I heard an interesting interview with Pati Jinich on “The Splendid Table.” In it she describes her Mexican take on roast turkey. The recipe calls for marinating the turkey in a seasoned mixture of bitter orange juice and broth. It suggests that if you can’t find bitter oranges (you need 4 cups of juice), you should substitute 1 cup each of regular orange juice, grapefruit juice, lime juice and distilled white vinegar, which I did. The turkey came out succulent, but, perhaps not surprisingly, the gravy was very vinegary. How would you have handled the substitution for bitter orange juice? What should I have done instead?
Not that I’m trying to dodge the work, but my first thought here was, why not get Pati Jinich herself to help out? She was happy to, and she replies:
“To my taste, the best substitute for bitter orange is equal parts grapefruit, orange and lime juice and white distilled vinegar. There are other cooks who use equal parts orange and lime juice and are happy with the results. So if you find it too vinegary, you can skip the vinegar or tone it down, doing all citrus or just orange and lime. I know that’s a lot of choices, but that tends to happen when you are trying to come up with a substitute! And it will depend on the cook’s preferences as to taste: Bitter orange is very, very acidic.”Advertisement
Thanks, Pati! For those of you who are unfamiliar, a little background. Bitter oranges are a staple of Persian/Iranian cooking and also used in the cuisines of other countries including Spain, Morocco, Mexico and Cuba, where it’s an integral component of mojo, a sauce of bitter orange and garlic that’s used as a marinade. So if you do much international cooking, sooner or later you’ll need to find some.
When you’re shopping, especially in Latin or other international markets, look for this citrus sold as bitter orange, Seville orange, Persian orange, marmalade orange or bigarade. If you can’t find the actual fruit, you may have better luck finding bottled juice. Goya sells a bitter orange (naranja agria) marinade made from bitter orange concentrate that gets decent reviews; using a bitter orange marmalade may work in some recipes as well.
Back to Pati’s advice. If you can’t get your hands on sour oranges, experimentation is the way to go, and flexibility is key. Find a combination you like — more vinegar, less vinegar, whatever; it’ll depend on what you’re using it for — and go with it.Advertisement
Got a culinary question of your own? Then dont forget to join us for todays Free Range chat. Special guests will be Domenica Marchetti, who writes this week about the mouthwatering roasts of Tuscany, and chef Nathan Anda, whose new Red Apron Burger Bar is offering a burger made of 100 percent grass-fed beef. You can check in with some of the participants in WaPo Foods #5Diets project to see how they did in Week 2. And did I mention the weekly book giveaway to a couple of lucky chatters? Just another reason to be on hand at noon sharp for whats always an edifying hour.
For desserts Nigella usually suggests a mixture of regular sweet orange juice and lime juice in a ratio of 2:1 (i.e twice the volume of orange juice to lime juice). The zest of orange and lime can also be used in combination if the recipe calls for grated zest.
When you’re shopping, especially in Latin or other international markets, look for this citrus sold as bitter orange, Seville orange, Persian orange, marmalade orange or bigarade. If you can’t find the actual fruit, you may have better luck finding bottled juice. Goya sells a bitter orange (naranja agria) marinade made from bitter orange concentrate that gets decent reviews; using a bitter orange marmalade may work in some recipes as well.
Thanks, Pati! For those of you who are unfamiliar, a little background. Bitter oranges are a staple of Persian/Iranian cooking and also used in the cuisines of other countries including Spain, Morocco, Mexico and Cuba, where it’s an integral component of mojo, a sauce of bitter orange and garlic that’s used as a marinade. So if you do much international cooking, sooner or later you’ll need to find some.
“To my taste, the best substitute for bitter orange is equal parts grapefruit, orange and lime juice and white distilled vinegar. There are other cooks who use equal parts orange and lime juice and are happy with the results. So if you find it too vinegary, you can skip the vinegar or tone it down, doing all citrus or just orange and lime. I know that’s a lot of choices, but that tends to happen when you are trying to come up with a substitute! And it will depend on the cook’s preferences as to taste: Bitter orange is very, very acidic.”Advertisement
Back to Pati’s advice. If you can’t get your hands on sour oranges, experimentation is the way to go, and flexibility is key. Find a combination you like — more vinegar, less vinegar, whatever; it’ll depend on what you’re using it for — and go with it.Advertisement
Not that I’m trying to dodge the work, but my first thought here was, why not get Pati Jinich herself to help out? She was happy to, and she replies:
Good morning Lindsay, As saville oranges are not avsilable at the moment what can I substitute. I was hoping to give the jams as Christmas presents.
This month we welcome five new authors to our book review page whose latest titles will keep you well read during April.
How to Make Seville Oranges in 5 Ways that aren’t Marmalade | Simple Healthy Recipes
FAQ
What can I substitute for Seville oranges?
What orange is similar to Seville?
Why do you need Seville oranges for marmalade?
What is another name for Seville orange?
What is the best substitute for semolina?
Semolina is the ideal flour for making pasta, although other types of flours can be used as substitutes. For example, bread flour or whole-wheat flour have similar amounts of gluten and can be used in place of semolina flour for pasta. Cornmeal can be used in place of semolina for applying to pans or surfaces. For those looking for gluten-free options, chickpea(gram) flour or amaranth flour are fiber-rich healthy options to consider.
Are Tangerines a good substitute for Seville oranges?
The rind of tangerines is of course not as thick as of Seville oranges, so you’ll end up with slightly lighter and more delicate tangerine marmalade. Grapefruits are naturally bitter, so they are great replacement for Seville Oranges. The only thing is that they dont’ taste much like oranges.
Can you use bergamot oranges instead of Seville oranges?
Bergamot orange is not that easy to buy, but if you happen to have some from a market or you grow them, you can certainly use them instead of the seville oranges. This is a great replacement for seville oranges, as the flavour of Chinese oranges is nice and bitter.