Learn to dehydrate oranges and create a bounty of sunshine all year long. They are perfect for snacking, for baking, for cooking, and for decor!
While citrus season is in the late winter and early spring in North America, good orange varieties are available all year round. You can take advantage of a great harvest season or a good sale at any time.
Oranges make an easy first project for dehydrators. A simple slice and dry is all that is needed! And they slices are so sweet that they make perfect snacks! And dip them in a little chocolate -- marvelous!
Let's get started!
How to Dehydrate Oranges
Quick-drying FAQ: Dry at 125°F/52°C for 18-36+ hours, until slices snap when cooled.
Step one
Wash oranges well. Even if using organic, you need to soak and wash the orange to remove any residue and wax that may be on the skins.
Soak in a 50/50 solution of water and vinegar for about 15 minutes. Scrub with baking soda if you feel it necessary.
Step Two
Slice into ¼" slices (6-7 mm). I find that using a good serrated bread knife works wonders to cutting grapefruit by hand.
Tip: If using a mandoline or meat slicer, cut the end of the orange to give yourself a flat surface.
Tip 2: PLEASE remember to wear a protective cutting glove when using a mandoline. Even if you can use the guard that comes with the machine, hands and surfaces become slick.
Step Three:
Place slices on trays. You can pack them fairly close together without overlapping. Some airflow is nice, but they don't need a ton of space, nor will they shrink much.
Dry at 125°F/52°C or lower for 18-36+ hours.
While the recommended temperature for fruit is 135°F/57°C, oranges often brown during the drying phase as the sugars brown from the heat. Dropping the temperature can help prevent that, though you do have to add a little more time to the drying process.
You can use a liner such as silicone mesh or parchment paper, but it's not generally necessary.
Tip: Flip your slices after the three to four hour mark, and every five hours to keep them from sticking to your trays.
Step Four:
Test. Allow a sample or two to come to room temperature. It is fully dry when you can snap it in two easily, and there is no moisture in the cells of the flesh.
Step Five:
Condition. The conditioning process is important to allow all of your slices to come to a median humidity and to check for any moisture issues. This helps prevent molding in storage.
Step Six:
Store in an airtight container for up to eighteen months, though you'll likely get a much longer time with proper storage techniques.
How to Use Dried Orange Slices
Your dehydrated slices will look so pretty in your containers on their own, but they have so many more uses than simply throwing in a bowl of potpourri.
Dip in chocolate to eat as treats or share as gifts - these should be immediately refrigerated and served within a few days.
Place in a bowl of sugar for an orange-flavor sugar that can be used in baking or finishing
Roast chicken: Place slices in the cavity or make a bed for the chicken to sit on.
Place slices on fish to bake.
Slip into a glass of water or tea to bring a bright orange flavor.
As a garnish on co*cktails
Decorating (Remember to spray with a protective coating if displaying any citrus on a wreath or other decoration for any period of time to seal it)
Simmer in a pot with cinnamon sticks, cardamon, allspice for an autumn/winter ambiance
How to Dehydrate Orange Segments
Some folks love to have dehydrated orange segments. I prefer doing canned mandarin oranges because they've had all the prep work done. However, if you are using fresh oranges, use smaller sweeter varieties to make this happen like Cara Cara, mandarin, etc.
Wash and peel oranges
Segment oranges and pull off the white connective tissue in the middle
Slit the membrane on both sides to allow the moisture from the segment to escape
-OR- Soak your orange segments in a solution of pectic enzyme to help remove the membrane (use the package directions to form the solution). This will give your orange segments the same consistency as you see in canned orange slices.
-OR- simply butterfly the segments (cutting down from the thicker side to just shy of all the way through, and laying them out flat, flesh side up)
Place on dehydrator trays and dry at 125°F/35°C or lower until completely dry - usually 18-36+ hours.
Condition if storing - no need if these are being consumed in a few days.
Store in an airtight container
Dehydrating Citrus Varieties
You can get more specific information on drying your favorite type of citrus here:
Citrus
Grapefruit
Lemon
Lime
Orange (Blood orange, mandarin, navel, Cara Cara, etc.)
How to Make Orange Powder
Dry fruit thoroughly with the instructions above. It's important that your orange slices be completely dry before powdering.
Break slices up into the grinder of your choice. I happen to use a NutriNinja most often, but a coffee grinder or large blender works well, too.
Pulse your grinder four or five times before commencing to a sustained grind.
Strain out the powder with a fine-mesh strainer, then grind the leftover bits again.
