All my extended family love Seville orange marmalade, so each year I make a batch to give away as Christmas Pressies.
The season for Seville oranges is really short. The fruit appears in the supermarkets sometime in December or early January, and finishes in February, making it touch and go whether you’ll even find it in the shops before Christmas.
My solution is making my easy orange marmalade recipe using frozen fruit. I am sure that there are people who will be horrified at the thought of marmalade made with frozen fruit, but for me, it is the perfect solution.
Can you really freeze oranges?
Not only can you freeze Seville oranges, there’s several very good reasons why you should.
Firstly, the fruit is frozen in optimum condition rather than sitting in the fridge for weeks waiting for a moment of domestic goddess inspiration to strike.
Secondly, however green and ugly looking the fruit is when it goes into the freezer, it always comes out the most beautiful, even orange colour. Seville oranges need a cold snap to ripen fully, which is why they are available during the Christmas period.
And finally, it allows you to take advantage of any price reductions you might spot while doing the weekly shop.
The method I always use for making my orange marmalade involves cooking the fruit whole (Mary Berry’s recipe from ‘The Aga Book’), and so I simply throw the frozen Seville oranges straight in the pan.
Please note this easy marmalade recipe works equally well with both fresh and frozen Seville oranges.
How to Make Amazing Seville Orange Marmalade with Frozen Fruit
- 1kg Seville Oranges fresh or frozen weight.
- 1 Lemon.
- 2kg White Sugar.
- 1350mls Water.
Place the Seville oranges and the juice of the lemon in a large pan and cover with the water, using a plate to keep the oranges submerged.
Bring to the boil, and put a lid on the pan. At this point I transfer the pan to the simmering oven of my Aga which runs at about 130 C (depending what mood it is in). You can also make this orange marmalade recipe in a conventional oven, on a hob or in a slow cooker.
Leave to poach until tender (about 2 hours). The convenience of cutting up the softened fruit in the next step makes this initial cooking time well worth the wait.
Once the oranges are tender, remove from the pan and drain, reserving the liquid.
When the fruit is cool enough to handle, cut each orange in half and scoop out all the seeds and pith.
Place all the insides you have scooped out back into the pan with the reserved liquid and boil for 6 mins, uncovered.
Strain this liquid through a sieve, using a spoon to push the pulp through. The pulp contains the Pectin which will give your marmalade a good set, so it is important to push as much as you can through (see photo above).
Cut up the peel of the cooked Seville oranges as thick or thin as you like.
Return it to the pan with the pulpy liquid and sugar. Stir over a gentle heat until the sugar dissolves, then boil rapidly for about 20 mins until setting point is reached (105C on a preserving thermometer).
If you don’t have a thermometer, spoon a little marmalade onto a saucer that has chilled in the freezer. Leave for 30 seconds, then push with your finger. If the marmalade wrinkles and doesn’t flood to fill the gap, it is ready.
Take the marmalade off the heat, and leave it to sit for 10 mins. This gives the marmalade a chance to start to thicken, preventing the rind floating to the top when you pour it into your jars.
Pour into clean, dry, hot jars that have been sterilised in a warm oven. I use clean, screw on lids for my preserves rather than waxed discs. This recipe makes 8 x 250ml jars of delicious Seville orange marmalade.
Stored in a cool dark place, Seville orange marmalade should keep well for at least a year.
Homemade Orange Marmalade is a truly wonderful thing, and despite the seemingly long cooking time this is the easiest and tastiest marmalade recipe I have tried.
If you want to enjoy the taste of Seville Oranges in a glass try our Mouth-watering Seville Orange Gin. And if you are looking for more preserves inspiration why not check out our Rose Hip and Crab Apple Jelly and Pear Piccalilli recipes.
I have linked up this recipe at the fabulous Weekend Potluck.
82 comments
Just made it with the frozen fruit and it is absolutel distaster. I am left with a pan full of milky looking liquid with lots of peel which is burnt. I followed exactly and didnt leave it alone at all . It did concern me when I added the sugar and there was barely any liquid just the pulp . What could i have done wrong please.
Oh no, sorry to hear that Lynette. Did you remember to add the reserved liquid back to the pulp after you passed it through the sieve? that the only thing I can think of from how you’ve described it :(
Hi there – I’m intending to make your marmalade but only have preserving sugar … will that be ok or will it end up too thick
Preserving sugar will work fine Jan, but personally I wouldn’t use jam sugar with the added pectin. Hope you love your marmalade :)
Hi Sarah,
I’ve just finished making marmalade with frozen seville oranges and thought I had followed your instructions to the letter. Unfortunately the finished product is very dark and has stuck to the bottom of the pan. I did get 3x 500ml jars +1 X 250ml so quantity is more or less what you suggested. Your thoughts on why it stuck to pan would be appreciated as I still have 2kg of oranges in the freezer.
