The perfectly free spice

Citrus zest bursts with flavor when mixed into or sprinkled on top of scones. Fresh zest, however, can clump when mixing with the dry scone ingredients and does not hold it flavor as well as dried zest.

Dried zest of oranges, lemons, and limes in easy to make and store and, best of all, with a little planning it’s free. Following the picking season, most citrus fruit is abundant and cheapest between November and end of February. Every time you use an orange, lemon, or lime to juice or eat, simply peel the skin and save it in a container or freezer bag in your freezer. That way you’ll have an ample, free supply of dried citrus zest anytime you need it.

The dried zest is perfect in and on top of scones but also in salads and any dishes calling for zest. Because dried zest is so powerful, you use half the amount in place of fresh zest.

Step by step instructions

Peel the skin of the citrus fruit:

Carefully peel the skin of the orange, lemon, or lime in long strips. Try to only peel the orange, yellow, or green portion of the skin without any of the white pulp underneath the skin. The white pulp is bitter.

Freezing the citrus peels:

Every time you eat or juice an orange, lemon, or lime first peel the skin. Store these peels in sealed containers or freezer bags for each fruit in your freezer. They will last in the freezer for at least 6 months.

When you need dried zest, as much as you need from the freezer and use it in the same way you would use the fresh peels. There’s no need to defrost them.

Dehydrating the citrus peels:

To create dried citrus zest, you need to dehydrate the peels. You can use a dehydrator, air fryer, or oven to do this. They will have to be dehydrated at 130° for an hour. This is easily done with a dehydrator. Most air fryers and ovens with an air fryer function have a dehydrate setting or otherwise let you set the temperature to 130°.

Layout the orange, lemon, or lime peels on a rack or racks with the skin side facing down. Arrange them so that some air will flow between them but they’re not on top of each other. If your dehydrator or air fryer allows it, you can stack multiple racks with the peels.

Dehydrate the peels 130° for one hour. For ovens without an air fryer or dehydrate setting, check to see if your oven can be set to 130°. If not, you may need to use a “warming” setting and manually check them every 15 minutes. They’re done the peels are dried and curled.

Chop the dried citrus peels:

Let the dried citrus peels cool for at least 15 minutes. Any moister left in them will evaporate by then. They need to be completely dry before chopping.

Place the dried peels in your mini chopper or other small food processor. Blend the dried peels into minute pieces.

If the peels don’t chop into small pieces you may need to put them back in the dehydrator for another 10-15 minutes. You can put the partially chopped and fully chopped peels back in the dehydrator until they are fully dried and brittle.

Dried citrus zest bursts with flavor. As a rule, you will use half the amount of dried zest than you use of fresh zest in any recipe.

Storage:

It’s important to make sure that your chopped dried citrus zest has no moisture in it before you store it. Without any moisture, it will keep its flavor for at least 6 months when properly stored.

Store it in a sealed jar or tightly sealed plastic bag. Keep it in a relatively cool, dark place. I keep my in my lazy Susan kitchen cabinet with other spices.