Marmalade (Recipe: roasted or grilled shrimp in beer marinade)

Originally published in December 2006, this updated pantry ingredient post features new photos and links. When I was making the marinade, my husband Ted cast a skeptical eye my way, but it only took one shrimp to make a believer out of him.

I didn't grow up in a marmalade house.

In fact, apart from the grape jelly we ate only with peanut butter, I don't remember seeing any jams, jellies, preserves or marmalades in my mother's kitchen. Oh, I know that she had the occasional souvenir jar stashed in the back of the cupboard — a homemade treasure brought by a houseguest or friend who'd returned from a road trip to a part of the country where every family "puts things up", and recipes are prized. But I don't think we ever opened them.

I always stock orange marmalade in my pantry, because my husband Ted loves it, but I know so little about preserving fruit that I had to look up the definitions of jam, jelly, preserve, and marmalade. What's the difference? Aren't they all just sticky concoctions, made with fruit and some sort of goo to hold the fruit in suspension?

In part, the difference seems to be degree of density. According to The Food Lover's Companion, jelly is a clear, bright mixture made from fruit juice, sugar, and sometimes pectin; the texture is tender but will be firm enough to hold its shape when turned out of its container. Jam is a thicker mixture of fruit, sugar (and sometimes pectin) that is cooked until the pieces of fruit are very soft and an almost formless puree. Preserves, made from fruit cooked with sugar and pectin, differ from jam in that the chunks of fruit are medium to large, rather than the texture of thick puree.

Marmalade is a preserve containing pieces of fruit rind, especially citrus fruit. The original marmalades were made from quince — the Portuguese word marmelada means "quince jam." Now, however, Seville oranges are the most popular fruit for making marmalade, in part because of their high pectin content.

These days, you can purchase Keiller's Dundee marmalade, in its oh-so-recognizable white ceramic jar, in specialty stores and most larger supermarkets. Keiller's dates back to 1797, when a Spanish ship carrying Seville oranges took refuge in the harbor town of Dundee, Scotland. James Keiller, a local grocer, purchased the cargo; his wife Janet boiled the oranges with sugar to make a tart orange marmalade.

There's always a jar of Dundee marmalade in my refrigerator. Not only is it delicious to eat, but, melted down with a teaspoon of water and put through a sieve, it makes a perfect glaze for fruit tarts.

Roasted or grilled shrimp in beer marinade

From the pantry, you'll need: beer (I use nonalcoholic), dry mustard, powdered ginger, kosher salt, reduced-sodium soy sauce, Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce, honey, garlic, frozen shrimp.

From the ever-practical Joy of Cooking, this simple marinade enhances beef or pork, but I like it best with shrimp. Makes 1-2/3 cups, enough for 3 pounds of meat or shrimp.

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups flat beer
1 Tbsp dry mustard
1 tsp powdered ginger
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/8 tsp hot sauce (I like Tabasco)
2 Tbsp sugar or honey
1/4 cup orange marmalade
2 garlic cloves, minced

Directions

Combine all marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Add 2-3 pounds of large (21-25 size) peeled and deveined shrimp to the bowl, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Roast for 10-12 minutes, or cook on a grill for 3-4 minutes.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More tasty shrimp appetizers:
Red curry shrimp dumplings, from The Perfect Pantry
Blazing hot shrimp, from The Perfect Pantry
Orange-glazed grilled shrimp, from Culinary Covers
Coconut shrimp with spicy orange sauce, from No Recipes

I always stock orange marmalade in my pantry, because my husband Ted loves it, but I know so little about preserving fruit that I had to look up the definitions of jam, jelly, preserve, and marmalade. What's the difference? Aren't they all just sticky concoctions, made with fruit and some sort of goo to hold the fruit in suspension?

In part, the difference seems to be degree of density. According to The Food Lover's Companion, jelly is a clear, bright mixture made from fruit juice, sugar, and sometimes pectin; the texture is tender but will be firm enough to hold its shape when turned out of its container. Jam is a thicker mixture of fruit, sugar (and sometimes pectin) that is cooked until the pieces of fruit are very soft and an almost formless puree. Preserves, made from fruit cooked with sugar and pectin, differ from jam in that the chunks of fruit are medium to large, rather than the texture of thick puree.

Marmalade is a preserve containing pieces of fruit rind, especially citrus fruit. The original marmalades were made from quince — the Portuguese word marmelada means "quince jam." Now, however, Seville oranges are the most popular fruit for making marmalade, in part because of their high pectin content.

These days, you can purchase Keiller's Dundee marmalade, in its oh-so-recognizable white ceramic jar, in specialty stores and most larger supermarkets. Keiller's dates back to 1797, when a Spanish ship carrying Seville oranges took refuge in the harbor town of Dundee, Scotland. James Keiller, a local grocer, purchased the cargo; his wife Janet boiled the oranges with sugar to make a tart orange marmalade.

There's always a jar of Dundee marmalade in my refrigerator. Not only is it delicious to eat, but, melted down with a teaspoon of water and put through a sieve, it makes a perfect glaze for fruit tarts.

Roasted or grilled shrimp in beer marinade

From the pantry, you'll need: beer (I use nonalcoholic), dry mustard, powdered ginger, kosher salt, reduced-sodium soy sauce, Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce, honey, garlic, frozen shrimp.

From the ever-practical Joy of Cooking, this simple marinade enhances beef or pork, but I like it best with shrimp. Makes 1-2/3 cups, enough for 3 pounds of meat or shrimp.

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups flat beer
1 Tbsp dry mustard
1 tsp powdered ginger
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/8 tsp hot sauce (I like Tabasco)
2 Tbsp sugar or honey
1/4 cup orange marmalade
2 garlic cloves, minced

Directions

Combine all marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Add 2-3 pounds of large (21-25 size) peeled and deveined shrimp to the bowl, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Roast for 10-12 minutes, or cook on a grill for 3-4 minutes.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More tasty shrimp appetizers:
Red curry shrimp dumplings, from The Perfect Pantry
Blazing hot shrimp, from The Perfect Pantry
Orange-glazed grilled shrimp, from Culinary Covers
Coconut shrimp with spicy orange sauce, from No Recipes

Comments

Interesting recipe; I have never heard of marinating shrimp but I bet the flavors here are really good with it.

Would be great for chicken too, I think.

Lydia,
My mom loves orange marmalade but I did not inherit the taste for it. Too rind-y for me. However, the concept of a marmalade marinade is an excellent one, and this looks delicious.
Thanks!

Kalyn, the secret is not to marinate them too long. And I always use very large shrimp.

Shirley, it would be delicious with chicken. Marinate much longer, of course.

Kirsten, to this day I'm not a marmalade person. I never slather it on toast. But I do love to use the intense flavor in cooking.

Love this. Might be great on salmon too. I just ZipListed it.

Mary, this marinade is so unexpectedly good. Salmon (especially on the grill) would probably taste great.

My dad used to love marmalade. That is one condiment I don't have interestingly, although I'm sure it must be good in this shrimp recipe.

Jeanette, I really keep it in the pantry for pastry, but this marinade is such a fun savory use for it.

Love anything marinated in beer! These would be great anytime of year, but there is always lots of seafood at decent prices here in Lent.

Mimi, that's a great point. I hadn't thought of it at the time, but yes, this might be the time to stock up on shrimp.