It’s winter in Australia and that means its mandarin season. My farm box from the town co-op has had an abundance of mandarins at the moment – beautiful organic mandarins and guess what, they’re full of pips!
And my husband won’t eat pips. He doesn’t like fiddly or messy food. So what am I to do when I have so many mandarins?
Make jam. I am no stranger to making jam at all, but it’s usually strawberry or plum. At first I wasn’t even aware you could make mandarin jam, but you absolutely can and I love it.
I’m still tinkering with the amount of pectin. The first batch I made was stiffer than I like, but still spreadable. Though it spread much easier when it was sitting on the bench for a few minutes. The second time I made it, I put less pectin but then it was runnier. Not syrup, but more syrupy than stiff.
I also found that I like to taste the lemon and it does help cut the sweetness. In both instances I added much less sugar than recipes would state, but the lemon is also a balancing act.
So per my taste, this recipe is modified from both of these instances and so far has the balance I like for lemon and sugar.
A sweet and citrusy jam, perfect for brioche toast or smothered on some fresh pancakes!
Ingredients
Mandarins 500g
Sugar 350g
Pectin 1/2 tbsp
Juice of lemon 50ml
Directions
- In the bowl of your pressure cooker, place your mandarins with the skin on and cover with water going 1cm above the mandarins
- Set the preset option to pressure 20 and turn it on.
- After 20 minutes is up, let the machine slow release
- Remove the mandarins and place them into a separate bowl to cool
- Retain the water if you want to turn the mandarin skins into sugared candied skins but move it out of the bowl as you'll need to use it for the jam
- When mandarins are cooler, unpeel and break wedges apart.
- In a mini chopper or food processor, add the mandarin wedges and pulse/blend to your desired consistency. Remove the pips.
- Once this is done, put the pulped mandarin back into the bowl, adding sugar, pectin and lemon. Stir to combine and leave this to sit for 45-60 mins
- After this time, return to the pressure cooker and put the lid back on. Select the STEW option on the machine and leave the vent to VENT. (This is using a Philips Multicooker - your setting may be different on your machine)
- After an hour, your machine will beep that the jam making is complete and you will open it up to a lovely orange, citrusy scent that goes through your whole kitchen.
- Place into a glass jar that has been sterilised and close shut. Mine always seal well on their own and I put them into the fridge straight away. They also last in excess of a month once opened.
Notes
- I used a pressure cooker but this recipe can be replicated on the stove
BONUS RECIPE
Candied Mandarin Skins
Candied citrus skins are brilliant for several different desserts. You can eat them on their own, add them to granola or even mix them through ice-cream! This recipe is an excellent use of something that normally gets thrown away.
Ingredients
Mandarin skins
Water
Sugar (see notes)
Directions
- Pat the mandarin skin with a paper towel to dry and remove some of the external liquid
- Slice skins thinly to your desired thickness and length
- With the water used in the above recipe, pour enough to cover the skins and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 mins and strain.
- Repeat this step two more times - bring to the boil, simmer for 5, and strain - Continue using the water from the above but you can refill with regular water if you run out at this stage. On the last boil, leave the peel to simmer for 30 mins.
- Strain the peel and reserve the water. How much sugar you add will depend on the amount of water you have to add to the mixture. e.g. if you have a cup of water, you will add a cup of sugar.
- Return the peel and sugar mixture back to the pot and let it simmer for 30-45 mins until the peel is translucent and soft. Do not stir the mixture or you may end up with a crystallization issue.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Remove the peel using a fork or strainer and place onto a tray with baking paper to dry.
- While waiting for it to dry, preheat your oven to the lowest temp it can go. When ready, place the tray into the oven and leave it in there for 45-60 mins.
- When they reach your desired consistency, remove them from the oven and toss them into granulated sugar. Let them cool completely before adding them to jars.
Notes
- This recipe kicks off after you have already cooked your mandarins in the water. If starting from the beginning, use fresh peeled mandarins with pith and pour boiling water over them to soften.
- Sugar and water should match. If you use 1 cup water, use 1 cup sugar.
3 thoughts on “Mandarin Jam”
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I am soooooooo trying this!!! ❤️