Orange Confit

Orange Confit
Evan Sung for The New York Times
Total Time
9 to 16 hours, plus overnight resting
Rating
4(121)
Notes
Read community notes

This isn’t cooking; it's alchemy. You're taking pretty much everything in the orange except its form and replacing it with sugar, making even the peel edible. It's quite amazing, though it does take time. You can use this technique on all kinds of citrus. Blanching the fruit helps to remove the bitterness of the pith. Think of this as fresh orange candy or sugar in orange form. —Mark Bittman

Featured in: THE CHEF: SCOTT CARSBERG; With a Rich Scoop of Caramel, a Bit of Pucker

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Ingredients

Yield:16 servings
  • 4big navel oranges
  • pounds sugar
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (16 servings)

291 calories; 0 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 75 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 74 grams sugars; 0 grams protein; 1 milligram sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Fill a saucepan large enough to hold oranges with water; bring to a boil. Blanch oranges for 30 seconds, then remove, change water and repeat. Carefully quarter oranges through their poles. Return them to saucepan with half the sugar and water to cover. Bring to a boil, then cook over lowest possible heat, adding water as necessary to keep them covered. Cook for 8 hours, then remove from heat and let sit overnight.

  2. Step 2

    Drain oranges and repeat process with remaining sugar and water to cover. Oranges are done when very tender but not falling apart, from 1 to 8 hours. Remove pot from heat and let cool, then refrigerate oranges with their syrup. Oranges will keep, refrigerated, for several weeks.

  3. Step 3

    Serve an orange segment with a scoop of chocolate caramel mousse, or with a dollop of whipped cream.

Ratings

4 out of 5
121 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Turned out pretty well. In that my citrus is off the tree in Northern California, the oranges are not as sweet as store-bought navels. I used a slow cooker and they were ready after eight hours on low. Did not cook them for the second turn. A good staple for the winter pantry.

I used clementines instead. Cut the cooking time in half. Tastes just like orange marmalade and perfect with the mousse.

I think one of these orange quarters thinly sliced would make a delicious garnish for an old fashioned, and a bit of the syrup used as the sweetener instead of sugar.

Going to try Mark’s recipe, as I had an amazing half orange served with a warm croissant at Four Seasons Tokyo. At the start of breakfast, a memorable experience.

These are great. I serve them w torrijas, Spanish French toast, also from NYT, with some unsweetened whipped cream. I only cooked them once and they were done.

Could you can these for longer storage or as gifts?

Baked in covered dutch oven after blanching.

I think one of these orange quarters thinly sliced would make a delicious garnish for an old fashioned, and a bit of the syrup used as the sweetener instead of sugar.

You think I can bring to a boil then transfer to a crockpot on high for 16 hours?

Turned out pretty well. In that my citrus is off the tree in Northern California, the oranges are not as sweet as store-bought navels. I used a slow cooker and they were ready after eight hours on low. Did not cook them for the second turn. A good staple for the winter pantry.

I used clementines instead. Cut the cooking time in half. Tastes just like orange marmalade and perfect with the mousse.

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Credits

Adapted from Scott Carsberg

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