Orange Jam

Ingredients

• 4 medium sized oranges
• 1 lemon
• 1 1/2 cup sugar

Method

Halve the oranges and lemon, then squeeze the juice into a bowl and reserve. Work a zester or fine grater over the whole fruit to collect the zest — you want fine ribbons, not pith. Set the zest aside. Now peel away the albedo (the white layer under the skin) with a small knife; this bitter pith will spoil the jam's flavour and colour. Roughly chop the flesh into pieces no smaller than a pea — you're not making a smooth purée. The texture matters; ragged fruit releases pectin unevenly, which gives better set than uniform dice.

Tip the chopped fruit, zest, reserved juice, and sugar into a heavy-bottomed pot. Stir to combine, then set over medium-high heat. Once the sugar dissolves and the mixture reaches a rolling boil, reduce to a steady, moderate boil — vigorous enough that steam rises in a thick plume, not so violent that the mixture spits everywhere. The boil does two things: it boiling|drives off water so the concentration rises, and it activates jam-making|pectin gelation, the mechanism that transforms liquid fruit into spreadable preserve. This takes 30–40 minutes, though timing is unreliable; the actual endpoint depends on the oranges' water content and the pot's surface area.

Watch the behaviour of the mixture. It will go from sloppy to syrupy as it concentrates. Test for set using the cold-plate method: drop a spoonful onto a chilled saucer and let it cool for a minute. If the surface wrinkles when you push it with your finger, you've hit your target. It will feel loose in the pot — this is correct. The preserve|jam sets further as it cools, and overcooking past the wrinkle stage yields a rubbery, crystalline mess that won't spread.

Pour the jam into sterilised jars while it's still hot. The residual heat will kill any surface microbes. Let it cool completely before sealing; a thin skin of firm jam will form on top while the interior stays soft. Store in a cool, dark place.