After a lifetime of the dull-flavoured chopped “peel” you find in the grocery store at Christmas time, this easy recipe is a true revelation. You can use any kind of citrus, and each variety will give you a different taste and texture experience.
We love eating candied peel on it’s own, or on a place with nuts and cheese, but it also makes an out-of-the-world incredibly in your homemade fruitcake, mincemeat or shaved thinly on your whipped shortbread.
Candied Peel
Enjoy these on a cheese and nut plate or as an ingredient in your Christmas baking.
Ingredients
- Your favourite citrus fruit oranges, lemons, grapefruit, limes, etc
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- ¾ cup water
Instructions
- Rinse the fruit.
- Remove the skin (peel and pith, the white part), and cut the skin into strips about ¼” wide. Set the fruit itself aside and plan something fantastic to make with it.
- Place the strips of peel in a large saucepan and cover with cold water.
- Set on the stove on high heat and bring to a boil. Drain the water from the peels and repeat this process twice more.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and ¾ cup water.
- Pour the sugar water into a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer. Let the mixture cook for 8-9 minutes at a constant simmer.
- Add the peel and cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour, adjusting heat as necessary to maintain the simmer. Avoid stirring, as this will cause crystallation. If necessary, swirl the pan to make sure that all of the peels get covered with the syrup. At the end of this period, the peels should be translucent.
- Drain any remaining syrup from the peels and set aside for other use (perhaps tea?!) There will probably be only a tablespoon or two of syrup left. Spread the peels out on a drying rack and leave to dry for 4-5 hours. Store in an airtight container with some granulated sugar at the bottom.