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Mandarin orange curd is a thick fruit spread that offers a delicate sweetness without tartness. It’s perfect spread on toast and baked goods, it shines when swirled with yogurt and frozen into a creamsicle-inspired dessert and yes – eating fruit curd straight from the jar is perfectly acceptable! So, if you love lemon curd but you want to try a new twist on this classic, give this mandarin orange curd recipe a whirl.
Why You’ll Love It
Discover how to make the best ever mandarin orange curd. With its sweet, zesty flavor, mandarin orange curd is simply perfect for desserts or to use as a spread.
Simple to make: There’s nothing difficult about this straightforward recipe.
Makes a great gift: Dividing the recipe between smaller jars is great for gifting.
Tastes so good: With all the sweetness and appeal of lemon curd, just with a different flavor, you’ll love it.
A versatile recipe: Stir it into yogurt or ice cream, enjoy it on toast or try it with croissants or crackers.
Gluten-free: There’s no gluten needed for thickening. Instead the mixture thickens when whisked over a low heat.
Also try spiced cranberry orange jam, berry pavlova with lemon curd (use mandarin orange curd instead!) or one of these recipes using lemon curd.
Easy Orange Curd Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Eggs: To thicken the orange curd and bind it together.
Mandarin orange juice: Juice your own mandarins for the freshest flavor.
Sugar: For sweetness.
Orange zest: For that sweet, citrusy flavor.
Butter: For flavor and to achieve a creamy texture.
How to Make Orange Curd
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Prepare the oranges: Wash the oranges and grate off a tablespoon of zest. Combine the mandarin zest and sugar. Juice the oranges to get half a cup of mandarin juice.
Cook the orange curd: Whisk the eggs in a pan and then add the zest mixture and the juice. Cook and whisk constantly until the orange curd coats the back of a spoon. Take it off the heat and stir in the butter.
The finishing touches: Wash and dry 4 canning jars then divide the orange curd between them. Cool to room temperature and then cover, tighten the rings, and keep refrigerated.
Substitutions and Variations
Mandarin oranges: If you can’t find mandarin oranges, use satsumas, tangerines, clementines or navel oranges for a similar flavor.
White sugar: Feel free to adjust the amount used.
Serving Suggestions
As a spread: Enjoy it on toast, bread, croissants, or crackers. It would be amazing on puff pastry waffles for brunch too.
As part of dessert: Stir it through ice cream or vanilla yogurt to add a charming, homemade touch to dessert, or add a spoonful to brownie sundae waffle bowls.
As a gift: Give the gift of an orange-themed trio with orange bath bombs and sweet orange bars.
How to Store
Store: Keep the mandarin curd in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh for about a week.
Freeze: You can also freeze it for up to a year.
Thaw: Defrost it in the refrigerator overnight and stir before use.
Top Tips
Sterilize your jars: Wash and dry the jars well to maximize storage time.
Keep the heat low: Keep the heat to low or low-medium to avoid scrambling the eggs.
Lose the lumps: If you take time to build up the heat gently, you shouldn’t have lumps. But if you do, push the curd through a sieve using a rubber spatula to remove them.
Orange Curd FAQs
Mandarins are a type of orange in the same family as clementines, tangerines and satsumas. They’re typically sweeter and smaller than oranges, more flat in shape, and their skin is looser and thinner, making them a breeze to peel. Tangerines are a type of mandarin orange but there are other types too. Any mandarin orange variety will work in this mandarin orange curd recipe.
Their peak season is from November to March, although you can usually find imported mandarin oranges. A lot of seasonal produce options aren’t there during the colder months, so taking advantage of juicy fresh mandarin oranges is a great idea.
It’s pretty similar although mandarin oranges have more natural sweetness than lemons, which means you don’t have to add as much sugar. You can sub mandarin orange curd in most recipes that call for lemon curd.
Mandarin Orange Curd Recipe
Mandarin Orange Curd
Equipment
- Canning Jars and Rings
- Saucepan Medium
Ingredients
- 3 whole eggs
- ½ Cup mandarin orange juice, about 5 mandarin oranges
- ½ Cup white sugar
- 1 Tablespoon orange zest
- 6 Tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Wash and dry the jars to sterilize them.
- Wash the oranges to remove any pesticides and zest them until you have one tablespoon of zest.
- Add orange zest to the sugar and combine.
- Juice the oranges until you have ½ cup of juice.
- In a saucepan, whisk the eggs then add the sugar and zest mixture and juice.
- Put the pan on the burner and cook over a low heat, whisking continuously, until the mixture reaches about 170°F or until it coats the back of a spoon, approximately 6 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the butter until incorporated.
- Fill the prepared jars with the mandarin orange curd and loosely put on the lids.
- Allow the orange curd to come to room temperature for about 1 hour.
- Tighten the lid rings and refrigerate the orange curd.
Notes
Keep the heat low: Keep the heat to low or low-medium to avoid scrambling the eggs.
Lose the lumps: If you take time to build up the heat, you shouldn’t have lumps but, if you do, push the curd through a sieve using a rubber spatula to remove them.
Nutrition
Mandarin orange curd makes a seasonal winter treat as that’s when they’re in season. Lemon curd and orange curd have been a British teatime spread staple for decades and you’ll find mandarin orange curd offers the perfect balance of sweetness as well as bright citrus notes to infuse your day with a burst of sunshine. Mandarin oranges symbolize good fortune in Asian cultures and now you have the good fortune to have found this delicious recipe!
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Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
