Don't throw away those peels!
Before you peel any citrus fruit, wash the peel (the outsides) with soap and rinse well. Look at fruit make sure there are no cuts in the peels.
We really like navel oranges or the little cuties for this but any citrus will work.
You can eat the fruit like an apple, peel and all or as you peel it, save the peels for later.
Eat the peels before they dry or lay them up to dry and chew on the dried peels or cut into smaller pieces before you dry to add to teas, tinsures, oils you are heating. I have added dried pieces to elderberry and to blueberry syrups.
The peels are said to kill the strep viruses. When your eating them if you have a sore throat it burns like heck but the strep was gone without taking antibiotics.
Comments
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I like dried orange peel for adding to teas, and I add some to cranberry sauce along with walnuts for a tasty treat. I want to try doing candied peels, too.
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You can also add them to some vinegar and make a cleaning spray Out of it.
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@Mary Linda Bittle I use zest in sugar as lemon or orange sugar for baking. Works a treat and is so much cheaper than buying the stuff.
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Citrus peels are considered a bitter, despite their somewhat sweet taste. So they make a great addition to homemade bitters. In Rosalee de la Foret's new book, Wild Remedies, there is a recipe for Douglas Fir and Mandarin Bitters (I got to be one of the testers for it). Lovely recipe!
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@bcabrobin I am not a big fan of oranges but when I have organic lemons I eat it like an apple, the peel, and the flesh.
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I like the peels candied.
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Wow! Thank you everyone for your input. I've been stuck in "lemon zest" mode for too long. I have some experimenting to do.
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I've always used them to make cleaning solutions - nice have some other uses now too! Thanks :)
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We have done candied peels. It is easy & very tasty! For us, this is a Christmas treat. I guess it is a tasty way to enjoy your bitters.
I have also put orange peels & lemon peels into raw honey to make the most delicious honey. After a couple of weeks, when you take the peels out, they are also like candy...so good!
I like to use the peels in water as an air freshener too. I put a bit in a pot with cinnamon, cloves & whatever else I feel like throwing in and let it simmer. Of course, you have go make sure you don't let it go dry.
Something everyone should keep in mind (I am sure that I am preaching to the choir) if you are heating or eating the peels is that you should choose organic/unsprayed only. You cannot wash the sprays off with anything as they go throughout the peel and eating/heating those pesticides just can't be a good thing.
Keep in mind as well that many oranges are spray painted as such to make them look brighter & healthier.
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I have also made lots of cleaning fluids from orange peels and vinegar. I keep the spray bottle near the tub and sink and it just takes a little bit to dissolve stuff off. It smells ok too and I know there is no deadly chemical besides the vinegar and orange acids. I have read that such an acidic wash is not ideal for EVERYTHING. For example painted things might not accept such a solution. Also read that the finished bottle of vinegar that has eventually soaked up the orange acids is concentrated and should be mixed with water to make it less acidic. I, however, have just been using it full strength. Wait to see if my sinks dissolve away over time.......
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I’ve used the orange or lemon peels diffused in vinegar to make my cleaning concentrates. It’s amazing. I also use organic peels which I cut into small pieces and dry in the oven on low for my herbal tea blends. I store them in a mason jar.
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You can infuse the peels (along with other herbs if you want) in olive oil to make a delicious citrus base for salad dressings.
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Putting a few pieces down the garbage disposal cleans it and makes the kitchen smell wonderful!
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I saved organic orange peels, dried them and then ground them up to use as Vitamin C. You can add lecithin to it if needed.
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I've used lemons and oranges (use organic ones) i wash the whole oranges and lemons and limes and slice then put them into water and let sit overnight and drink first thing in the morning before anything else just a small cup
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I may have missed it and sorry if I did, but does anyone have a recipe for candied peels?
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@bkpelfrey this one looks fantastic with lots of variations
https://roux44.com/2017/01/26/honey-candied-orange-peels-recipe/
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'Mary's Nest' on YouTube recommends preserving citrus (lemons, limes, and tangerines) complete with peels in salt!
The juice and peels can then be used together or separately.
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I love finding new ways to cut down on my waste. Normally I'd toss these in my compost but I love all these other ideas to try.
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Lots of people suggest candied peels but take it to the next level. Dip those bad boys in chocolate!
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I will have to try some of these. Interesting. I use money as cleaners and instead of air fresheners
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I dry a lot of peels for tea. I also make the vinegar cleaner that others have mentioned. I am certain we'll be visited by carpenter bees again this spring, so I'm going to try this to deter them:
Mix strained citrus vinegar, tea tree oil and cedar oil (the recipe I have didn't give amounts). Spray on and in bee holes. Plug holes with steel wool.
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Organic lemon peels are so valuable, for their health benefits
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I used to throw the peels away but now everyone thinks I am crazy when I grab the peels before they can throw them in my compost bin. I have dried them, infused them in oil, vinegar, vodka, I bake with them, I candied them...the list goes on and on.
Once our brains reset to thinking of using the scrapes like our ancestors did you begin to look at everything differently. Bones become broth, veggies broth, medicine making, cleaning, room freshening...all aspects of our lives can change.
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@Max Riben , I have seen that before. I think I'm going to try it once. Thanks for sharing!
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I just squeeze the lemon seeds out and get rid of part that attaches to tree. I use the whole lemon minus seeds ground up with cup of water and 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and that gets rid of mucus on an empty stomach. I add some cranberries for flavor. The whole lemon is edible minus the seeds.
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There is more vitamin C in the white pith part of the orange rind than in the juice. The pith is also good for detoxing the body.
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We dry them and make zest for our recipes! Very lovely.
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I love this post! My husband used to give me a hard time for drying out our citrus peels. I was a budding herbalist trying to find the best ingredients for my apothecary when I saw the cost of buying dried organic orange peel was higher than the cost of buying the whole orange. At that point who wouldn’t do the same?
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Good suggestions. I want to make some cleanup spray now
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