. There’s even a handy measuring mark on the side of the jar.
9. Add the truckload of sugar. Feel pleased that Morrisons were selling massive 2kg bags for 88p.
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| MaMade + water + a whole lot of sugar |
9. Stir in the sugar, and bring it to the boil.
 MaMade with the sugar mixed in |
10. Wait for the damn stuff to boil.
11. Curse the bit of the instructions that says “stir continously” while bringing to the boil.
12. Decide intermittent stirring will be sufficient.
13. Realise that if you use an elderly Aga, and have just put an enormous pan of cold stuff on top, after already cooking two sets of noodles and two sets of stir fry, the chances of there being enough heat left to bring it to the boil any time soon are approximately nil. Curse the Aga. Pause for short day dream about modern hobs that actually, you know, heat things.
14 Realise the final of the Great British Sewing Bee is about to start. Remove mildly warm marmalade mixture from the hob, cover the pan with a tea towel, and abandon marmalade-making attempts for this evening.
15. Charlotte won! Hurrah.
16. Resume marmalade making attempts the next day. Marvel when the marmalade finally does come up to the boil.
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| Marmalade, boiling. Why couldn’t you do that the night before, eh? |
17. Officially: “Reduce heat, maintain boil for a further 15 mins, stir occasionally”. In practice, attempt to supervise stirring by children briefly keen to help, to avoid super-heated sugar syrup disasters.
18. Note instruction on tin to “Add a knob of butter during boiling to disperse foam”. Realise have run out of butter. Decide to ignore any foam.
19. Get excited about testing for setting for the first time (I don’t get out much). Tin says “Put half a teaspoon of marmalade onto a cold saucer and put in a cool place.”. Assume if it meant the fridge, it would say the fridge, so maybe not that cold. Compromise with putting the saucer on the back stairs, as one of the chilliest places in the house.
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| Setting test, with a few wrinkles in the marmalade if you look really hard. |
20. Officially: “Test after 2 minutes, by drawing a finger over the surface. If it wrinkles, setting point has been reached. If not, reboil for a few minutes. Test again.” Well, I tried the finger business after two minutes, and it seemed a little bit wrinkly, so I kept the marmalade boiling for a few more minutes, then took it off the heat and had another go.
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| Finished marmalade |
21. Fend off child who has returned just as I am retrieving a pan of clean jars from the roasting oven, where they’ve been heating them for 10 minutes to destroy any remaining bugs. Suggest they taste the setting point sample.
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| Washed, heated jars. They’d better be clean now. |
22. Am informed the marmalade would benefit from a touch of lemon juice. By my six-year-old. Sigh.
23. “Leave marmalade to stand for a further 2-3 minutes, before pouring into warmed jars.” The wide mouthed metal funnel I was given years ago came in really handy here, for transferring hot marmalade from an enormous pan into the jars with minimal mess.
24. Feel relief about cleaning an extra jar – the mixture filled 7 jars rather than 6.
25. The instructions reckon that if the peel floats, stir contents of each jar. Am unsure about level of floatage. Stir anyway.
26. Put the lids on. Or parchment or film, whatever you fancy.
27. Search for the small sticky labels suitable for jam jars. Fail to find them. Resort to enormous parcel labels instead.
28. Gaze on your seven jars of marmalade with great pride.
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| Love the glowing orange colour when the sun shines through the marmalade. |
29. Sit in the sunshine eating toast and marmalade, even if you have run out of butter. Lemon juice? Pah. I think it tastes just fine. Paddington would be proud.
Anyone else enjoy making marmalade? From scratch, or with Ma Made? Or is it just too much faff?
Keen on jams and jellies? Check out my post on making cranberry sauce for Christmas.
I make all our marmalade. I often use half a tin of mamade with my recipe for sweet orange marmalade when I've found some bargain oranges. Need to do a few sums for quantities of sugar and water but tastes great. Sweet orange marmalade is a soft set so the mamade helps with that. I cook the oranges in the pressure cooker which makes the chopping easy.
Top tip about combining Ma Made with extra oranges, sugar and water, thanks.
