Stovetop Mulled Apple Cider

Steps

1. Pour the cider into a large saucepan or pot and add the orange slices, cinnamon sticks, cloves and ginger.
2. Warm over medium heat until it steams and tiny bubbles form at the edges.
   ⏱ Warm cider: 10 min
3. Lower the heat and keep it just below a

   simmer (how to simmer)

   Simmer Cook liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles breaking the surface now and then. 1. Bring the liquid up over medium-high heat.2. As soon as bubbles rise steadily, turn the heat down.3. Adjust until only a few small bubbles break the surface every second or two.4. Stir now and then and check that it hasn't crept back to a boil. Done when: You see lazy, small bubbles, not a rolling boil. A "bare" simmer has just a bubble here and there. Safety: Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to simmer: mistakes to avoid

   so the spices steep without the cider

   boiling (how to boil)

   Boil Heat liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. 1. Use a pot big enough that the water fills it no more than three quarters.2. Cover it to boil faster, over high heat.3. Salt pasta or vegetable water once it boils.4. Add the food, stir, and bring it back to a boil before you start timing. Done when: A rolling boil keeps bubbling hard even when you stir. Safety: Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove, and drain pasta into a colander in the sink, pouring away from you. Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to boil water for pasta and vegetables: mistakes to avoid

   .
   ⏱ Steep spices: 25 min
4. Taste and stir in brown sugar if your cider is tart.
5. Ladle into mugs through a small strainer, or scoop out the spices first.

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Tips

• For a party, move the cider to a slow cooker on low or warm to keep it hot for a few hours.
• Loose cloves are easiest to fish out tied in a square of cheesecloth.

Storage

Strain, cool and refrigerate up to 5 days. Reheat on the stove.

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage.