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Marmalade is a sweet, tangy fruit preserves 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 Lemon 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 bean, 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 , 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 people 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 language which came from the Portuguese word marmelada , starting with the Greek language word melimēlon 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.
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".
The Portuguese word comes from the Latin melimelum or "a sweet apple", in turn from Greek μελίμηλον melimēlon 'sweet apple', from μέλη 'honey' + μῆλον mēlon 'apple, round fruit', became Galician-Portuguese marmelo 'quince'. Melimelon, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek–English Lexicon, on Perseus Digital Library The name originated in the 16th century from Middle French marmelade and Portuguese, where marmelada applied to Quince cheese. 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. The modern definition of marmalade is a jam made from citrus fruits rather than quince.
A folk etymology asserts that Mary, Queen of Scots ate marmalade as a treatment for Motion sickness, and that the name is derived from her maids' whisper of Marie est malade ('Mary is ill'). The word's origin has nothing to do with Mary though.
In Britain, marmalade is usually made from the bitter orange. It is favoured because of its naturally high pectin content, which gives a thick consistency to the marmalade, in addition to the fruit also having tart flesh and rough skin. There is needed a balance between fruit acid and the pectin. Fruits with normally low pectin, like strawberries, cherries, and Fig, have it added to make the marmalade a jelly.
Pectin, spices, or flavouring agents may be added to enhance the marmalade for texture, appearance, aroma, and taste.
Citrus peel is a main ingredient of marmalade which contains not only numerous functional constituents but also gives the product a different aroma. However, it also contains a variety of bitter compounds which may affect the flavour of marmalade.
There has been a consumer portion wanting healthier marmalade, like lowered calories, in some costumer groups.
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.
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.
The Canadian Food and Drug Regulations (C.R.C., c. 870) specify that pineapple or common 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.
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.
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”.
Europe
It used to be that the European Union officially called all jam made from citrus fruits marmalade. In 2024, a draft was proposed that would allow member states the use of the term "marmalade" as an alternative for "jam". When the draft came into law, territories in the European Union became able to use the phrase for all types of jam.
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. 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. The 2014 movie Paddington led to a slight increase in marmalade sales in the United Kingdom.
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. The use of marmalade represents how food can be used to contain poison, and how poison can be hidden in the sweetness of food.
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