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Just smiled all the way through this, I've been making cheats marmalade for ever but never with as much fun as you had!
At Lakeland you can buy the tins of Lemon ma-made and I've varied this by adding limes too – more fun for you! (look under lemon and lime marmalade in my labels on the blog) Enjoy!
Thanks for the tip. Now I'm nostalgic for Chilvers Lime Marmalade, my Newcastle grandmother's favourite.
I so am a point 12 sort of bloke – made me laugh.
Oh good glad it's not just me.
Nothing wrong with Mamade- and you can vary it by adding the juice and zest of a lemon (to please your 6 year old!), using soft brown sugar instead of some or all of the white sugar to make a more Oxford- type marmalade, add some ginger etc etc (I'd add chopped candied ginger I think. You can add the rest to vanilla ice cream 🙂
I make our marmalade using Nigella's Pink Grapefruit Marmalade recipe from the Domestic Goddess book http://notjustanyoldbaking.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/pink-grapefruit-marmalade.html
It's advantage over many recipes is that you boil the fruit and then slice it, which is SO much easier and quicker than chopping the raw citrus and then cooking it. There are variations (given in the book but not the weblink) for making Seville orange marmalade, but I most often use the basic recipe and use whatever needs using up, most recently a very successful combination of sad looking satsumas, lemons, an elderly lime and a couple of eating oranges.
Great way to use up abandoned citrus fruit, thank you!
Loved your "making" of the Marmalade
Since you didn't do the hot water bath, complicated thing, how long will that last without going bad. How or where do you store these ?
cheers, parsnip and thehamish
Hi Parsnip, I'm not sure exactly how long they'll last, but the WI recommendations seem to include using scrupulously clean jars and screw lids, and putting the lids on before the marmalade cools for a better seal. The high sugar content should help with preserving too. Best guess would be a year or so, if stored in a dark, cool place. I only made 7 jars so suspect they'll be gone long before then…
I wash the jars and lids in a (very hot) dishwasher cycle. Then fill the jars while marmalade still very hot and screw on tops. It lasts indefinitely. Remember, it’s mostly sugar.
P.S. I sometimes add 3 jars of ginger marmalade, stir until it’s melted in. Great taste.
Author
Good option using jars and lids straight from the dishwasher – and ginger marmalade sounds delicious!
It sounds like something I would make if I liked Marmalade! Now if they sold a similar tin which made blackcurrant jam…….
Eloise at thisissixty.blog
I know I am late to the party but here’s how we changed it up a bit. I replace some of the water with scotch whisky. Pretty sure the alcohol boils off but it sure adds a nice mellow flavour to the jar. Now I’m off to make a batch with candied ginger. I think the family will like that.
I live in Canada and am on a constant look out for Mamade. It really hard to find and it’s hit and miss at best so whenever I do find it I buy six to eight tins of the stuff. I love marmalade and over the years have given jars of my ‘homemade’ marmalade as gifts and now have a few regulars for whom I am the supplier. I have only ever found the thin cut, would like to try the thick sometime. Love the idea of adding ginger, I make a rhubarb ginger marmalade that is delish. Enjoyed your post, my kids are grown but so relate to your experience!
Jill, Walmart.ca stocks it!
Bought mine at amazon.ca Trying tomorrow for the first time !! Next time I’ll definitely try some of your suggestions.
Try slicing up the skin of a Grapefruit and add it to the pan. Grapefruit adds to the lovely lumps! And you get lots of it! It doesn’t turn it into Grapefuit Marmalade! I do like chunks in Marmalade – and this fixes that!
Michael
Can I use a jam thermometer to check for setting point as I’m not very successful using the finger method. Also can I make two tins at the same time (making for school fete?) thank you
Hi Janetta – Thanks for commenting.
A jam thermometer sounds like a brilliant idea. I didn’t have one when I did this batch of marmalade. Think it needs to be 104.5 degrees C for setting point, but you probably know better than I do!
Suspect doing two tins at once would be absolutely fine, although I haven’t tried it. Good luck with the school fete!
