How to remove zest from an orange at home

Orange zest is a fruit peel without a white soft part, which is located directly behind the orange layer. The flesh is bitter. The zest is therefore removed with great care and caution in order to pick up only the top layer. In the article, we will consider how to remove the zest from an orange on your own.

Why is this needed?

This is not a difficult task at all, absolutely anyone can do it. In the future, the crust can be used to give a special shade of taste and aroma to a wide variety of dishes, and sometimes drinks. Zest is added to confectionery, salads, seasonings and even to borsch.

Fruit preparation

Orange must first be washed. This is especially important if you want to use the zest removed for cooking. Rub the crust vigorously with a clean sponge or rag dipped in hot water and soap. You can pour boiling water over the surface.

Let us further consider how to remove the zest from an orange without a white layer. This can be done in several ways, using different devices.

How to remove zest from an orange with a grater?

To do this, prepare a fixture with small holes. It is placed on a cutting board so that the perforated portion is outside. Do not forget to hold the grater handle so that it does not go to the base. Next, we perform such actions:

1. Start rubbing only the orange layer of the peel, without touching the white flesh. You need to be extremely careful at this moment. Movements must be made in a single direction - from top to bottom.
2. Turn the fruit a little and then do the same manipulations. As soon as the white pulp appears visually, then unwrap the orange again with the pristine side. This process must be repeated until only the bright part of the peel layer remains, or until the necessary amount of product is collected to prepare any dish.

It is better not to touch the zest from the lower and upper parts of the fetus, even if the orange layer remains there.

How to use a peeler?

Before removing the zest from the orange, wash the surface of the fruit well. Next, do the following:

1. Gently and slowly, slide the vegetable cleaner along the surface of the fruit in a downward motion. Try not to touch the white pulp under the skin.
2. Then the orange strips of the peel should be chopped as much as possible, and then you will get the real orange zest.
3. A product that is collected by this method will have a slightly less saturated aroma than if obtained using a simple grater. But it is worth considering that in this way the zest will be extracted in volume more than by other methods. But its pieces will turn out to be larger and not very presentable visually.

Using a vegetable cutter, you can make a flavoring supplement for a cocktail from the zest. To do this, as described previously, remove the wide and short strip of peel. Position it close to the surface of the liquid and twist with two fingers, thumb and forefinger, to make orange oil stand out. You can also rub the skin on the edge of the glass, so that the cocktail seemed more intense fruity aroma.

But if the white flesh gets into the drink, the bitterness will immediately become very noticeable in it. Therefore, if the light part remains on the orange strip, you can try to carefully remove it with a knife.

So, we looked at how to remove the zest from an orange grater and vegetable cutter. We offer several recommendations on how to get a high-quality product.

Useful Tips

In order to get a high-quality product and easily remove the zest from an orange, consider the following:

1. To cook orange zest without the extraneous taste that various impregnations give, try to choose organic fruits that have not been treated with chemicals.
2. It is advisable to pick fruits with a thick and dense skin.
3. If before removing the zest from the orange, cool the fruit, then removing it will be many times easier. In addition, less juice is lost during cleaning.
4. The dish in which you are going to add this ingredient will receive a maximum of orange flavor if you use only the smallest zest, because it has a larger surface from which orange oil comes out.
5. Try to use the fresh product immediately after it is received, the fruit aroma weakens over time.
6. If oranges are used mainly in order to get the zest, then it is better to keep them in the freezer. Then you can remove the top layer from the frozen fruit. Manipulation can be done much easier than at room temperature.

If there are difficulties with washing the grater after removing the zest, then you can not wash it at all. To do this, after the procedure, place the device in a warm and dry place where the air circulates well. Wait until the remnants of the peel on the surface of the appliance have dried, and then simply wipe it with a dry cloth to remove the remnants.