• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Recipe Index
  • Slow Cooker Baking
    • Slow Cooking Baking Tips
    • Slow Cooker Desserts
    • Make a Cake in a Slow Cooker
  • Slow Cooker
    • Slow Cooker Tips
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Slow Cooker Recipes for Kids
    • Autumn & Winter Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Spring & Summer Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Top Ten Slow Cooker Recipes
  • Baking
    • Christmas Baking Recipes
    • Cake
    • Desserts
    • Biscuits
    • Pâtisserie
    • Bread
    • Traybakes

BakingQueen74

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Slow Cooker Tips
  • Slow Cooker Baking
  • Subscribe
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Slow Cooker Tips
    • Slow Cooker Baking
    • Subscribe
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    Home » Recipes » Jam, Curd and Preserves

    Published on Jun 28, 2020. Modified on Jan 23, 2024 by bakingqueen74. This post may contain affiliate links. 8 Comments

    Orange Curd

    135 shares
    ↓ Jump to Recipe

    This orange curd has a mellow sweet flavour and creamy texture, and is delicious served on toast or used in all kinds of baking – use in cakes, to sandwich together shortbread biscuits, meringues or however you fancy!

    Jump to:
    • Oranges
    • Preserving fruit
    • Ingredients
    • Equipment
    • Instructions
    • Storage
    • Recipe tips
    • Ideas using orange curd
    • More orange recipes
    • Recipe
    • Reviews

    Oranges

    To make my orange curd I picked up some oranges called Sicilian Reds from the supermarket.

    These are a type of blood orange, which are typically grown in the Mediterranean, in fact the cool autumn and winters of the Med are what allow the beautiful red colour to develop when the fruit ripens at low temperatures overnight.

    This favours a pigment which gives the deep red colour.

    In any case, while the oranges I picked up weren’t completely blood red, but with lovely red tinges, they gave a quite deep orange juice when squeezed!

    Blood oranges are not usually as sweet as normal oranges, and can sometimes be quite tart.

    It’s a good idea to taste your juice as if you have a very tart batch you might need to increase the sugar in the recipe to compensate.

    You can use normal oranges in this recipe with no problems! I make this all year round using standard oranges when the red ones aren’t around.

    Normal oranges will usually produce a more mellow flavour. It’s nice to add some tangy lemon juice to add more flavour in that case.

    Look at the size of the oranges you buy as they can vary greatly in size and of course small ones will provide less juice than large oranges!

    You’ll need two medium oranges or enough to produce 125 ml of juice.

    Preserving fruit

    Making your own jams and curds or other preserves at home is really fun. I find jam making a bit too time consuming as I don’t have much spare time and don’t always have the equipment needed on hand.

    But making curd, especially when you use the microwave as I have done here, is so easy!

    It only takes a few minutes and you’ll have a jar of delicious fruit curd you can keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

    I like to use curds in cakes and baking as well as enjoying it on buttered bread and toast!

    Lemon and orange curd are some of the commonly made ones, but I enjoy making curd from different fruits too.

    You might also like to try my recipes for these other curds:

    • A jar of blackcurrant curd, with spoon on top.
      Easy Blackcurrant Curd
    • Jar of curd with strawberries around it.
      Easy Strawberry Curd
    • Apricot curd in a glass bowl, fresh apricots and half a lemon behind.
      Apricot Curd
    • A jar of curd on a white wooden background, with some passionfruit beside.
      Passionfruit Curd

    Ingredients

    Here is the list of ingredients you will need, as a handy shopping list. For the quantities make sure you refer to the recipe card at the end of this post.