Hi Anna It sounds as though you cooked it for a little longer than you needed to if it’s very dark and sticking to the pan. I suspect it’ll be quite thick when you use it (I’m sure it’ll still be fine though). It is usually still quite runny when you jar it and then sets as it cools down.
Just tried this, and all seems well, though haven’t yet eaten any! I did wonder how much liquid is left after softening the oranges for a couple of hours. Inevitably you lose some, and I do seem to have more peel than when I do my conventional way in January, but we do like it quite thick anyway. Should there be a specific amount?
Hi Stella, I’ve never actually measured how much liquid I am left with after softening the oranges. I imagine that all that will happen if you have lost a bit of the water through steam is that the marmalade may reach setting point a bit quicker when you boil it up. Let me know how it turns out :)
Great news that I can freeze Seville oranges. I’ve been looking into the business of making marmalade ( I’m a first timer) and when I look at the USA sites they are adamant about the need to process all preserved food via pressure canning or a water bath for acidic foods. The information on Botulism is deeply scary. I think of all the wonderful jams and marmalades I’ve bought from markets and W.I. Sites and can’t imagine that has happened. Apparently the USA preservers are shocked and horrified that we do not do this. (There’s some great info on the US Dept for agriculture site with very full instructions. One does require equipment that I don’t have). So can I ask what you know about this very clear difference in the preservation of foods. Are the people of the US being ultra careful or are British people cavalier about the possibility of poisoning themselves and others? I do ask this in all seriousness as it feels like such a fundamental difference in food standards.
Hi Sue I spend a lot of time on US blogs and am infact in a US based canning group on facebook so, like you, are aware that we do things very differently over here. My take on it is that it’s down to the difference in product that we make. What we know as jam, chutneys and pickles here in the UK all either contain a large quantity of sugar or vinegar and I think thats why we get away just using sterilised jars. (Our style of jams and chutneys aren’t particularly popular in the US and I think marmalade is a particularly British concoction) If I make something like a cordial or a ketchup I only expect it to have a 2-3 month shelf life in the fridge so if I wanted to keep it longer I would have to waterbath it. In the US they have an amazing history of canning just about anything including meat, dairy and products that are in brine so I think it makes sense that these need additional treatment.
Good luck with your marmalade. Like you say, lots of people make it the UK way and have surivived to tell the tale :)
Hi there. Have had a kilo of frozen Sevilles in freezer for two years and saw this! So now half way through and such an easy method! But we are trying to cut back on sugar and two kilos to one of oranges seems a lot! Have you tried with less? Have made a lower sugar marmalade before but can’t find recipe! Many thanks!
I haven’t tried a low sugar version Kate but I know that people do make them. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you do cut the sugar back :)
Help! Made this last year. The peel was so tough after cooking in the slow cooker.
Still have some oranges in the freezer. Could not face making more inedible marmalade. Before I throw them away, can you advise?
Hi Dawn, I can only suggest that you poach the oranges for longer – Mine are really quite soft when I cut them up. Did you use fresh oranges last time? If you did you might find the frozen soften a little better as freezing does effect the cell walls of fruit.
Hi Sarah
I’m going to make this but in a slow cooker – any idea how long I would need to simmer them for in the slow cooker.
Many thanks
Sarah
Hi Sarah. I’d start with the 2 hours that I use in the aga and then check. Enjoy your marmalade :)
Absolutely fabulous…………I have made marmalade in January for years and usually finish it in July/August but it went on until this month this year. So bought frozen ones from Windmill Hill Farm and your recipe . So easy and a great product; as good as any I have ever made. I am very pleased; now I can make it all year round and not have that dreadful jelly (I’ve tried them all ) from supermarkets
Many thanks
Donald
So pleased you liked it Donald, and thanks so much for letting me know that Windmill Hill sell frozen Seville oranges – that’s very handy to know!
Hi, could I do the same with just normal oranges? I had a surplus of grapefruit recently so sliced them as usual and then froze them. I used some the other day and made my standard recipe and they worked very well.
As long as the fruit hasn’t been treated with any chemicals or the skin waxed then I don’t see why not :)
Hi.
I am in the process of trying yoir recipe for the first time.
I have loads of oranges frozen after last December’s Christingle service at church.
My house currently smells AMAZING as the oranges simmer away for a few hours.
The end result will be sold to raise funds for the church’s various community projects.
I am so glad I stumbled across this recipe as until then I had no idea if it was even possible to use frozen fruit.
Thank you.
I will update once the marmalade is finished!
Sorry for the late reply Stuart, I hope your were pleased with your marmalade and how lovely to use it to benefit the community :)
Hi,
I am an avid marmalade maker and love my product to have as much peel as possible.
