“One winter when I was doing some canning, I had some extra mandarins and decided to try this. I liked the idea of a citrus ‘jam” instead of marmalade which tends to be a bit bitter. This jam is not bitter, but it is a bit sour and less sweet than most jams, which can be nice sometimes.” – April Ferre
Mandarin Jam
Ingredients
- 3 Pounds Mandarin Oranges
- 1 Lemon
- 1 to 2 Cups Sugar
- 1 1.75-Ounce Package Sure-Jell No Sugar Needed Pectin
Instructions
- Peel mandarins. With a sharp paring knife, remove as much of the white pith from around the mandarins as possible. This will reduce the bitterness of the jam.
- Separate the mandarins into segments, removing any more white pith. There is no need to remove the membranes separating the segments. Also remove any seeds that may be present.
- Chop mandarin slices into small pieces. Measure the prepared mandarins; add additional mandarins, tangerine juice or orange juice to make 4 cups.
- In a large Tupperware container, add the 4 cups of mandarins/mandarin juice, the zest and juice of 1 lemon and sugar. Adjust the sugar to your liking.
- Place in the refrigerate and let set (macerate) at least overnight or up to several days. Stir mixture twice a day until canning day.
- The night before canning day, place several small plates in the freezer to test you jam set.
- Transfer mandarin mixture to a large Dutch oven. Using an immersion blender, briefly pulse mandarins to give them a rough chop, but do not puree.
- Add pectin to the fruit and stir until dissolved. Place mixture over high heat, bringing it to a full rolling boil and stirring frequently. A full rolling boil is one which can not be stirred down. Boil for 1 minute and then remove from heat.
- Place a small dollop of jam on one of your frozen plates and place in the freezer for 1 to 2 minutes to check your jam set.
- Continue cooking jam as needed if jam has not set. No not over cook or you will deactivate the pectin and the jam will not set.
- Pour jam into hot, sterilized jars leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Makes 4 to 5 half-pints.
2022 Adapted Recipe – April Ferre – Adapted from Getty Stewart
