Jam Vs Marmalade: What's The Difference?

From wood-paneled diners to royal tea parties, jam is our jam ... and so is marmalade. Both jarred spreads are all about fruit and sugar reduced over heat, not to mention the delicious storage of seasonal harvests. Thanks to these sticky beauties, foodies can enjoy their favorite summer fruits year-round and brighten up the breakfast table on a dreary winter morning. Both spreads get the job done alongside peanut butter on a sandwich, too. So, what makes 'em different from each other?

Jam is made from whole, chopped, or pureed fruit — many different types, but most commonly berries, and typically only one type of fruit at a time (i.e. not a blend). Subsequently, jams can come in a rainbow of different colors from pink to red to blue to purple and more. If you're feeling ambitious in the kitchen, you can even try this pale-hued, herbaceous rosemary and pear jam.

Marmalade, on the other hand, almost exclusively uses citrus fruits. Traditionally, marmalade is made from bitter Seville oranges, but it can also be made from classic oranges, lemons, grapefruits, yuzu, citrons, or kumquats. As such, marmalades are typically yellow or orange in color. In addition to the inner fruit, the citrus pulp and rind also get thrown into the mix, yielding a slightly bitter flavor. Some preparations exclude the actual fruit and stick to just rind and zest. Either way, the result is a tangy, zippy taste and a toothy, thick, fibrous consistency compared to smooth, even, mildly sweet jam.

Jam uses whole or cut fruits and includes both the juice and inner flesh. This is different from jelly, which only uses fruit juice, not the flesh. To make jam, fruit is cooked into a gel with sugar and hot water, breaking down and thickening as it reduces. The firm basis of jam's structure is formed by a fiber called pectin present in the whole fruit (and most plants). Heat is crucial to extract this natural binding agent.

Texturally, jam is thick yet spreadable. Jam might also contain some lingering seeds, as in raspberry, blackberry, or strawberry jams. Beyond berries, jam can also be made from stone fruits like cherries or apricots.

To enjoy, jam is often spread on toast, scones, and English muffins, or stirred into yogurt and oatmeal. Strawberry jam on plush white bread makes a classic PB&J. For an elevated, 'grown up' PB&J, pair this multilayered vanilla blackberry jam with almond butter on dark, robust pumpernickel. Or, spread Concord grape jam on savory turkey sandwiches for a pop of bright contrast. Jam is also commonly used in tarts and other baked goods, as it holds up well under the oven's high heat.

Like jam, marmalade is made from whole or cut fruit. However, marmalade uses less variety of fruits. It can be helpful to think of marmalade as a specialized type of citrus preserve. Of all the jarred fruit spreads, preserves are made using the highest concentration of whole fruit pieces. Historically, marmalade used Seville oranges (in fact, its name comes from the Portuguese marmelo, aka quince). Nowadays, any citrus fruit gets the job done.

To make marmalade, citrus fruit, rinds, and pulp are boiled in sugar and water to lower the natural bitterness and soften the rinds. Thanks to the naturally high pectin content present in citrus fruits, marmalade easily thickens into a jammy consistency as it cooks down, but it remains dotted with toothy whole rind pieces. Those rinds are loaded with extra pectin and yield more flavor complexity. Marmalade features a signature bitter tanginess compared to jam's potentially one-note berry sweetness.

To serve, marmalade is spread on toast. It is also commonly used to make savory dishes like roasted duck, orange chicken, or umami-forward sauces for tuna poke bowls. This orange marmalade salmon with roasted fennel can level up your dinner party game. You can even upgrade whiskey sours with marmalade.