Candied Orange Peel

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: candied orange peel

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings:

Calories: 325kcal

A great way to use fresh winter oranges! The finished candied peel is sweet, both crisp and chewy, with a slight bitter undertone.

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Ingredients

3 large oranges peel only
3 cups water
3 cups sugar
2-3 cups sugar additional, for coating

Instructions

Cut off the ends of an orange, then cut into the peel, creating 6-7 sections (as pictured above), while making sure not to cut too far into the orange itself.
Pull off the sections of peel, then press flat onto a cutting board and use a sharp knife to cut very thin (about 1/8" thick) slices of peel. If desired, before cutting into small strips, you may want to trim off some of the white (pith) from the underside of the peel. I did not trim mine (and the finished results were still delicious), but when I looked back at the picture of the Backwater Cafe waffle I think they may trim it a bit at the restaurant.
In a large pot, heat the water and sugar and stir gently until the sugar dissolves.
Add the strips of peel and cook over medium to medium-low heat (keeping a slow simmer) until the peel becomes translucent, this will take 45-60 minutes. (See photos above, in blog post, for reference)
When the peel is quite flexible (limp) and translucent, drain the peel from the cooking liquid. If desired, use the sugar syrup to sweeten iced tea.
Prepare a large dish (such as a 9"x 13" casserole dish) by adding about a cup of sugar to the dish. Add the drained orange peel, then layer with an additional cup or more of sugar until the peel is full covered. Allow the peel to sit, covered in sugar for 15 minutes or so (see photo below).
Remove orange peel from sugar and lay on a large cooling rack (with a baking sheet under to avoid a big mess). Feel free to save the sugar remaining in the dish, I added mine right back into my sugar canister (any remaining essence of orange would only enhance most recipes). Spread out the peel as much as possible so there is good air flow. Allow peel to sit out (at room temperature) for 48 hours. A couple times during the drying time, mix the peel around a bit, so that each piece is being exposed to air.
Once fully dry, the orange peel will be nice and crisp and can be stored in an airtight container of your choice and stored at room temperature. The dried, candied peel will last many months.

Notes

The proportions listed are simply what I used. Feel free to make as much or as little candied peel as you like.

I would highly suggest using organic oranges, since you will be eating the peel.

Nutrition