Condition: Place powder on parchment paper on a cookie sheet in a warmed (but off) oven OR back into your dehydrator in coffee filters, muffin papers, etc. to dry for 15-30 min
Allow to come to room temperature, then store in an airtight container, preferably with a moisture absorber. Follow these tips to help prevent clumping in orange powder.
LEARN MORE: 25+ Ways to Use Fruit Powder
Commonly asked questions
How long do dried orange slices last?
Typically, most dehydrated foods are best within a twelve to eighteen month window that you dry them, according to the National Center for Home Food Preservation. However, with proper airtight storage techniques, you're likely to get much longer time from them.
Can I eat the peels?
While orange peels are edible, you need to weigh the organic vs. conventional citrus debate about clean fruit.
Orange juice is made from the juice and pulp of oranges. With dehydrated slices, you can flavor water with the essence of orange, but it's not the same as orange juice.
It's been 24 hours and my oranges slices still aren't dry!
Time is relative when dehydrating. It depends on your machine, your home's humidity, the moisture in your fruit, how thick you've cut the slices, etc. Use the time mentioned as a window of time, not an exact. Keep drying if they aren't fully dried, yet!
Arrange orange slices on dehydrator trays, leaving room for air circulation. Set the dehydrator to 135 degrees F (fruit/vegetable setting). Start checking the orange slices after 2 to 3 hours. Depending on the thickness of the slices, it can take anywhere from 3 to 7 hours for the slices to completely dry.
Whole oranges take longer because of all that juice, you need to cut slits in the skin and put them in a very low oven for 12 – 24 hours. It's worth making a batch or two of meringues, drying some chilli, peppers and tomatoes at the same time with all that lovely heat!
The temperature your dehydrator runs at and the thickness of the orange slices you will be dehydrating will determine how long it takes to dehydrate orange slices completely. It could take anywhere from 5 hours to 18 hours to completely dry the orange slices until they are dry and brittle.
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.
Easy to travel with – dehydrated orange slices are a great hiking/camping/picnicking snack. They are easy to pack in a jar or a zip-lock bag and take with you anywhere you go. Preserving for long-term storage – just another way to keep oranges for a long term without the need for refrigeration.
To dry oranges in the oven, you'll want to preheat your oven to 200 degrees and prep a cookie sheet with a layer of parchment paper. Without the parchment or some sort of lining, the fruit will definitely stick to the surface, so just make sure you don't skip this step.
To avoid your dried orange slices from turning brown, it's best to dry them on the lowest temperature possible. They will turn brown if they're accidentally overcooked or burned. Dry orange slices may also turn more brown over time, as their natural colors fade over the years.
If your dried oranges are sticky or even slightly tacky to the touch, they are not fully dehydrated. Continue to dry them until they don't feel sticky at all.
If you have a dehydrator, arrange the orange peels on the trays. Make sure to keep them in a single layer so that the air can circulate around them. Choose the 135 degrees F setting and dehydrate for approximately one hour or until the peels are dry and crispy. The small pieces will start to curl as they dry.
Fruit is done dehydrating when it becomes leathery and is no longer sticky. Cut a few pieces in half and squeeze them – you shouldn't be able to squeeze out any moisture. Let the fruit cool and then condition (read about conditioning here) before storing.
The moisture content of home dried fruit should be about 20 percent. When the fruit is taken from the dehydrator, the remaining moisture may not be distributed equally among the pieces because of their size or their location in the dehydrator.
Heat oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 1 and line 2 baking sheets with baking parchment. Slice the oranges and apples very thinly, using a mandolin for the apples, if you have one. Arrange the slices on the trays, then bake for 45 mins-1 hr, turning halfway through cooking, until completely dried out.
Dry in the oven at 200°F.for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. If your orange slices are thick, they will take longer. After removing them from the oven, add more spices and/or sugar, if desired.
Pretreating fruits prior to drying is highly recommended. Pretreating helps keep light-colored fruits from darkening during drying and storage and it speeds the drying of fruits with tough skins, such as grapes and cherries.
Of course! You will relish the peel. Once your orange slices are dried, use them as a garnish when it comes to meals and co*cktails. You can also mix them in muesli and enjoy it.
Does dried orange garland attract bugs? Bugs are atrracted to the juice. So, as long as your orange slices are completely dry after dehydrating them, they will not attract bugs.
Organic dried oranges are an all natural treat. These dried orange slices are simply wonderful to snack on or to add to beverages such as tea. They have an invigorating citrus taste and aroma. Packed with vitamin C and antioxidants, organic dried oranges are a healthy addition to your diet.
