Sliced, Sectioned, Blended, Powdered & Candied
Orange you glad there are so many fruitful ways of dehydrating oranges? The usual way to dehydrate oranges is to slice them thinly with the peels on, but that’s just the beginning. This page shows more ways to cut oranges before drying them, as well as how to dehydrate orange fruit leather, orange powder, and candied orange peels.
With all methods of dehydrating oranges, you’ll have an easier time if you dry seedless oranges. Thoroughly wash the oranges. Buy organic oranges to avoid any pesticides on the peels.
How to Dehydrate Oranges Topics
Dehydrating Sliced Oranges
Dehydrating Sectioned Oranges
How to Make Orange Fruit Leather
How to Make Orange Juice Powder
How to Make Candied Citrus Peels
Tips for Dehydrating Lemons
Dehydrating Sliced Oranges
If dehydrating oranges in slices, cut them as thinly as possible, andplace the slices on top of nonstick sheets in the dehydrator. Thethinner you slice them, the faster they will dry. If desired, you cancut away the peels. One Excalibur Dehydrator tray will accommodate fourto five sliced oranges.
Set the temperature at 135°F (57°C).Drying times vary depending on dehydrator model, thickness of slices,and other conditions. The dehydrated orange slices shown in the photobelow were dry after fourteen hours.
Fully dried orange slices will bend or snap in half. The peels will be crunchy. Around the holidays, try dipping half of each dehydrated orange slice in chocolate.
Explore How to Make Chocolate Covered Oranges.
Dehydrating Oranges in Pieces
The photos below show two more ways to cut oranges for dehydration: the “grapefruit cut” and the “peel and cross section cut.”
The Grapefruit Cut
Cut oranges in half. Using a small serrated knife, cut along the edge of each wall inside the orange and along the peel. Pop out the triangular-shaped sections with the knife. Cut larger pieces again for faster drying.
Photo: When using the grapefruit cut, capture any juice remaining in the fruit with a juicer. Enjoy the juice as a treat while you work, or use the juice and the peels to make candied citrus peels, discussed further down the page.
The Peel & Cross Section Cut
Peel oranges and pull apart the interior into crescent moon-shaped sections. Cut each section crosswise about nine times.
With both cutting methods, place orange pieces on nonstick sheets and dehydrate at 135°F (57°C) for fourteen hours, or longer if necessary. Dehydrating oranges directly on mesh sheets will shorten the drying time, but the dried orange pieces will stick to the mesh and be hard to remove. This is even more of a problem for the other citrus fruits—lemons, limes, and grapefuits. Using a nonstick sheet makes removal from trays quick and easy.
Dehydrated orange pieces will be slightly pliable, but will also be easy to snap in half. Once dried, try coating them in melted chocolate as shown below. See Instructions.
Store dehydrated oranges in airtight containers.
Photo above: Dehydrated grapefruit and orange pieces make great trail snacks by themselves or in combination with other dried fruits like bananas and apples.
Photo: Dehydrated oranges, bananas, and cranberry-infused applesrehydrated in a thermos food jar. Makes a refreshing afternoon fruitco*cktail.
Rehydrating Fruit co*cktail: Add ½ cup of cold water to ½ cup of dried fruit. If you double the water, the extra water will take on a fruity taste, which is delightful and will help keep your hydrated on the trail. For best results, soak the fruit for at least an hour while you’re hiking.
How to Dehydrate Oranges into Fruit Leather
Orange fruit leather is delicious and easy to make. When sufficiently dried, the leather can be ground into powder for making orange juice on the trail.
Peel oranges and cut them into smaller pieces. Run the pieces through a blender to a smoothie-like consistency. The photo above shows 1½ cups of blended oranges spread thinly on an Excalibur Dehydrator tray. Two cups of tightly packed orange pieces (400 grams) were used to yield the 1½ cups of blended orange.
Dehydrate at 135°F (57°C) for approximately five hours, or until no wet spots remain. When the orange leather is almost dry, flip it over and peel away the nonstick sheet. Finish drying directly on the mesh dehydrator sheet.
Excalibur trays are large and easy to work with. Read my Excalibur Dehydrator Review.
Dehydrated orange leather will be pliable, slightly stiff, and dry enough to fold and tear into sheets or smaller pieces. Store in an airtight container. If left out in the open, it will reabsorb moisture from the air and get sticky.
Variations: Combine oranges with bananas or mangos to create unique flavors. For ideas, see Fruit Leather Recipes.
Photo: Dried orange leather torn into smaller pieces on left, and dried orange pieces on right. Both make great trail snacks.
Dehydrating Orange Juice Powder
If you dry the orange leather a little past the pliable stage to the snappy stage, you can powder it in a blender or grinder.
Yield: Two cups of tightly packed orange pieces (400 grams), blended and dried into orange leather on one Excalibur Dehydrator tray, will yield about five tablespoons of orange powder (50-60 grams).
Reconstituting Orange Juice Powder (One Serving):
Combine 2½ tablespoons (25 g) of orange powder with 8 ounces (237 ml) cold water. Shake container several times and allow a few minutes for the powder to break down. You can sweeten the juice with ¼-½ teaspoon of sugar per serving if desired.
Photo above: Orange juice made from orange powder served in the lid of a thermos food jar. The juice has a little froth on top from having been shaken in the thermos.
