A couple of years ago, I had absolutely no idea that you could safely can oranges. I filed this little bit of knowledge in my mental “I have got to do that!” file and saved it for the day I found a great deal on oranges.
That was last week!
Azure Standard had 38 pound boxes of organic oranges for only $23! Now that’s a score! I knew that although we eat a whole bunch of fruit during these busy seasons–there was no way we could devour that much fruit before it went bad.
So when life hands you oranges–Can them!
Ingredients
- 13 pounds oranges
- 6½ cups water
- 3/4 cup sugar
Instructions
- Peel your oranges {Do not discard your peels! You can use them for many other things, like this homemade cleaner.}
- Break your oranges into segments, removing as much of the white pith as you can.
- Bring your water and sugar to a boil.
- Oranges are high-acid so they are safely canned in a boiling water canner.
- Sterilize your jars in the canner, and your lids in a separate pot making sure not to boil them.
- Add the oranges to your hot jars, leaving ½ inch of headspace. Do not pack down!
- Fill with your sugar syrup, maintaining your headspace.
- Using the end of a plastic spoon or spatula--gently slide it on the sides of the jar removing any air bubbles. DO NOT use anything metal! This can crack or chip your jars!
- Wipe off the rim of your jars and place on lid and secure the rings.
- Place jar back into the water bath canner and finish filling the rest of your jars.
- Cover your jars completely with water. There should be about 2 inches of water on top.
- Put the lid on, bring to a full boil and process for 10 minutes.
- Gently remove the jars from the canner using a jar lifter and place on a towel on the counter top.
- Let sit overnight.
- You can easily tell if your jar has sealed or not by pressing on the center. If it gives way, it did not process correctly and is not shelf stable.
- Remove your outer bands--and store.
Notes
I juiced a couple of the oranges and added the juice to my sugar solution just to add some additional flavor and natural sweetness.
I ended up with a lot of extra oranges after canning my 9 pints. You can either run another canner load--or you can juice the oranges and freeze the juice for later recipes {or breakfasts :) }
Next time you see a great manager’s special on oranges–snatch ‘em up! Canned oranges are perfect for Arctic Orange Pie, a side for lunch, or a fun addition to salad {our favorite!}.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh I have always wanted to can oranges. My children love the mandarin oranges in the can. I don’t buy them anymore because of the BPA, this would be the perfect solution.
Interesting!!! What kind of texture and flavor do they have after they’re canned?
Bekki–That is our hope, too! The store bought ones get really expensive after a while!
@Miriam–They taste just like they did before we canned them. As far as texture–just like a canned mandarin orange.
{ 1 trackback }