Candied citrus peel makes a great addition to any citrus dessert. It is so simple to make, utilizes the skin of the fruit (a part that often gets discarded) and stores for a long time in your pantry. I use candied orange peel to garnish the top of my Grand Marnier Soufflé.
Peel from any citrus fruit can be candied. I have used everything from limes and tangerines to grapefruit and pomelo. Citrus peel can be cut into any shape before it is candied. The most common shape is a very thin matchstick shape, or julienne as you see above. Below, I used a tool called a channel knife to create long lemon peel strips that I candied in the same way. Follow the first 3 steps below and let the peel cool slightly. Wrap the lemon peel around a chopstick in a tight spiral and sprinkle with granulated sugar, coating it well. Allow it to dry for a few hours and remove the chopstick. Sprinkle with more sugar if necessary.
With thicker pieces of peel, allow it to dry at least overnight, or until the peel is dry to the touch and the spiral holds it shape when held. Other shapes I have candied are larger strips (as if it came off from a wedge, I dipped them in chocolate as you can see below) with 2 pointy ends, diamonds and rounds of various sizes.
Candied Orange Peel
Course: DessertCuisine: FrenchDifficulty: Easy10
servings15
minutes20
minutesIngredients
4 oranges
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Directions
- Using a sharp knife, remove as much of the white pith as possible from the orange skin. The white pith is very bitter, so removal is imperative.
- Slice the skin into very thin strips and place in a small saucepan with 1 cup of cold water. Bring to a boil, drain off the liquid, and continue again with another cup of cold water. Continue this blanching three times.
- Drain off the last of the water and place 1/4 cup of the sugar in the saucepan with the orange peel along with 1/4 cup of cold water. Place the pan over medium-high heat and reduce, stirring, until all of the liquid is gone.
- Turn the peel out onto a piece of parchment paper and toss with the remaining 1/4 cup of granulated sugar. Let dry for about 1 hour and place in a covered container until serving. Store at room temperature.