I laughed so much at your commentary of the entire process! thanks!! 🙂
Loved reading your post which I stumbled upon after purchasing some Ma Made from Amazon in hopes of whipping up a batch in time for Christmas (4 days away). Like your 6 year old, my fear is it will be too sweet so I’ll take the lemon suggestion. Thanks for sharing your experience & your humorist talents!
Merry Christmas,
Patty in Marietta GA
Author
Hi Patty – So glad you liked the post! Good luck with your MaMade, hope it tastes delicious. I’ve just been making cranberry sauce for Christmas, with the whole dishwasher/jar heating rigmarole all over again.
Hello
Even later to the party!
I’ve been using MaMade for 30+ years and have honed my technique.
For 1 tin, use 700 grms white and 200 grms moist brown + as much finely chopped crystalized ginger as I can be bothered to do! NO water, (as it only has to be boiled off to set) And there’s ‘gelling agent in it now- whatever that is!!
It doesn’t need a huge pan either, I stir it all to mix then LEAVE it overnight – or a bit longer, bring to the boil turn down the heat, stir – occasionally! Give it 15-20 mins. Then pot up, I warm my jars on a rack over the pan, this stops the glass cracking from the heat!
I’ve never had scum and couldn’t use butter because my dairy intolerant grandson – who loves it wouldn’t be able to eat it! Enjoy.
Fascinating about not adding water as it just has to be boiled off. I must be brave and give it a try. Thanks so much for sharing all your MaMade experience.
I have used mamade for many years and I have have added crystallized and stem ginger to the mix , put in less sugar , with the jars of stem I used all the syrup and about 1lb. Less sugar,sets ok and is delicious good luck
I use 1/2 lb less sugar, boil for 30 minutes and add 2 tablespoons of brown rum for extra bite. Much better than shop bought and not too sweet.
Hi, can this be processed and made shelf stable?
My Mother made two batches at a time for all fund raiser at the church have continued to make myself mainly for family and friends still make two batches which gives me 15 to 16 jars
my sister takes at least 10 for choir so she refunds cost of ingredents.
Just about to make some marmalade, so enjoyed your blog! I have taken on board some of the other ideas and will be using a little less sugar and mixing that with brown in the hopes of a more bitter finish.
Can I use powdered pectin and less sugar
Author
Hi Grace – If you use MaMade, there’s no need to add powdered pectin. Think with most jams and marmalades you can cut the quantities of sugar if you prefer it to be less sweet. Certainly, I’ve just made some clementine marmalade where I reduced the sugar content as I didn’t want it to be super sweet. Recommend tasting part way through, so you can always add extra sugar if you think it needs it. Just make sure if you do take out a teaspoon to taste that you stick it on a saucer in the fridge for a couple of minutes, so it cools down first. Good luck!
I have had a tin of Ma Made for months sat in the cupboard, am going to attempt making it today and add Whiskey for Xmas gifts 🙂
Made this today, 300ml of water and 125ml Whiskey, fan tas tic
Author
Woo hoo! Glad your whiskey marmalade went so well, sounds like a fab Christmas present. Hope you get to keep some for yourself!
Where do I buy the Mamade @ £1per tin? The cheapest I can buy it at is £2.20.Thank you.
Author
Hi Jill – sorry, my £1 Ma Made was a battered tin on the reduced shelf, as mentioned in the post, and I’ve never found it that cheap again either. I check mysupermarket.co.uk to see where it is selling for the lowest price.
Any idea whether this would work in a slow cooker / crockpot? Maybe dispense with the water? I’m guessing, though – haven’t tried it yet… so much easier for rheumatic wrists, if minimal stirring. Loved the blog!
Veronica
Author
Hi Veronica – I’m sure it would work in a slow cooker, I just haven’t tried it, and I’m a bit hit and miss about how to alter the quantities of water when switching to slow cooking. Something think adding cornflour to thicken marmalade wouldn’t work as well as when I end up with watery stews! Do let me know if you have a go,
All the best
Faith
Wouldn’t work in a slow cooker as it requires a rapid boil to produce evaporation and concentration of the contents for it too set. Checking with a thermometer is a good starting measure for the setting point (104.5C) but nothing to beat the wrinkle test. Put a couple of saucers in the freezer, add a tsp of marmalade, put in the fridge and leave for a couple of minutes. I usually make Seville orange marmalade from scratch and use MaMade as a back up if I run out. I too reduce the amount of sugar and a double of scotch (for my lowflier (famous grouse version) brandy (for the Emporer) or dark rum (for Yo ho ho!) added just prior to bottling. No alcohol as it boils off in a flash, just an enhanced flavour. Really enjoyed your story and the various comments and suggestions.
