How To Make Dried Mandarin Oranges Easy?

If you enjoy the juicy, succulent taste of fresh mandarin oranges, then you’ll most certainly love them as dried mandarins. Having dried fruit like cherries, apricots, blueberries and mandarin oranges are great for you to snack on, without having to buy a fresh batch every so often. Also it’s always nice to have some dried fruits as a healthy alternatives to chocolates, crisps and so on. Drying mandarin oranges is a fairly easy process, but I will say that it does require precision, as with any task involving food should.

Table of Contents

• What Are Mandarins?
• What Does Mandarin Orange Taste Like?
• What About The Peel?
• How To Dehydrate Mandarin Oranges At Home?
  • Instructions:
• Sun Dried Mandarin Orange Peels
• Dehydrating Clementine Segments
• Citrus Please
• FAQs

What Are Mandarins?

Tangerines and clementine’s are two varieties of mandarins, and are both prized for their sweet flavour; soft easy to peel skins. Clementine’s are smaller and are actually sweeter than tangerines, more often than not they’re eaten as an afternoon snack, replacing the sweetness of your favourite sugary snack, with little wedges of purity.

Mandarins contain Vitamins A, B and a high level of Vitamin C which is great for preventing infections, removing free radicals, and supporting skin health. The Vitamin C found in mandarins work to stop colds and keep your immune system functioning properly so you can fight off any nasty bugs that come at you!

What Does Mandarin Orange Taste Like?

If you’d like to try some dried mandarin oranges for yourself then I recommend Paradise Green Mandarin Oranges. Mandarin oranges are considered sweeter and stronger than the common ripe orange, a ripe mandarin is heavy with a slightly firm to soft texture, and pebbled skin. They have a vanilla and spicy component in their flavour profile, with an overpowering citrus aroma that is quite pleasant and fresh smelling. Similarly dried mandarin oranges have a deliciously sweet taste, with a delightful smell that can leave your house smelling heavenly.

What About The Peel?

Mandarin orange peels can be dehydrated and tossed into a food processor, then added as an ingredient for marinades. They work as a brilliant flavouring element in both sweet and savoury dishes, providing the perfect sweet to bitterly pungent taste. Additionally mandarin oranges are great in promoting healthy skin, by eliminating blemishes, fine lines and wrinkles, which is why the orange peel is sometimes used as a homemade body scrub. It is worth mentioning – though some may find this absurd – that fresh mandarin orange peels can be eaten with other fruits, they don’t necessarily have to be dried, blended, or juiced and added to foods or drinks. Rather they can quite easily be popped into your mouth as you enjoy the taste and textures of juicy mandarin orange wedges.

How To Dehydrate Mandarin Oranges At Home?

Fortunately for us fruit lovers we can easily dry our mandarin oranges from our own home with a dehydrator. You’ll notice that a fully dehydrated mandarin slice will feel dry, it shouldn’t make your fingers feel uncomfortably sticky when you touch it. These dried orange wedges can be torn in half, but won’t crumble, whereas a dried but not fully dehydrated mandarin slice will feel slightly moist, sticky, and chewy like a raisin.

Instructions:

• Remove the peel of the orange, and set it aside to be dehydrated separately (unless you plan otherwise)
• Section the oranges and spread the orange wedges on the dehydrator tray.
• Coat the mandarin wedges with a light drizzle of lemon juice.
• Dehydrate for 10 to 12 hours at 125 degrees Fahrenheit. If you want a chewier finish then you can reduce the hours of dehydration to 8 hours instead, bearing in mind that they’ll need to be consumed over a few weeks, and not years.
• Store in a vacuum sealed bag for long term use.

Sun Dried Mandarin Orange Peels

Although some people may never consider eating a whole dried mandarin peel, it is a popular ingredient in Chinese cuisine, where it is used as an aromatic. The process must be executed carefully, keeping the orange juices from wetting the peel, which can cause it to spoil while drying.

To dry these orange peels in the sun, place them on a sheet pan and place it where the sun’s rays directly hit the surface, so that these oranges can get the maximum heat needed to begin crippling. As long as its not too humid, turn the peels once a day for 5 days until they’re completely dry.

Dehydrating Clementine Segments

Citrus fruits like clementine are basically just water, so to dehydrate this juicy fruit you’re going to start with peeling or washing the orange, slice the clementine into 3/8 inches. Place them on dehydrating trays and set the temperature to 135 degrees for 12 hours.

Citrus Please

Mandarin oranges are a wonderful treat to have as a snack, or when you’re watching a movie and have the urge to throw something in your mouth whilst your eyes are glued to the screen. Which is why having a packet of dehydrated mandarin orange wedges is the perfect alternative, whether you choose to purchase them, or make them at home, they’re definitely worth having.

FAQs