How to dry lemon peel
Canberra, it’s lemon season! This year we’ve got a freezer full of lemon ice blocks, so we’ll have lemon juice whenever we want, but what to do with the peels?
We love using every last bit of the lemon by adding the zest to soups and salad dressings, as well as using it in our own blends of herbal and black tea. If we cook with dried lemon peel, we’ll grind it into a fine powder using a food processor.
Here’s how to dry lemon peel so that you have it year round.
Use a vegetable peeler or a sharp paring knife to remove the zest from the pith.
Spread the pieces of peel out on an oven tray and put in the oven at 100C
Stir the peel every half hour or so.
The peel is dry when it’s reduced in size and become brittle. You shouldn’t be able to detect any moisture and flexibility in the pieces.
Depending on the moisture content of the lemon peel, and the type of oven you have, this should take 2-3 hours.
Allow to cool on the bench top, and store in an airtight jar or container.
If you’re planning to use the zest for cooking, grind in a food processor to a fine powder.
