Orange Overload - What to do with them.
Having a problem of too many oranges and have no idea what to do with them?
Mandarins will turn mouldy if you keep them for too long or they are kept moist. To get a longer lifespan from them, unbox the oranges and dry the damp skin, and leave them out.
When the visitings are done and you've completed your orange exchanges, start peeling those mandarins!
Store the peeled mandarins in a container and keep them in the fridge. They will not only keep longer, but it makes it so much more convenient to grab and eat whenever you feel like it.
Convenience means you'd probably finish it up sooner. Of course you could eat them as they are, but that's just boring!
So here are some other things you can do with those mandarins.
Don't bin those peels! There's so much you could do with them.
1) Dried Orange Peels
Dry those peels and use them in a myriad of ways!
According to an aunt, who makes the most yummy lotus root soup, she adds orange peels to flavour it. This is the way she dries them:
a. Leave the peels out in the sun to dry.
b. Once dried, steam the dried orange peels. Place peels directly on the steamer (with the holes), instead of putting it on a plate. This will apparently enhance the flavour.
c. Dry the peels in the sun again. Make sure it's dried completely before storing, or it'd turn mouldy.
d. Ta-da! You've got your dried orange peels!
What to do with dried orange peels?
Use them for flavouring soups and desserts. They work great with chinese soups and red bean desserts.
Drop them in your tea for a refreshing citrus twist.
Chop it up and mix it with herbs/sauces to marinade your chicken and fish.
Store them in your bottle of olive oil and let it infuse to make your very own citrus olive oil.
2) Fermented Citrus Cleaner.
Fermented citrus peels makes for a good cleaner and cuts through grease!
There are various recipes out there on how to do this, but i'm going with my mother-in-law's method:
a. Add 10 parts water to 3 parts peel in a 1 litre container, and add a teaspoon of sugar.
b. Make sure container is airtight, shake it up for a good mix and store it away.
c. Open it up periodically to let the gases out, especially in the first week.
d. Store away for three months to let it ferment.
e. After three months, strain it, and the liquid is ready to be used as a cleaner!
f. She adds a little bit of detergent to the mix, although it should work even without.
3) Orange Scrub
If the above is too much trouble, you could use the peels to scrub down your stove, backsplash, oven, sink, pots and pans, and just about anything you need to rid grease from!
4) Deodoriser
Peels get rid of bad smells.
Place them in the fridge/ oven/ bathroom to get rid of nasty smells and have them smelling of fresh citrus.
1) Alternative to Salad Dressing
One of my favourite things to add to a salad is orange pulp!
Orange pulp adds not only flavour, but also a nice pop of juice with each bite. They make for a healthy yet yummy alternative to salad dressing.
2) Pulp Cubes
Make ice cubes out of orange pulp and juice.
They can then be added to flavour water, ice tea, and other drinks!
3) Juice It
Juice the oranges of course! But more than just drinking the juice straight up, it can be used for baked goods - think muffins, orange drizzle cake, chocolate-orange torte! Mmm...
If after all of that, you've still got too many mandarin oranges then you know you've gone overboard with them. Buy less next year so they don't go to waste, and in the meantime, there's always google for more ideas!
Wishing you 大吉大利!
Tammy
