Marmalade

Marmalade (from the Portuguese marmelada) is a fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. The well-known version is made from bitter orange. It also has been made from lemons, limes, grapefruits, mandarins, sweet oranges, bergamots, blood oranges, clementines, kumquats, or a combination. Citrus is the most typical choice of fruit for marmalade, though historically the term has often been used for non-citrus preserves.

One popular citrus fruit used in marmalade production is the bitter orange, Citrus aurantium var. aurantium, prized for its high pectin content, which gives a thick consistency to the marmalade. The peel of the orange imparts a bitter taste. Fruits with low pectin have it added to make the marmalade a jelly.

Unlike in jam, a large quantity of water is added to the fruit in marmalade, the extra liquid being set by the pectin content of the fruit.