I agree £1 per tin was in 2016. Now, 2022 I have not found any less than £2.20. If you find it cheaper in the UK please leet me know.
a hello Karina (my wife is Corina) Try Tesco for Ma Made. Spell it like that otherwise the response from them is “Do you mean Marmalade” ! Michael. G.
Thanks for the instructions. I have been making Seville marmalade for over fifty years. This year oranges were not available but my daughter saw these cans and bought me two. I am very nervous about the amount of sugar it tells you to put in. I hope it isn’t too sweet. I will experiment with the second can.
Hello, by your photograph you made 7 three quarters full jars it would have been six jars. How much did it cost for all the jars that once had some sort of preserve that you had purchased. I purchase 1lb jars with lids locally at approx £22.00 for 56 give the produce to friends with the proviso jar and lid are returned, mind you still have just ordered fourth lot of 56 jars. Helps when purchasing ingredients for recipe output rather than different sizes. Box is nice. Just have not been able to get Thick Cut so do not mind doing all the work in January making 15 jars of thick cut real Marmalade.
I recently made a batch, but to the Mamade mixture added two grapefruit (peel washed and chopped, interior blitzed) and a little extra sugar. It’s not set perfectly, but it has a really tangy and more complex flavour. I’m wondering about adding some ginger on a future occasion.
Author
Glad it tasted so good with the grapefruit added, and ginger sounds a delicious addition too. Thanks for commenting!
Soooo funny, good on you. I cheat as well and I’m never sure when it’s set enough so my results range from rather runny to near concrete! I have had a lot of successes though.
Just some ideas after enjoying your story so much. I was super lucky and saw Mamade at 49p a can stacked up in Aldi last year (reduced from 69p I think!). I had to explain tot the cashier what it was. Needless to say. I bought quite a lot of cans.
I’ve been making jams and all sorts of preserves since I was a little girl with my grandparents and then as a family, and am now the family custodian of a preserving book put out by the Ministry of Food from the 1950s which explains all sorts of things. We still check in with about quantities and hedgerow finds.
You can easily reduce the quantity of sugar down – I ususally use a kilo for the can and also skip the majority of the water. Makes 5 (ish) full jars.
I also make one batch without the shred – I strain it in a colander and then tie the shred in a muslin bag and cook away – just lifting the bag out before filling the jars. My husband is very pleased as he really only likes shredless! I keep the shred if I am making another batch or something else citrussy marmaladey. You can also dredge the peel in caster sugar and dry it out in the oven for crisp little candied shreds.
I was taught that preserves always keep best if you fill the hot jars to the top (just under the rim) and seal with wax discs as it stops the air getting in. I also immediately screw down the lids or use the cellophanes circles with elastic bands straight away. At the moment we are eating grape and apple jelly from 2016 and plum from 2017 from the back of the store cupboard.
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Love, love your honest writing of the events. I too come from a family where my grandmother and mother made pots and pots of jam and marmalade. I too had great plans of doing the same thing, but somehow life took over. My mother would buy Seville oranges and start from scratch, but also would be the occasional tin of Ma Made when the oranges were out of season. Sadly she very unexpectedly passed away last year and my father is now buying supermarket marmalade for his breakfast. He recently handed me a bag of jars that my mother been keeping for her next batch of marmalade and as we are in the 2nd lockdown, I thought I would give it a try. I was looking for comments about Ma Made, and was thrilled to read what you had written. I will definitely give it a go. Thank you for the push I needed to do this
Author
Thank you very much for commenting. I am so sorry for your loss.
I hope you do have a go at making marmalade – it will be fun, promise!
