Marmalade
Template:Short description Template:Good article Template:About Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox food
Marmalade is a sweet, tangy 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, but other citrus fruits such as lemons and limes can also be used. The bitter orange is mostly used in marmalade because of its high pectin content, which gives a thick consistency to its marmalade. In addition, the balance of acid and pectin is needed for consistency. Fruits with low pectin have it added to make the marmalade.
Historically, the term marmalade was often used for non-citrus preserves. Mango, pineapple, apricot, and cocoa beans, have been made into marmalade in those cases. In the 21st century, the term refers mainly to jam made with citrus fruits. White sugar (sucrose) is typically used to sweeten marmalade, but sugar substitutes, such as sucralose, aspartame, or saccharin may be used. Artificial dyes and flavouring agents are added to marmalade to enhance taste, flavour, and appearance.
Originally marmalade was made from quince, and meant quince cheese. Mary Kettilby's 1714 cookery book, A Collection of Above Three Hundred Receipts (pages 78–79) discusses how to make marmalade. Modern marmalade has existed since the 1700s when the Scottish added water to marmalade to make it less solid than before. The Scottish were the people who made marmalade a breakfast item, and soon after the rest of Britain followed.
The word marmalade in the English language comes from French which came from the Portuguese word Template:Lang, starting with the Greek word Template:Lang that means 'sweet apple'.
The preserve has been mentioned in various books and is the fictional character Paddington Bear's favourite food. The 2014 movie Paddington made slight increase in marmalade sales in the United Kingdom.
Origins
Early history
Template:Main In the 1500s, marmalade was made from quince, and was imported to England from Spain and Italy, unlike it is now.<ref name="Wilson-2000">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Reference page The quince jam or quince cheese, was a firm, sticky, sweet reddish hard paste made by slowly cooking quince fruit with sugar, and is still made today.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A Collection of Above Three Hundred Receipts
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The first<ref name="Indie">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Wilson-2000" />Template:Reference page<ref name="Spread">Template:Cite news</ref> printed recipe for orange marmalade, though without the chunks typically used now,<ref name="Indie" /> was in Mary Kettilby's 1714 cookery book,<ref name="Wilson-2000" />Template:Reference page<ref name="Indie" /><ref name="Spread" /> A Collection of Above Three Hundred Receipts (pages 78–79).<ref name="Indie" /><ref name="Spread" /> The book mentions beaten marmalade, with the orange peel and pulp boiled soft and pounded in the paste.<ref name="Wilson-2000" />Template:Reference page
Scottish and British influence
The Scottish are credited with developing marmalade as a spread, with Scottish recipes in the 18th century using more water to produce a less solid preserve than before.<ref name="henry-2012">Template:Cite book</ref>
The Scottish were the people who made marmalade a breakfast item. James Boswell and Samuel Johnson were given it at breakfast while in Scotland in 1773. In the 19th century, the English followed the Scottish and began to eat marmalade in the morning. The American writer Louisa May Alcott visited Britain, and later described "a choice pot of marmalade and a slice of cold ham" to be "essentials of English table comfort".<ref name="Spread"/>
Etymology
Actual
The word marmalade in the English language comes from French Template:Lang which, in turn, came from the Portuguese word Template:Lang.<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary-2020" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> According to José Pedro Machado's Template:Lang, the oldest known document where this Portuguese word is to be found is Gil Vicente's play Comédia de Rubena, written in 1521:
- Template:Lang (Template:Translation)
- Template:Lang (Template:Translation)<ref>Translation: We have so much quince jelly / That my mother will give me some. Maria João Amaral, ed. Gil Vicente, Rubena (Lisbon:Quimera) 1961 (e-book)</ref>
The Portuguese word comes from the Latin Template:Lang or "a sweet apple",<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary-2020" /> in turn from Greek Template:Lang Template:Lang 'sweet apple', from Template:Lang 'honey' + Template:Lang Template:Lang 'apple, round fruit', became Galician-Portuguese Template:Lang 'quince'.<ref name=Scott>Melimelon, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek–English Lexicon, on Perseus Digital Library</ref> The name originated in the 16th century from Middle French Template:Lang and Portuguese, where Template:Lang applied to quince jam.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary-2020">Template:Cite web</ref> The English recipe book of Eliza Cholmondeley, dated from 1677 and held at the Chester Record Office in the Cheshire county archives, has one of the earliest marmalade recipes ("Marmelet of Oranges") which produced a firm, thick dark paste.<ref name="henry-2012" /> The modern definition of marmalade is a jam made from citrus fruits rather than quince.<ref name="Legislative Services Branch-2002">Template:Cite web</ref>