We have 2 lemon trees so have access to untreated lemons all year round and freeze the unused rind for inclusion in my marmalade.
As Christmas approaches the easy peelers come on the market and I freeze the peel from these for the marmalade also.
I am concerned about the post harvest chemicals i.e. Imazalil and Pyrimethanil and the wax used getting into the marmalade.
I generally do not buy organic fruit and do not know if even these have the chemicals on them.
Have you any ideas about the risks as I make and consume a lot of marmalade in a year.
I use the big olive and pickled onion jars and one of these will last me a week or two if I’m careful.
Thank you,
Stephen Harwood
Hi Stephen what an interesting question. I’m afraid I’m not really knowledgeable enough to answer though. I believe here in the UK shops have to label if their fruit has been treated with one of the permitted pesticides and also in the case of oranges (but not all citrus fruit) label the peel as inedible if any chemicals have been used on them. I’m guessing you aren’t in the UK if you have lemon trees to harvest from so all I can do is suggest reaching out to the shop you buy your fruit from and ask them. As I understand it if you do buy organic fruit that wont have been treated with anything and that is what I personally go for marmalade making. Hope you manage to get some answers! Best wishes :)
Just used your frozen fruit recipe to use up some stores. I had a surfeit of lemons and clementines round about Christmas 2017!!! Decided I really should do something with them when I came across them in the back of the freezer where they have been hiding all this time…..
I had marked the weight of them but blitzed them in the food processor to make them easier to store and rinsed out the fp bowl with a measured quantity of water, mixed in with the pulp.
With the addition of more water, simmered until softish then sugar added, dissolved and then boiled rapidly to set point, I now have 8 jars of delicious “Clemon” marmalade, really fruity and not too sweet.
Don’t think it’s going to last very long…….
Thanks for the recipe posting
Clemon marmalade sounds amazing Jude, it wouldn’t last long in our house either! I’m so please you found the recipe helpful :)
I am very keen to try your recipe as I have inherited some frozen seville oranges – my problem is that I dont know what their fresh weight was – the bags contain seven oranges and the frozen weight is 850g – is there any rule of thumb that I could apply or are the proportions critical, e.g. I see you have 9 oranges in your photo would I be okay to use 9 too do you think ?
Hi Sam. I don’t think the proportions are critical but I’ve got a couple of kilo boxes in my freezer so just weighed them to check and they still weigh around a kilo frozen so using the frozen weight will be perfect. Hope you enjoy your marmalade :)
Brilliant – thanks Sarah :-)
just made your marmalade. Enjoyed making it, time consuming at least I had all day to make it.Taste strong but good. the only thing is seems too thick :(
Glad you enjoyed making it Ann. Sounds like it reached setting point a little quicker than you expected if it’s very thick
So pleased to come across your article when searching the internet having bought too many Seville oranges, delighted to learn how to freeze and use them later, many thanks.
It’s a trick I’ve been using for a few years now Mrs Fletcher, and I always get compliments on my marmalade :)
i have navel oranges accidentally frozen in my car. gonna try this recipe on them!
Oh do let me know what you think when you’ve made it :)
Hi Sarah, nice post. I wonder if you can tell me the concrete origen of these Sevilles, they seem our Ave Maria Sevilles.
Thank you.
José M. Bautista
Ave Maria Farm, Seville
Hi Jose, they could well be – I buy mine from Waitrose and I see on your website that you supply them. I also found your onion and marmalade chutney recipe on there,which sounds wonderful so I look forward to trying it.x
Dear Sarah:
Millions of Sevilles but when I see some Ave Maria Sevilles, voila, they are! Thanks so much for your information! The new season is on, our Ave Maria Sevilles are now available in Waitrose again.
If you need anything else please tell me.
Have a wonderful end of the year with your family! x
I shall be buying some more very soon! Thanks Jose, and I hope you and your family have a wonderful New Year too x
Thanks so much Sarah! All the best for you and your family for the new year!
José.
Why comment when you have not even made the stuff ?
Frozen Savilles from earlier this year just turned into 8 jars of the best marmalade I have made and probably (no, certainly) the best Saville orange marmalade I have ever tasted.
Have not checked your recipes yet, but would this work with grapefruit equally well ? (i.e. buy, freeze for a few days – and then try and find enough empty jam jars !!)
This method does make an amazing marmalade – reading your comment triggered a toast and marmalade session here! I haven’t tried making it with grapefruit but I would imagine you would get an equally fantastic result with them – please do let me know how it turns out if you do try it.
Hii,
This home made recipe is too good. I’ll definitely gonna try and i must say your method is unique.
Additionally,What else we make that as simple as this recipe?
Regards,
Rose Lindeman
Thanks Rose, it really is a great method – let me know how you get on if you try it!