I am sorry about the loss of your mum. My mum passed away a year ago and this year I used the last jar of her marmalade. She used Ma Made for the last 15 years or so and made marmalade for us until she was almost 90! I made it for the first time about a month ago, gave away several jars and ate the rest already! I am making some for gifts and for my own stash. Strangely, I love the combination of peanut butter and marmalade together on toast! I really wished I could have made it with her but my first batch turned out just fine. I did use less sugar than was called for, used orange juice in place of water, and added lemon juice. I’ve been tempted to add whiskey to some but hate to part with my good Scotch! I hope your batch turned out well. This blog is one of the best I’ve read on making it. It really made me smile! I will probably do a hot water bath for the next jars for safety sake but my mum just used wax seals and it was always fine. Since I plan to give them away, I am being overly cautious.
My husband insists on making Mamade. I don’t even like the stuff. I’m more of a Marmite girl myself. As a special Christmas gift for friends has is adding a drop of whisky to each jar. Lucky friends??,!
Has anyone eaten Oxford marmalade? I would like my mamade /marmalade to turn out like that. Suggestions? Whisky and brown sugar as substitute?
Thank you for the detailed instructions. I finally scored a tin of Mamade at my local grocer’s in a small city on central Vancouver Island, (British Columbia, Canada). Walmart sometimes has it but they’ve been sold out online for ages. I used my thermometer to check the temperature for setting point — many websites suggest 105C–and then did the plate test. It set really well. I ended up with 4 x 250ml jars and 10 x 125ml jars. I did use a water bath canner–websites suggest 10 minutes at boil. All the jars sealed.
It tastes yummy!
Why make this simple, cheap and brilliant method seem so hard? I understand it is an attempt at wit but I thought your aim was to try to encourage cheap and easy ways for people who were not confident or au fait with such tasks. I’m an arthritic 64; have an old Aga and make it bi annually in 40 minutes including filling jars. It’s brilliant and my friends and family have grown to expect a jar each Christmas. A boyfriend was so inspired he made it for his 96 year old mother – he is not very domesticated – she now makes it herself.
Note: if using an Aga make it earlier in the day before cooking other stuff – or late – and use a heavy bottom pan. Faster for induction heating. Heat jars in the simmering oven with an inch of water in each jar – do this whilst brewing the marmalade. Remove when marmalade is done. Empty water from jar and fill. Using a dishwasher is expensive. Alternatively boil a kettle and put an inch of water in each jar; leave to stand.
Author
Hi Suzannah,
Glad you’ve had such success with MaMade, and thanks so much for the top tips about sterilising jars and using an Aga.
I’ve been making the Mamade version for years now but I dont understand where this lady can say it’s only £1 for the mamade. It costs a minimum of £2.26 plus the sugar and cooking time. Still extremely viable and I wouldn’t buy prepared marmalade ever again. The Lakeland lemon version is dearer but also nice and you can mix them for a ‘Clementine’ version. All good.
Author
Hi Isobel,
Glad you’ve had so much success with Mamade. Mixing with the lemon version does sound delicious.
My tin of Mamade only cost £1 because it was a dented tin on the reduced shelf, as mentioned at the start of the post.
Do appreciate that normally it costs more, and as you say, also need to factor in the cost of sugar and energy for cooking.
This was excellent. Normal instructions not in the fantasy world, funny and instructive. I will try.
Does anyone have experience with using stevia?
My wife has been making ma made for years.
Instead of disgading the left over peel after eating an orange, she freezes the peel until she makes the marmalade. Having defrosted the peel she cuts it into thick worm like slices then adds the peel of about six previously peeled and eaten large oranges at the start of cooking. All the family fight over the worms, also it makes an extra jar for no extra cost.
You might also like to try orange jelly with segments of large oranges mixed in it.
Most people find it a very interesting dessert. this will also give you some left over skins ready for freezing or immediate use in your mamade.