The best way to dry oranges is to cut them into slices and then place them on a wire rack set inside a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.Place the baking sheet in the oven at 200°F (93°C) for 4 hours. Turn off the heat but leave the door closed.
cut your oranges into thin slices (roughly 1/3-inch thick) arrange the slices on a cookie sheet with parchment paper or tin foil. set your oven to the lowest possible temperature. Bake for 4-5 hours, flipping every 45 minutes or so, until dried.
Set the oven quite low about 180 degrees. Line a baking tray with tin foil. Slice four oranges about 1-2 cm thick. Lie them on tin foil in the baking tray, I studded a few with cloves and pressed a couple of star anise into the centre of some as an experiment.
Soaking the sliced fruit in an acidic solution preserves the color and texture of the dried fruits, and it increases the destruction of potentially harmful bacteria during drying.
If your dehydrated food feels soft, spongy, or sticky it's probably not dehydrated enough. Put the product back in for additional time. Hard and crunchy or breakable pieces are done. Yes, items can be over-dried and as a result are more difficult to rehydrate.
Slice your apples and oranges into ¼" thick slices. Press oranges between paper towels to remove excess moisture and lay flat on baking sheet. Slices can be next to each other but should not touch. Bake in oven for 6-8 hours until dry, opening oven periodically to release moisture.
Some airflow is nice, but they don't need a ton of space, nor will they shrink much. Dry at 125°F/52°C or lower for 18-36+ hours. While the recommended temperature for fruit is 135°F/57°C, oranges often brown during the drying phase as the sugars brown from the heat.
Essentially, the answer is no, you cannot overdry your dehydrated foods. The nuanced answer is this; You cannot overdry foods you plan on putting into storage. The drier it is, the better it will store.
Dried fruit is highly nutritious. One piece of dried fruit contains about the same amount of nutrients as the fresh fruit, but condensed in a much smaller package. By weight, dried fruit contains up to 3.5 times the fiber, vitamins and minerals of fresh fruit.
Syrup blanching fruit is a common pre-treatment of certain fruits before dehydration. The added sugar helps to sweeten tart fruit and acts as a good preservative.
Vegetables are dry when they are brittle, fruits when they feel like leather. After foods are dried, allow 30-60 minutes cooling time. Too long a cooling period allows moisture from the air to re-enter the food.
Typically, dehydrated fruit has a moisture content of about 25% and has a flexible, rubbery feel. Our dehydrated fruit's water composition has been reduced to a moisture content of 3.5%. Not pliable at this moisture level, our apple pieces break smartly in half when pressure is applied.
(Cue the Jeopardy music.) It can take up to 6 hours to thoroughly dry your citrus fruit at 175°F, while the slightly higher temp takes closer to 4 hours. I find it helpful to use a baking rack with parchment paper underneath to bake the slices more evenly and prevent the cookie sheet from getting sticky.
Strawberries are probably the easiest and quickest fruit to dry. Dry at 165 for 2-3 hours, then at 135 until leathery. Texture will resemble a raisin. Cherries take a very long time to dry, I'm not convinced it is economical to do it, but they sure are tasty!
Dry fruits are usually soak in any alcohol like rum, brandy or wine. Some use a mixture of rum and brandy. Soaking allows the dry fruits to soak up the alcohol which then plump up in the juice of alcohol.
To-be dehydrated fruits are placed in a dehydrator at 140 -170 degrees Celsius for about 8 to 10 hours. They gradually lose water. In the end, you have chewy, shrunk dried fruits.
You cannot overdry foods you plan on putting into storage. The drier it is, the better it will store. You might over dry fruit leather or jerky a little more than your taste preference is, but you cannot overdry food meant for food storage.
To make dried orange slices in a dehydrator simply set the temperature to 135F (60C), lay the slices out on the racks of the dehydrator and allow to dry out for approximately 5-7 hours.
If you have a dehydrator, arrange the orange peels on the trays. Make sure to keep them in a single layer so that the air can circulate around them. Choose the 135 degrees F setting and dehydrate for approximately one hour or until the peels are dry and crispy.
Dehydrated foods have a higher calorie content by weight and can be high in sodium and sugars, depending on the food. In excess, these nutrients can cause weight gain and increase your risk of obesity, heart problems, and diabetes.
Cut all citrus into 1/4″ slices.Arrange citrus slices in a single layer on your dehydrator trays.Place trays in dehydrator and dehydrate for 6-8 hours at 135F. After citrus has been dehydrated, store in an airtight container until ready to use.
Does dried orange garland attract bugs? Bugs are atrracted to the juice. So, as long as your orange slices are completely dry after dehydrating them, they will not attract bugs.
Introduction: My name is Kelle Weber, I am a magnificent, enchanting, fair, joyous, light, determined, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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