Orange Jelly Recipe

Orange Jelly is a delicious homemade jelly made from freshly squeezed orange juice. It is easy to prepare and has a refreshing taste that will please your family and make an excellent gift. Here’s a simple recipe to make your orange jelly at home:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups prepared orange juice
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 package Ball RealFruit low or no-sugar pectin
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon butter to reduce foaming (optional)

Directions:

1. Prepare the boiling water bath.
2. Wash jars, lids, and rings and rinse well, and sterilize the jars. (They say it isn’t necessary to sterilize prior to filling the jars because they are sterilized during processing, but I never put food into jars that have not been sterilized.)
3. Bring water to a boil in a saucepan large enough to accommodate your lids, reduce the heat to a simmer, and drop the lids into the hot water until needed. It isn’t necessary to let the lids sit in boiling water until needed as we did back in the “good old days.” The lids we use today will warp if boiled, they just need to be warm to soften the rubber gasket for sealing.
4. In a jelly pot or Dutch oven, combine the orange juice, the lemon juice, and the pectin, and add the butter, if using. Bring to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly.
5. Add the sugar and bring back to a full rolling boil, stirring until combined.
6. Boil for 3 minutes, then pour or ladle into the prepared jars, wipe rims, affix lids and rings, and put them into the boiling water bath.
7. Once the boiling water bath returns to a full rolling boil, start timing and process for 5 minutes, 10 minutes if you did not sterilize the jars earlier. Adjustments must be made to the processing time for areas with an altitude of more than 1000 feet.
8. Remove jars to a prepared area and let them set undisturbed for 24 hours. Then check the jars for a good seal, wash, dry, and label the jars, and store them in a cool, dry area away from any heat or light source.

Yields: 4 -5 half-pint jars.

Final Thoughts

Enjoy this simple and flavorful orange jelly as a delicious spread on toast, rolls, or biscuits, or as a delightful topping for ice cream, cheesecake, or muffins.

For the full detailed process: How to Do Water Bath Canning | What I Learned Over 50 Years.

Anne James

Anne James—also known as Jelly Grandma—is a professional canner and lifelong food preserver with over 55 years of hands-on experience. A retired librarian, paralegal, and self-taught expert in traditional Southern crafts, Anne specializes in canning, jelly-making, cooking, gardening, and quilting. She even has extensive experience as a bartender.
She’s been featured in the Daily Commercial and on Hershey’s website, and is lovingly known as the “go-to canner” in her family and beyond. Her mission is simple: to preserve and pass on the old ways—skills that kept generations thriving without shortcuts or preservatives.
You can find more of Anne’s work at PreservingSweetness.com, on YouTube, and occasionally on SurvivalFreedom.com.