When preparing oranges for inserting in with jelly cut the top and bottom off, then place on chopping board and starting from the top cut off peel including pith in a half circle cut down to the board. This will remove a slice about one inch wide, repeat all the way around the orange. Then hold orange in the palm of your hand with an edge facing upwards, with a large sharp knife cut down the side of a segment skin, say on the right side, and in one motion, twist the knife forward and to the right side, to cut up the other side of the segment skin. Repeat for each segment. The knife should slide across the segment skin. If you find this difficult then just cut down each side of skin to get your segments without their skins.
If we haven’t got any frozen orange peel she will peel about six oranges and wrap the naked oranges in cling film and keep in the fridge for eating later.
Always make my own with MaMade. Very concerned that it is not in stock at our Montrose Tesco’s at the moment!! Add in two squares of dark choc and a wee splash of whisky for a change, or use 4oz soft brown sugar as part of the full sugar amount , and put in some chopped or powdered ginger… a little or more depending on your own preference!!
I’ve made marmalade of various types for many years using Mamade or Lakeland concentrates for charity. I always make 2tins together…makes 15 jars depending on the size.
10 mins before mixture is ready I place jars/lids in circular halogen cooker for 10 mins on 150° to sterilise…fill whilst hot. Always use was discs and quickly screw down lids.
I use dinner-size (33cms) paper napkins with or design…×1 napkin makes x 4 lid covers…these are held secure with elastic bands… raffia or ribbon to decorate
Hi Faith – such a hilarious post! I laughed out loud several times and totally understand your long-endured sufferings. I came online to check the instructions since the one on the can is hard to read with all those undulating lines in the can. It looks far too easy but tomorrow is Marmalade Day !! Thanks so much for your tips.
I usually add the juice and finely grated rind of a lemon when making up Made.
The reason you used an extra jar is because you didn’t fill the jars to the top. Fill to the top of the jar then put you lid on. The jam or marmalade will drop down the jar slightly as it cools.
Apart from that one little quibble, you did well!
Loved your humorous post having made vats of marmalade for our B&B breakfasts. Now retired, I can confess to having used Mamade as a base with various, often alcohol-based, additives. Struggling to find a diabetic marmalade for hubby, I now make Mamade with half quantity of sugar but use jam sugar with added pectin. Sets fine & tastes fine even though Hartleys say it won’t set without the industrial quantities of sugar specified on the tin. Somehow the added whisky doesn’t always make it to the marmalade pan…..
Hi Faith, I came across your funny post while googling to see if I could make Ma Made in a slow cooker. I didn’t get an answer but have now made my marmalade in a preserving pan. Really enjoyed reading all the comments from other people.
Thanks for making me giggle on a gloomy November day.
I think that you are a bit hard on MaMade.
You are getting freshly prepared Seville orange; not the nouveau junk. This is tinned at source.
I’ve done this 3 times, the first was fine, the second was a little loose but no problem but the third is very loose, won’t stay on my toast, recommendations please, do I just live with it or can I re cook it?
Author
Hi Islay – I feel your pain. I still have vivid memories of when my mother made strawberry jam so runny it slipped off our toast.
I believe that if marmalade is very loose, it’s because it hasn’t been cooked for long enough or at a hot enough temperature, so too much water remains. You could indeed recook it and allow it to boil for longer, just remember to wash and sterilize your jars all over again too.
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Gosh, I haven’t seen Mamade for years; good to know it’s still around.
My top tip is to get a thermometer. Setting temperature is just below 105 degrees, so it’s foolproof, and takes all the anxiety out of it. You also discover that the temperature stays at 100 until you have boiled off all the water, and only then starts to rise. So the more water, the longer the boil..
I stayed in a BnB in England once and they 10 various types of marmalade switching water with prosecco.ginger ale.lemonade.in fact any liquid to give a different flavour.
I dont think they would switch all the water for whisky but just a small amout same for vodka gin etc.
Ive never tried it..
Yes, Tesco has tins of Ma Made (even in 2024!). Michael G.
aI usually add sliced peel of a Grapefruit to my Ma Made. I use ex-Marmalade or Pickled whotsit 2lb. Jars.
Again, I use the Dishwasher to wash the 2lb. Jars AND Lids. So whether they had Jam or even Pickled Onions in makes no difference – and their labels usually come off in the dishwasher. Michael.G
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