Kota-based British woman’s marmalade wins global award
KOTA: THERE WERE AROUND 3,000 ENTRIES IN THE CONTEST FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD IN 11 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES
A British woman settled in Kota won the ‘commonwealth category’ award for India in the World Original Marmalade Award-2018, held in the UK recently.
Victoria Singh, won the award for her ‘orange and ginger marmalade’, which she prepared using home grown organic bitter oranges, stone crushed locally grown root ginger and other ingredients, she said.
The Prince of Wales, Charles, tasted Victoria’s marmalade. “His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, Prince on his visit to Ullswater Steamers in Cumbria on Monday 26 March tasted my marmalade and Jane Hasell-McCosh, founder of the World Marmalade Awards, announced it as the winner and found it delicious,” Victoria told HT.
There were around 3,000 entries in the contest from all over the world in 11 different categories, of which 50 entries were in the commonwealth category. Of the 50 shortlisted commonwealth category entries, 13 from seven commonwealth countries were chosen as finalists and Victoria was adjudged the winner. The 13 finalists were from Canada, The Bahamas, India, Botswana, New Zealand, Kenya and Australia.
Victoria works for the conservation and promotion of Kota heritage through her Kota Heritage Society.
The orange and ginger, which Victoria used for preparing the marmalade, were grown at Colonel Sudhir Farm, situated 15 km south-east of Kota on the banks of Chambal river. She has been living on the farm for the last 20 years with her husband, Vijay Singh, who works in Scotland.
Victoria used organic skin and juice of the bitter oranges, white Indian sugar, stone-crushed locally-grown root ginger juice and powdered mountain rock salt to prepare the marmalade. “I have a small tree of bitter oranges, which was planted as a sweet orange, but the fruit has always been bitter and the only use of it is for marmalade,” she said. “Since I like marmalade and the tree is very pretty when laden with fruit, I have not cut it down,” she added.
India’s deputy high commissioner to the UK, Dinesh Patnaik also has all praise for Victoria’s marmalade. “Victoria Singh hailing from the town of Kota in Rajasthan has made us proud by producing in marmalade a truth we have always shared,” he said.
Singh said that her marmalade is an English recipe. When asked about plans of its commercial production, she said, “Marmalade has a small niche market in India, but I have been getting enquiries from all over India.”
“The winning marmalade was due to be copied in England and produced commercially for one year and sold by Partridges of London, which has the Royal Warrant, but they have decided not to go ahead,” she said. “If anyone wants to buy my recipe for commercial production, then a proportion of the profits would go to a charity of my choice as I hope to encourage palliative care in the home for terminal cancer patients as this does not yet exist in Rajasthan,” she added.