This is my mom's recipe, honed over the course of many years. Watch the video in the main post if you need an assist. Each batch makes about 1 ⅓ pounds.
Ingredients
1 ½poundskumquats
¼cupfine sea salt
1 ½cups(11 oz sugar)
Instructions
Wash the kumquats then use a bird’s beak paring knife (or regular paring knife) to cut three-quarter of the way through each, dropping them into a deep bowl. Add the salt and enough water to cover, then swish to dissolve the salt. Weight the kumquats down with a plate then let sit at room temperature for 3 hours to soften.
Drain but do not rinse the kumquats. To remove seeds in each kumquat, gently squeeze it between your fingers then use the tip of a bird’s beak knife to pry and usher out the seeds. Work over the sink or a bowl so the seeds may fall down and be easy to later dispose of. Put seeded kumquats in a wide pot like a Dutch oven where they may sit as one layer. (You will soon reuse the pot to candy the fruits.)
Add cold water to cover by half an inch or so, bring to a boil, then let cook for 2 minutes. Immediately drain in a colander. Press on the fruits and they should yield a bit.
In the pot you just used, stir together the sugar and ½ cup water. Warm over medium and when the mixture comes to a boil, add the kumquats. Cook at a gentle boil or swift simmer for 40 minutes, stirring or shaking the pan, to coax even cooking. Lower the heat around the 25 minute mark to coax penetration of the sugar syrup. The kumquats are done when the syrup has thickened substantially (there’s little visible liquid) and the kumquats are shiny orange. Watch the cooking during the last 5 minutes to prevent scorching.
Take the pan off heat and let the kumquats cool completely before eating, or transferring to an airtight container. Keep refrigerated for a few weeks, or freeze for 6 months.