You make it sound so easy Sarah, even someone who’s a total disaster in the kitchen (like me) wants to try and make some. Thank you
It’s my favourite method for making marmalade, and it is simple to make – let me know if you decide to give it a go Michelle :)
Seems like i gotta try this recipe now :p
Let me know how you get on if you try it :)
Freezing the fruit is excellent advice, and I may buy some oranges now, freeze them and then make the marmalade when I’ve a spare moment.
Another alternative is the tins of marmade concentrate, which make fairly decent marmalade – certainly better than the overly-sweet, shop-bought varieties.
It’s amazing how many things do freeze well, and it is a great way to avoid wastage. I haven’t tried the concentrate, but friends who have say they get good results from it too :)
Aww this looks yummy I’m not a fan of marmalade lol but hubby is so will definitly be making him some, love the gift idea too xx
Thanks, it does go down really well as a gift :)
This looks very good recipe X #twinklytuesday
Thanks, it always works out well, and is the one I find easiest out of the ones I’ve tried :)
It looks great – and what a great gift to receive. I don’t think you can beat marmalade on toast, thanks for linking to #PoCoLo :)
Marmalade on toast with a nice cup of tea cant be beaten in my opinion – everyone I gave it to at Christmas has phoned to tell me they finished it and that they’ll return the jar so I’ve got them for the next batch, so it definitely goes down well!
That sounds like they’re after a refil! :) x
Haha it does doesn’t it!
Oh that does look yummy! I’m not sure I’d have the patience to do it myself but I’d happily eat it! ;)
Thanks for sharing with #PoCoLo
Thanks Morgan, it takes a bit of time to make but is a nice way to spend an hour or two :)
I have never made marmalade but did manage jam for the first time last year. I will definitely have to give it a go, you make it look easy
I find marmalade easier than Jam – it’s much easier to get it to set. Let us know if you do make it!
This looks amazing, I might think about making some for Christmas hampers this year. How long did it take to make? I’m not a marmalade person normally, but I think I would be tempted by this homemade version and the boys would love it.
Thanks so much for linking up to #HowtoSunday :) x
Once you’ve cooked the oranges, I’d say it takes about an hour to make. In the past I’ve cooked the oranges one day and sliced them up. then left in the fridge overnight and finished it off the next, and it worked fine x
I don’t like marmalade but hubby does so I do tend to put some Seville oranges in the freezer if I see them at the market – they are only available here in France for a couple of weeks and often not at a time when I can prepare them. #pocolo
They freeze so well, and like you say the season is so short, and doesn’t always fit in with when you want to make marmalade x
Thiis looks delicious! I love marmalade so may give this a go at some point. I can just imagine the smell. Yum! :) #HowToSundays
It really is such a satisfying thing to make, and home made marmalade always tastes amazing :)
It certainly looks like sunshine in a jar! I love everything about oranges, especially the smell. I’ve never made marmalade before but I will def have a go soon. Sarah #howtosunday
I love oranges too, they always seem so perfect. Let us know if you do make it, once you do you’ll be hooked!
Well I never knew you could freeze whole oranges. I have a tendency to buy whole bags and then end up throwing half away so I’m definitely going to be giving that a try.
This marmalade sounds delicious, I love marmalade but rarely eat it. Seeing this I really want some on some hot buttered toast right now!
It’s a really handy trick, I’ve been doing it for a few years now. Marmalade is lovely, especially on toast. My hubby likes to put it on sausages if he has a cooked breakfast!
Hmmm, marmalade and sausages, I’m not too sure about that one!
Haha, funnily enough he always says I give him a look when he does it, so think I’m with you on that one :)
Sarah, you amaze me! This marmalade is gorgeous! The color is stunning. I had never heard of Seville oranges before, I’m going to have to find out when we have them around here, they sound really special, I really want to try them. I haven’t made jam in a long time, I’m pinning this, these would be really good on some blueberry scones that I made recently!!! Delish!
They are a special really bitter orange for marmalade making Nikki, you wouldn’t want to eat one out the skin. I’m not sure if you grew anything similar over there, these ones are from Spain. I agree it would be fab on blueberry scones – would have to have them with a cup of English tea though – Have you every tried that?
I LOVE marmalade – yours looks stunning. I definitely need to give this a try. #PoCoLo
Thanks Vicky – it really is the loveliest thing to make – makes the house smell amazing and its so satisfying having all the jars lined up once it’s made :)
This looks so yummy! :) #PoCoLo
Thanks Jess, Home made always tastes so good, and it makes a great gift x
I would love to make my own marmalade, yours looks so yummy :)
Thanks for sharing at the weekend blog hop.. Pinning :)
You should give it a go Claire, it take a bit of time, but it really is a satisfying thing to make