Folk
According to a Scottish legend, the creation of orange marmalade in the Scottish city of Dundee occurred by accident. The legend tells of a ship carrying a cargo of oranges that broke down in the port, resulting in some ingenious locals making marmalade out of the cargo.<ref name="scotsindependent.org">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>C. Anne Wilson, The Book of Marmalade. Constable, London. 1985. Template:ISBN.</ref> Since then, the city has had a long association with marmalade.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, this legend was "decisively disproved by food historians", according to a New York Times report.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A folk etymology asserts that Mary, Queen of Scots ate marmalade as a treatment for seasickness,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and that the name is derived from her maids' whisper of Template:Lang ('Mary is ill'). The word's origin has nothing to do with Mary though.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Creation
Recipe
Common ingredients
Marmalade is made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. It can be made from bitter orange, lemons, limes, grapefruits, mandarins, sweet oranges, bergamots,<ref name="MS">Template:Cite book</ref> blood oranges, clementines, kumquats,<ref name="glatz">Template:Cite news</ref> navel oranges,<ref name="stark-2020">Template:Cite web</ref> citrus taiwanica,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="yang-2025">Template:Cite web</ref> 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.<ref name="MS" /> Marmalade made from citrus taiwanica has earned international awards and has won, eight bronze, eight silver, and three gold medals at the Dalemain World Marmalade Awards in the United Kingdom.<ref name="yang-2025" />
In Britain, marmalade is usually made from the bitter or Seville orange. It is favoured because of its naturally high pectin content, which gives a thick consistency to the marmalade,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> in addition to the fruit also having tart flesh and rough skin.<ref name="Malcolm-2012">Template:Cite book</ref> There is needed a balance between fruit acid and the pectin. Fruits with normally low pectin, like strawberries, cherries, and figs,<ref name="O'Sullivan-1991">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Reference page have it added to make the marmalade a jelly.<ref name="glatz" />
Other ingredients
Marmalade has been made from fruits like mango and pineapple in mixed fruit marmalades.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Apricots are in addition made into marmalade. Mucilage from cocoa beans has also been produced into marmalade. Analyses did not show any significant difference in taste, color, or consistency compared to apricot marmalade.<ref name="Anvoh-2009">Template:Cite journal</ref>
Process
There are generally five steps of the creation of citrus marmalade: washing, peeling, pre-treatment for peel (de-bittering and sugar-dipping), mixing, and boiling.<ref name="maine">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="liu">Template:Cite journal</ref> White sugar has traditionally been used as the main sweetener in marmalades,<ref name="maine" /><ref name="rubio-16">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="rubio-15">Template:Cite journal</ref> although sugar substitutes, such as sucralose and saccharin may be used.<ref name="rubio-16" /><ref name="psu">Template:Cite web</ref> The choice of sugar substitute depends partly on heat stability, texture effect, and aftertaste.<ref name="psu" />
Pectin, spices, or flavouring agents may be added to enhance the marmalade for texture, appearance, aroma, and taste.<ref name="maine" /><ref name="psu" /><ref name="georgia">Template:Cite web</ref>
Serving
Marmalade can be served at room temperature or slightly colder.<ref name="Mims-2022">Template:Cite web</ref> Some bitter orange marmalade can last for up to 6 months after opened,<ref name="Malcolm-2012" /> while some only lasts until 3.<ref name="Mims-2022" /> Marmalade can be served on toast,<ref name="stark-2020" /><ref name="O'Sullivan-1991" />Template:Reference page cookies, biscuits, smoothies, and other bakery products.<ref name=":0" />
Characteristics
Template:Infobox nutritional value Marmalade has a sweet and tangy taste, with a texture similar to jam.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Citrus peel is a main ingredient of marmalade which contains not only numerous functional constituents but also gives the product a different aroma.<ref name="psu" /> However, it also contains a variety of bitter compounds which may affect the flavour of marmalade.<ref name="liu" /><ref name="psu" />
Nutrition