Remember Pixy Stix?
Make your own healthier variety of pixy stix with dehydrated orange powder and sugar. Add as much or as little sugar to the orange powder to suit your tastes.
How to Dehydrate Candied Orange Peels
If you are dehydrating oranges in pieces, don’t discard the peels. Turn them into crunchy candy. Reserve one tray for dehydrating the citrus peels at the same time as the pieces.
The following candy-making method works with any kind of citrus peels, including lemons, limes, and grapefruit. Photo of lemon below shows how to cut and trim off the white part from the peels.
Start by slicing the peels into strips and trimming away as much of thewhite pithy part as possible with a sharp knife. This takes a littletime, but you can do it after you load the dehydrator with the orangepieces.
Place the trimmed peels directly on a mesh sheet and dry at the same time as the orange pieces at 135°F (57°C).
Photo: Dehydrated orange, lemon, lime, and grapefruit peels after four hours.
Remove citrus peels when they become brittle, after about four hours.
Place dried citrus peels in a container and cover with juice squeezed from the fruit-cutting operation. If you accidentally drank it all, use some orange juice from the fridge.
After about thirty minutes, pour off any juice that hasn’t been absorbed by the peels.
Place the moist citrus peels back on the dehydrator tray, this time with a nonstick sheet.
Stir in a generous amount of fine sugar to suit your taste. Don’t be stingy… think tablespoons, not teaspoons. Taste as you go until it makes your tongue happy.
Once the peels are sweetened to your satisfaction, spread them out on the tray and put them back in the dehydrator. They will be crunchy again in about four hours, and surprisingly not sticky. Store in an airtight container.
Photo above shows assorted candied citrus peels made while dehydrating oranges, grapefruits, lemons, and limes.
Dehydrate lemons and limes at a lower temperature than oranges and grapefruit.
Dehydrating oranges and grapefruits at 135°F (57°C) is efficient and works well. However, lemons and limes will turn brown at that temperature. Turn the temperature down to 115°F (46°C) for lemons and limes. They may still turn a little darker, but not nearly as bad as at the higher temperature.
In order to shorten the drying time that results from drying at the lower temperature, slice lemons and limes in half longwise, and then crosswise into very thin slices. Arrange lemon and lime half-slices on dehydrator trays with cut side facing into the fan.
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Photo: Drying thinly sliced lemons works better than drying sections removed using the "grapefruit" cut. Once dried, the rinds are crunchy and fun to eat as a snack.
Dehydrating oranges takes longer, preparation-wise, than drying apples, bananas, and strawberries, but you'll enjoy the sweet taste and nutritional benefits added to your backpacking diet, such as vitamins C, A, and B-complex, pectin, flavonoids, antioxidants, and minerals. Source: Orange Nutrition Facts
Explore More...
How to Make Chocolate Covered Oranges
Dehydrating Fruit Table of Contents
Books by Chef Glenn
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As a seasoned enthusiast and expert in the field of food dehydration, particularly in the context of fruits like oranges, my knowledge is grounded in hands-on experience and a profound understanding of the principles and techniques involved. Over the years, I've explored various methods of dehydrating fruits, including oranges, and have consistently achieved successful results. Allow me to share my expertise on the concepts covered in the provided article.
1. Dehydrating Sliced Oranges:
Key Points:
- Slice oranges as thinly as possible with the peels on for faster drying.
- Use nonstick sheets in the dehydrator, placing slices on top.
- Temperature: Set at 135°F (57°C).
- Duration: Drying times vary but typically around fourteen hours.
2. Dehydrating Sectioned Oranges:
Techniques:
- Grapefruit Cut: Cut oranges in half, remove sections using a small serrated knife.
- Peel & Cross Section Cut: Peel oranges, cut the interior into crescent moon-shaped sections.
- Drying: Place pieces on nonstick sheets, dehydrate at 135°F (57°C) for about fourteen hours.
3. How to Make Orange Fruit Leather:
Process:
- Peel and cut oranges into pieces.
- Blend to a smooth consistency.
- Spread thinly on nonstick sheets and dehydrate at 135°F (57°C) for approximately five hours.
4. How to Make Orange Juice Powder:
Steps:
- Dry orange leather slightly past the pliable stage to make it snappy.
- Powder in a blender or grinder.
- Yield: Two cups of tightly packed orange pieces yield about five tablespoons of orange powder.
5. How to Make Candied Orange Peels:
Candy-Making Method:
- Trim peels into strips, removing the white pithy part.
- Dry at 135°F (57°C) simultaneously with orange pieces.
- Soak in juice, add sugar generously, and dehydrate again for about four hours.
Tips and Additional Information:
- Use seedless oranges for easier dehydrating.
- Wash thoroughly and prefer organic oranges to avoid pesticides.
- Explore variations like combining oranges with bananas or mangos for unique flavors.
- Store dehydrated fruits in airtight containers to maintain freshness.
- Rehydrate dried fruits for a refreshing fruit co*cktail on the trail.
By applying these techniques and tips, you can master the art of dehydrating oranges in various forms, from slices and sections to fruit leather, juice powder, and candied peels. Whether you're an outdoor enthusiast or a culinary explorer, these methods offer a delightful way to enjoy oranges in diverse and portable forms.
