Instructions

Wash the oranges - in very hot water if they are waxed. Dry them off with kitchen paper or a clean dishtowel. Get your Julienne peeler and peel the oranges, transferring the thin slices of peel to a pan that contains about 2 litres of water.

Bring the pot to a simmer and let the peels cook for 15-20 minutes until soft. Whilst they’re cooking, peel the pith off your ranges and put the pieces into a bowl.

Whilst the fruit is softening, wash your jars in hot water and then dry, upside down, in the oven (about 100ºC), along with the lids. Put a saucer in the fridge to cool – it’ll be used for determining if the marmalade is set.

Once the oranges are cooked, keep about 1.5 litres of the cooking liquid and dispose of the rest.

Put the cooking liquid back into a large pan on a medium heat and add in about a third of the sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Repeat this twice more until all the sugar has dissolved.

Add the peels into the pot. Take the bowl of orange pieces and either put them into a muslin bag or a very clean sieve. Please the bag or sieve into the pot.

Boil for 15 minutes, removing any layer of foam and scum that floats to the surface (this will take out impurities and make the flavour less bitter).

Add the rum and stir through.

To test the setting point, drop a little of the marmalade on to the cold saucer (that you put in the fridge earlier). Leave it to cool for a few moments, then run your finger through it. If it wrinkles around your finger, or up ahead of it, then it’s ready. If it doesn’t, continue to boil. Test it every 3-5 minutes. It can take up to half an hour to set, depending on how quickly the liquid boils off.

When the marmalade is ready, remove it from the heat and ladle it into the sterilised jars, leaving a little gap at the top. Put circles of grease-proof paper into the top of the jars and leave to cool. Don’t put the lids on until the jars are fully cooled.