Muğla's official provincial cuisine book lists mandarin jam among the fruit preserves with regional character. Its concise recipe uses equal weights of mandarins and sugar, half as much water by weight, and half a lemon. The fruit stays whole: it is boiled, cooled in fresh water to tame the peel, and then simmered in syrup. That makes Mandalina Reçeli distinct from a shredded citrus marmalade.
Mandalina Reçeli — Recipe Card
Muğla Whole Mandarin Preserve
Makes 24 servings · Makes about two 750 ml refrigerator jars; one serving is about half a small mandarin with syrup.US cup = 240 ml · tablespoon = 15 ml · teaspoon = 5 ml. Cup and weight conversions are approximate. Australian cooks: use a 15 ml measuring tablespoon.
Ingredient quantities and servings are scaled. Cooking times, pan sizes, frying oil depth, and temperatures stay the same; cook larger batches as needed.
Ingredients
How to make Mandalina Reçeli
Prepare the fruit
Wash the mandarins thoroughly under cool running water and dry them. Remove any leaves and stems, but leave the peel and fruit whole. Discard fruit with soft spots, split skin or signs of spoilage.
Blanch three times
Place the whole mandarins in a wide saucepan and cover them by about 5 cm (2 inches) with fresh cold water. Bring to a boil and boil gently for 5 minutes. Drain, cover the fruit with cold water for 5 minutes, and drain again. Repeat this complete boil-cool-drain cycle twice more with fresh water each time. Taste a tiny cooled piece of peel after the third round; if it is still sharply bitter, repeat the cycle once more.
Make the syrup
Combine the measured 500 ml water and sugar in a wide, nonreactive saucepan. Heat gently, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a steady boil and cook for 5 minutes without stirring. If sugar crystals cling to the sides, brush them down with a clean pastry brush dipped in water.
Simmer the mandarins
Lower the drained whole mandarins carefully into the hot syrup. Return to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 35–45 minutes. Turn the fruit carefully with a spoon every 8–10 minutes so it cooks evenly, but do not pierce or crush it. Skim away any foam.
Check the syrup
Place a teaspoon of syrup on a chilled plate and let it stand for 30 seconds. It should flow slowly and lightly coat the spoon, not set firm. The syrup thickens further as it cools; if it still runs like water, simmer for 5 more minutes and test again.
Finish with lemon
Stir in the lemon juice and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave it undisturbed for 5 minutes so the bubbling settles.
Jar and refrigerate
Divide the hot mandarins and syrup between clean, heatproof jars, keeping the fruit covered with syrup and leaving about 1 cm (3/8 inch) at the top. Close the lids. Cool for no longer than 2 hours, then refrigerate at 4°C/40°F or below. This recipe is not a tested room-temperature canning process.
Bring this recipe to your kitchen with a printable copy.
Print recipeRecipe from MyTurkishRecipes · https://myturkishrecipes.com/whole-mandarin-preserve-mandalina-receli. Quantities reflect your selected serving scale. Cooking times are estimates; follow the doneness cues.
A few helpful kitchen notes
Regional method
The Muğla source gives 1 kg mandarins, 1 kg sugar, 500 ml water and half a lemon, and directs the cook to boil the whole fruit, refresh the water until the bitterness recedes, then cook it in syrup. The timed blanching rounds here make that concise traditional method repeatable in a home kitchen.
Fruit and washing
Choose small, thin-skinned, unwaxed fruit because the peel is eaten. Wash under running water; do not use soap, detergent or commercial produce wash. Clementines are a practical substitute when small mandarins are unavailable.
Bitterness and shape
A pleasant citrus bitterness is part of the preserve, but it should not taste harsh. Add one fresh-water blanch only if needed. Very vigorous boiling can split the softened peel, so keep the syrup at a gentle simmer and turn the fruit carefully.
Refrigerator preserve
The regional source describes hot filling, but hot filling alone is not a validated shelf-stable canning process. Keep this version refrigerated at 4°C/40°F or below and use it within 3 weeks. Use a clean spoon and discard the entire jar if you see mold, unexpected bubbling, or smell yeast, alcohol or another off odor.
Dietary notes
The base recipe is vegan, vegetarian and contains no gluten ingredients. These labels describe the ingredients only and do not guarantee freedom from cross-contact or certification for a medical diet.
How to store and reheat Mandalina Reçeli
Cool the closed jars for no longer than 2 hours, then refrigerate at 4°C/40°F or below. Use within 3 weeks and return the jar promptly to the refrigerator after serving. Always use a clean spoon. Discard the entire jar if mold, unexpected bubbling, a yeasty or alcoholic odor, or any other sign of spoilage appears. Do not store this batch at room temperature.
Mandalina Reçeli: questions and answers
Do I peel the mandarins for Mandalina Reçeli?
No. The Muğla method preserves the mandarins whole. Repeated blanching softens the intact peel and reduces excessive bitterness before the fruit enters the syrup.
Can I make this recipe shelf-stable?
Not with these instructions. Hot filling does not by itself make an untested recipe safe for pantry storage. Keep this batch refrigerated, or use a laboratory-tested canning recipe with its specified jar size, processing time and altitude adjustment.
Can I reduce the sugar?
Keep the stated amount for this version. Reducing sugar changes the syrup, texture and refrigerated keeping quality, so it would require a separately developed formula rather than a simple substitution.
Why does the syrup look a little thin while hot?
Hot syrup flows more freely and thickens as it cools. Use the chilled-plate test and stop when the syrup lightly coats a spoon; overcooking can make it sticky and can toughen or split the fruit.