Orange marmalade is 33% water and 66% carbohydrates, with negligible protein and fat content (table). In a reference amount of Template:Cvt, orange marmalade supplies 246 calories of food energy, with low amounts or no micronutrients present.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
There has been a consumer portion wanting healthier marmalade, like lowered calories, in some costumer groups.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite journal</ref>
Commerce
Production companies
James Keiller and his mother, Janet, ran a small sweet and preserves shop in the Seagate area of Dundee.<ref name="scotsindependent.org" /> They then began to produce "Dundee Marmalade". The business prospered, and remains a signature marmalade producer today.<ref>W.M. Matthew, The Keiller Dynasty 1800–1879 narrates the history of Keillers; BBC News "Legacies: Keiller's: Sticky Success": offers an abbreviated version.</ref>
The Frank Cooper Oxford Marmalade manufacturing business sold marmalade in 1874. It started out first for just for Oxford students, but the business expanded all over England and abroad.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Robertson's was founded in 1864 by James and Marion Robertson in Paisley, Renfrewshire. The business was known for making Golden Shred marmalade. Today, it no longer exists, and is now owned by Premier Foods, though they still make the same product Golden Shred.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Market
As of 2021, the international market for jams and preserves was US$ 8.46 billion. Global value has been projected to increase in the future with almost US$ 9.90 billion expected in 2027, with an average annual growth of about 3.5% between now and then.<ref name=":0" />
Legal definitions
North America
Under the Canadian Food and Drug Regulations (C.R.C., c. 870), marmalade is a standardised food and defined as a food of jelly-like composition that consists of at least 65% water-soluble solids. The regulations permit the use of pH adjusting agents to prevent the marmalade from dehydration, antifoaming agents to prevent blemishes on surface coatings and enable efficient filling of containers, and an acid ingredient to compensate for the natural acidity of the citrus fruit used. If pectin is added, the marmalade must contain at least 27% of peel, pulp, or juice of citrus fruit. Class II preservatives may also be used.<ref name="Canregs">Template:Cite web</ref>
The Canadian Food and Drug Regulations (C.R.C., c. 870) specify that pineapple or fig marmalade must be of jelly-like consistency, achieved by boiling the pulp of juice of the fruit with water, and a sweetening ingredient. Pineapple or fig marmalade should contain at least 45% of the named fruit.<ref name=Canregs/>
In the United States, marmalade should contain at least 65 percent soluble solids, and have at least 70 points to be ranked U.S. Grade B or U.S. Choice.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Europe
It used to be that the European Union officially called all jam made from citrus fruits marmalade.<ref name="Legislative Services Branch-2002" /><ref name="tetens-2024">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2024, a draft was proposed that would allow member states the use of the term "marmalade" as an alternative for "jam".<ref name="tetens-2024" /> When the draft came into law, territories in the European Union became able to use the phrase for all types of jam.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In popular culture
Paddington Bear
The fictional character Paddington Bear is known for his liking of marmalade, particularly in sandwiches, since he keeps it in his hat wherever he goes.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Paddington Bear is now used on the label of the smaller peel ("shred") and clearer/milder Robertson's "Golden Shred" marmalade, in place of the previous icon, the "Golliwog", because it was considered racially offensive.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The 2014 movie Paddington led to a slight increase in marmalade sales in the United Kingdom.<ref name="Grdn">Template:Cite news</ref>
Other mentions
In Agatha Christie's 1953 detective novel A Pocket Full of Rye, the first victim of the murderer is given poison hidden in orange marmalade consumed at breakfast.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The use of marmalade represents how food can be used to contain poison,<ref name="sarnelli">Template:Cite journal</ref> and how poison can be hidden in the sweetness of food.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In Jane Austen's 1811 novel Sense and Sensibility, an over-indulgent mother feeds apricot marmalade to her fussy three-year-old child who has been slightly scratched by a pin in the mother's hair. Austen in irony of this states, “that she could taste no greater delight than in making a fillagree basket for a spoilt child”.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
See also
- Murabba, whole fruit perserve
- List of spreads, the list of spreads
- Succade, candied citrus peel, especially that of the citron
- Zest (ingredient), citrus ingredient
References
Sources
Further reading
External links
Template:English cuisine Template:Citrus Template:Authority control