    • two medium oranges – juice and zest – remember that if your oranges are really small or huge you might need to use more or fewer oranges, you need enough to produce 125 ml of juice.
    • two large free-range eggs
    • caster sugar
    • butter – I use unsalted
    • lemon juice – squeeze half a lemon for 25 ml of juice

    Equipment

    • lemon zester – this type of zester is great for getting all of the lemon zest without grating your fingers
    • whisk
    • sieve
    • jars

    Instructions

    Step 1. Squeeze the juice from two medium oranges, zest the oranges and add it to the juice. You will need 125 ml of freshly squeezed orange juice. Prepare the rest of the ingredients – weigh out the sugar and butter and get the eggs ready. You’ll also need 25 ml of fresh lemon juice, add this to the orange juice so you have 150 ml juice in total.

    Step 2. Add the eggs, sugar, butter to the juice and zest in a large bowl.

    Step 3. Mix using a fork (make sure you beat well so that the eggs are fully combined). Microwave on high for two minutes, then stir again.

    Step 4. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Stir well after heating. You’ll see the curd start to thicken up.

    Step 5. Microwave on high for another minute then stir well.

    Check if the curd is coating the back of a spoon – dip a spoon into the curd and seeing if it slides off or remains on the back of the spoon. If it coats the spoon then the curd can now be put in the fridge to set.

    Note – if it doesn’t coat the spoon yet, heat for another minute, stir then check again.

    Step 6. Transfer the curd to a sterilised glass jar, put on the lid, and allow to cool fully. Then refrigerate. This recipe will yield one jar of orange curd (324 ml jar size).

    Storage

    Orange curd keeps for 1-2 weeks in the fridge.

    Recipe tips

    • Lumps – If you can see white specks or lumps in your curd this may be from uneven cooking and whisking, where the egg has formed into lumps. Sieve the curd before transferring it to jars.
    • Removing the zest – I usually sieve my curd before jarring it up to remove the tiny pieces of zest.
    • How to tell the curd is ready – If it coats the spoon and has a shiny appearance on the surface then this shows the curd is ready.

    Ideas using orange curd

    You can either use orange curd as an alternative to jam straight from the jar or you can use it in baking recipes.

    • Spread on toast, bread, in scones.
    • Use it to fill cakes, meringues, sandwich together shortbread biscuits, swirl into cake batter before cooking (along the same lines as my jam swirl cake), as a macaron filling.
    • Use it in tarts or orange meringue pie.

    More orange recipes

    If you have a glut of oranges, here are a few more ideas to use them:

    • orange scones with blood orange syrup
    • redcurrant and orange loaf
    • blood orange drizzle cake from Jo’s Kitchen Larder

    Recipe

    Jar of orange curd with oranges on a white wooden background.

    Orange Curd

    How to make delicious smooth orange curd in the microwave.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Rate Save Saved!
    Course: Jam and Curd
    Cuisine: British
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Servings: 16
    Calories: 73kcal
    Author: Lucy Allen | BakingQueen74

    Ingredients

    • 2 medium oranges zest and juice (you will need 125 ml orange juice)
    • 2 large free-range eggs
    • 145 g caster sugar (superfine sugar)
    • 50 g butter
    • 25 ml lemon juice squeeze half a lemon for this
    UK Measurements – US Measurements

    Instructions 

    • Squeeze the juice from two medium oranges, zest the oranges and add it to the juice. You will need 125 ml of freshly squeezed orange juice. Prepare the rest of the ingredients – weigh out the sugar and butter and get the eggs ready. You'll also need 25 ml of fresh lemon juice, add this to the orange juice so you have 150 ml juice in total.
      2 medium oranges, 25 ml lemon juice
    • Add the eggs, sugar, butter to the juice and zest in a large bowl.
      2 large free-range eggs, 145 g caster sugar (superfine sugar), 50 g butter
    • Mix using a fork (make sure you beat well so that the eggs are fully combined). Microwave on high for two minutes, then stir again.
    • Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Stir well after heating. You'll see the curd start to thicken up.
    • Microwave on high for another minute then stir well.
      Check if the curd is coating the back of a spoon – dip a spoon into the curd and seeing if it slides off or remains on the back of the spoon. If it coats the spoon then the curd can now be put in the fridge to set.
      Note – if it doesn't coat the spoon yet, heat for another minute, stir then check again.
    • Transfer the curd to a sterilised glass jar, put on the lid, and allow to cool fully. Then refrigerate.

    Notes

    Yield
    This recipe will yield one jar of orange curd (324 ml jar size).
    Storage
    Orange curd keeps for 1-2 weeks in the fridge.
    Lumps
    If you can see white specks or lumps in your curd this may be from uneven cooking and whisking, where the egg has formed into lumps. Sieve the curd before transferring it to jars.
    Removing the zest
    I usually sieve my curd before jarring it up to remove the tiny pieces of zest.
    How to tell the curd is ready
    If it coats the spoon and has a shiny appearance on the surface then this shows the curd is ready.
    Did you try and love this recipe?Then please leave a star rating and comment below to let me know how you got on!

    More Jam, Curd and Preserves

    • Jar of pink cherry curd with grey background.
      Cherry Curd
    • Jar of blackberry jam, red checked dish towel and blackberries to the sides.
      Slow Cooker Blackberry Jam
    • Jar of cranberry curd with lid to left and spoon in front.
      Cranberry Curd
    • Open jar of pear curd with green cloth and pears in background.
      Pear Curd

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Vivian Grange says

      October 22, 2022 at 3:21 am

      I made an orange curd. I boiled and continued to stir for 5 minutes. I did add corn starch to thicken it. I strained it through a fine sieve. After it got cold it had tiny white luVivmps in it. What if anything can I do to fix it?

      Reply
      • bakingqueen74 says

        October 22, 2022 at 7:25 am

        Hi Vivian, it doesn’t sound like you used my recipe since it doesn’t need boiling or corn starch. My guess is the white lumps are cornstarch.

        Reply
    2. Dee says

      June 19, 2022 at 7:20 am

      Made double the qty with only oranges.turned out great. Thankyou.Dee

      Reply
      • bakingqueen74 says

        June 19, 2022 at 7:38 am

        fantastic!

        Reply
    3. Richard Bailey says

      August 30, 2021 at 8:28 pm

      If there were imperial units of measure I might have used this recipe. The ten fingers system of measure has not caught on here in the US.

      Reply
      • bakingqueen74 says

        August 31, 2021 at 8:18 am

        You must have missed the US measurements button which switches this over for you.

        Reply
        • Brenda Clough says

          April 12, 2022 at 4:52 am

          Thankyou. I missed the us measurement button as well. That was pretty handy. Saved me from googling to convert. Can’t wait to get to the store to buy my fruit & try this recipe.

          Reply
          • bakingqueen74 says

            April 12, 2022 at 2:28 pm

            fabulous!

            Reply
    5 from 4 votes (3 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Lucy! I'm a slow cooker addict, food blogger and also a busy working mum of two. I hope you'll enjoy the recipes I create and post which are perfect for busy families.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Shepherds pie in slow cooker pot, garnished with herbs.
      Slow Cooker Shepherd’s Pie
    • White bowl of fish curry topped with red chilli.
      Slow Cooker Coconut Fish Curry
    • Close up of macaroni cheese in ceramic dish.
      Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese
    • Chicken spinach curry in slow cooker pot.
      Slow Cooker Chicken Saag Curry

    Seasonal

    • Cobbler with scone topping and blood orange slices on top.
      Plum and Blood Orange Cobbler
    • Roast chicken in a blue serving dish, with roast potatoes.
      Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
    • Chicken casserole in a white dish with onions and carrots to the side.
      Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole
    • Banana and blueberry bread on wooden board, two slices cut.
      Slow Cooker Blueberry Banana Bread

    As Seen In

    Footer

    ^ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility
    • Advertising

    Subscribe

    • Subscribe here

    Contact

    • About

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2013-2025 BakingQueen74 / Lucy Allen • All Rights Reserved

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.